Dear Colleagues,

The journal Foods will be publishing a Special Issue “Quality Evaluation and Functional Food Development of Cereals, Pseudocereals and Pulse Products, Volume II”.

In the recent decades, consumer expectations in the field of food production have changed considerably. Modern consumers are increasingly demanding food with a high qualitative standard which arises from the use of high-quality raw materials. Moreover, today, foods are not only intended to satisfy hunger and provide the needed nutrients but also to prevent nutrition-related diseases and improve physical and mental well-being. In this regard, cereals, pseudocereals, and pulses, representing the most important agricultural products for human and animal nutrition worldwide, play an outstanding role. These crops and their products are important staple foods, providing essential nutrients and bioactive compounds, and can be easily functionalized. With regard to wheat, bread is an essential part of the diet throughout the world and is consumed daily, so it represents an ideal food to vehicle health-promoting substances. The other baked goods and pasta can also act as ideal functional foods. Today, advances in food science and technology have led to a wide range of strategies to produce cereals, pseudocereals, and pulse-based functional products.

Therefore, considering the high interest in quality assessment and development of functional foods from cereals, pseudocereals, and pulses as an emerging challenge for modern food industries, this Special Issue will cover a wide variety of related areas, with the aim of contributing to the overall knowledge of different quality aspects, such as physical–chemical, rheological, technological, microbiological, and sensorial aspects.

You may choose our Joint Special Issue in Plants. 

Dr. Alfio Spina
Prof. Dr. Antonella Pasqualone
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• soft and durum wheat
• minor cereals
• pseudocereals
• pulses
• physicochemical and sensory quality
• rheology
• microbiological characteristics
• functional and nutraceutical foods
• bread and other bakery products
• pasta

Title: Artichoke industrial waste in durum wheat bread: effects of two different preparation and drying methods of flours and evaluation of quality parameters during short storage
Authors: Michele Canale¹*, Rosalia Sanfilippo¹, Maria Concetta Strano², Margherita Amenta², Maria Allegra², Ilaria Proetto³, Martina Papa², Rosa Palmeri³, Aldo Todaro⁴, Alfio Spina^1,*
Affiliation: ¹ Council for Agricultural Research and Economics (CREA), Research Centre for Cereal and Industrial Crops, Corso Savoia, 190, 95024 Acireale, Italy.
² Research Centre for Olive, Fruit and Citrus Crops, Council for Agricultural Research and Economics (CREA), Corso Savoia, 190, 95024 Acireale, Italy.
³ Department of Agriculture, Food, Environment (Di3A), University of Catania, via S. Sofia, 98, 95123, Catania, Italy.
⁴ DSAAF—Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Forestali, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, 12 Ed. 4, 90128 Palermo, Italy.
Abstract: The artichoke cv. ‘Violetto di Ramacca’ is a local variety, grown in Sicily (Southern of Italy), typical for its purple colour with green streaks. In this study the effects of two different preparation and drying methods (method A, fresh sample oven-dried at 40 °C for 48 h, then mixed and ground into flour; and B, minced and frozen sample, oven-dried at 40°C for 24 hours, then blended and ground into flour) of flours from different parts of the artichoke (bracts, stems and mix), used at different percentages of integration (5, 7.5 and 10%) in combination with re-milled semolina, have been evaluated. The polyphenol contents of the flours produced with the two methods were measured. The results showed significant differences between the methods and between the samples, with a range from 9.09 mg GAE/g d.m. (bracts 100%, method A) to 2.62 mg/g (mix 100%, method B). The values were then lowered in the flour products with supplements ranging from 0.96 mg GAE/g (bract flour 10% method A) to 0.11 mg GAE/g (mixed flour 7.5% method B). As the amounts of polyphenols increased, that of the antioxidant activity increased with a range that varied in the pure flour from 8.59 mg trolox eq/g d.m. (bract flour method A) to 3.83 mg trolox eq/g d.m. (mix flour method B) These flours were also analyzed for colour highlighting a clear difference between methods A (greener) and B (browner). The flours thus obtained were used to produce the breads, which were evaluated for their physico-chemical characteristics during the 4 days of storage. The results showed a reduction in volumes and heights compared to the controlan increase in the percentage of integration of the artichoke flours, a greater quantity of moisture in the integrated breads and a lower reduction in the structural characteristics during storage, compared to the control breads. The texture profile analysis was conducted on the breads from T0 to T4, highlighting that, although initially more compact, the integrated breads offered less alteration of the values during storage than the control. The water activity ranges from 0.63 (bread with mix flour 5% method B) to 0.90 (bread with bract flour 5% method B). The amounts of polyphenols (from 0.57 mg GAE/g in bread with bracts at 10% method A to 0.13 mg GAE/g in bread with mix 5% method B) and the antioxidant activity (from 0.55 mg trolox eq/g d.m. in bread with bract flour 10% method A and not detectable in control bread) were also evaluated, with a trend, similar to the values obtained in the flours. Colourimetric tests highlighted a colour more similar to a wholemeal bread of the breads produced with method B, compared to those produced with method A, which tended towards a greenish colour. Statistical factor analysis and Cluster analysis were conducted for all trials.