Lentil Fortified Spaghetti: Technological Properties and Nutritional Characterization

Lentil (Lens culinaris), consumed as a part of the diet worldwide, is a functional dietaryingredient that plays a function in human nutrition as a rich source of bioactive nutrients (low quantitiesof fat, sodium, and vitamin K; high content of potassium, essential amino acids, insolubledietary fiber, and polyphenols). In this study spaghetti fortified with lentil flours (40% w/w) weredeveloped and characterized. The addition of two different lentil flours significantly affected thesensory attributes and cooking properties of dry spaghetti. Therefore, the addition of carboxymethylcellulose was adopted as technological option to improve the quality of fortified pasta; specifically,sensory acceptability, cooking loss, swelling index, and water absorption were studied. Chemicalresults highlighted that the addition of lentil to semolina significantly increased the content of lysineand threonine. It was observed an increase in essential and branched-chain amino acids. Contrary towhat was expected, no increase in mono and polyunsaturated fatty acids was observed in fortifiedspaghetti, due to their loss during cooking, even after the addition of carboxymethyl cellulose.