Chemical and organoleptic properties of bread enriched with Rosmarinus officinalis L.: The potential of natural extracts obtained through green extraction methodologies as food ingredients
The potential of R. officinalis L. (RO) extracts as a source of aromas was accessed by hydrodistillation (HD) and
supercritical fluid extraction using carbon dioxide (SFE-CO2), followed by a series of analysis: quantification by
GC-MS, sensory perception and description, and cytotoxicity against Vero cells. The extracts shown abundancy of
α-pinene, eucalyptol, S-verbenone and camphor, contributing for the green, fresh, citric, and woody as main
sensory notes. The odour threshold (ODT) value (less than 3.0 × 10- 3 μg⋅mL- 1) and the cytotoxic potential (ca.
220 μg∙mL- 1) defined the concentration range for food application. The most promising extract was added to
bread doughs and the final volatile profile was characterised by GC-MS through HS-SPME over time. Among the
34 compounds found, furfural showed an evident contribution in the bread crust aroma, which persisted over
four hours of storage, contributing to a pleasant bread fragrance according to the evaluators. This study aims to
represent a stepping stone for the use of natural aromas as ingredients for the development of innovative food
products.
This work was funded by the European Regional Development Fund
(ERDF) through the Regional Operational Program North 2020, within
the scope of Project Mobilizador Norte-01-0247-FEDER-024479: ValorNatural
®. This work was also supported by LA/P/0045/2020 (ALiCE),
UIDB/50020/2020 and UIDP/50020/2020 (LSRE-LCM), and UIDB/
00690/2020 (CIMO) funded by national funds through FCT/MCTES
(PIDDAC). L. Barros and R. Calhelha also thank the national funding by
FCT, P.I. through the institutional scientific employment and individual
program-contract, and Júlia Cristiˆe Kessler acknowledges her Ph.D
scholarship (ref. 2020.06656.BD) by FCT.
