Evaluacion nutricional de barras de cereales y mani y efecto de antioxidantes en la estabilidad de almacenamiento.

espagnol; castillan. As a way to increase the nutritional value of cereal or granola bars, three types of bars were made as follows: CM1, based on wheat germ, toasted oatmeal, and toasted peanuts; CM2, based on wheat germ, toasted oatmeal, toasted peanuts, toasted amaranth seed with candied covering and extruded whole wheat seed with candied cover; CM3, based on wheat germ, toasted oatmeal, toasted peanuts, popped amaranth seed and extruded whole wheat seed with candied covering. The main objectives of this study were to determine: the protein quality of cereal bars, by a protein nutritional evaluation, their storage stability at room temperature during 90 days, and the antioxidants effect on these bars during storage. The nutritional evaluation of the bars was made for 28 days with male and female Wistar 21 day old rats to determine the Protein Efficiency Ratio (PER), Net Protein Ratio (NPR), and Apparent Protein Digestibility (DAP). The bars were packed in polyethylene-polypropylene-aluminum bags and stored at room temperature during 90 days. Water activity (Aw), moisture, and peroxide value were evaluated and a sensory evaluation was carried out to determine the bars acceptability and quality. Amaranth seeds were included in the CM2 AND cm3 BARS to give a good protein quality, but the nutritional evaluation gave a low value in the CM3 bar. The best nutritional value was shown by the CM1 bar followed by the CM2 bar. The moisture content of the bars with antioxidants was similar to that of the control bars, whereas their Aw was superior to that of the controls due to the influence of the ethanol contained in the antioxidants on the measuring equipment. The bars with antioxidants showed a peroxide value lower than that of the control bars. The maximum peroxide values for the bars with antioxidants and without them were obtained at 60 days of storage. The sensory analysis indicated that the quality and acceptability of the product was similar between the bars with antioxidants and those without them, the CM1 and CM2 bars showing the best sensory characteristics. The CM1 and CM2 bars showed the best nutritional, sensory and keeping quality characteristics.