Nutritional, Antioxidant, Sensory, Energetic, and Electrical Properties of Enriched Pasta

The aim of the presented study was to determine the nutritional properties (dry matter, total protein, ash, and selected amino acid content), antioxidant properties (antioxidant activity; total polyphenol, flavonoid, and phenolic acid content; total carotenoid, chlorophyll, and anthocyanin), and sensory profile (general appearance, flavor, taste, aftertaste, overall acceptability) of pasta enriched with powdered nettle leaves, elderberry fruit, and carrot in additions of 3%. A control variant without the addition of plant material was prepared for comparison of the results. Two of our samples of pasta (with nettle and carrot) had lower calorific values by approximately 17%. However, the energy value of the pasta was not significantly affected by added substances. Electrical properties (resistance, impedance) were also measured, and resistivity was calculated. We found that impedance and resistivity were influenced by added components in pasta. In the frequency range from 20 kHz to 100 kHz, we were able to use the measured dependencies of the mentioned electrical properties to identify the type of addition to the pasta. Correlations exist between the electrical properties and nutritional properties of enriched pasta samples, and could be used to indetify value-added pasta in processing chain digitalization.