Technological, nutritional and functional properties of wheat bread enriched with lentil or carob flours

- Carob seed flours increased tenacity and water absorption of wheat dough.
- Lentils flour reduced tenacity, stability and strength of wheat dough.
- Blends of wheat/legume flours produced bread with acceptable volume, texture and taste.
- Legume increase lysine, dietary fibre, phenols and lignans in wheat bread.
- Legume flours increased antioxidant activity of wheat bread.

Blending wheat flour with carob seed or green lentil flour at 5-6%, 10-12% or 24% level modified the dough's technological properties and bread characteristics. Carob seed flours increased dough tenacity while reducing extensibility, whereas lentil flour reduced dough tenacity, extensibility and strength. Carob seed flours increased water absorption up to about 40%. Flours from all legumes increased dough development time (carob flours more than lentils flour). Lentil flour strongly decreased the stability due to weakening of the gluten network. In a baking test, however, all blends gave acceptable loaves. Blending the wheat flour with 5-6% legume flour generally did not alter the loaf volume. However, increasing the legume flour to 10-12% or 24% reduced the loaf volume, except when supplemented with refined carob seed flour at 10%, which increased it. Carob flour and especially lentil flour enriched bread with lysine-rich proteins, dietary fibre, phenolic compounds and lignans and in general increased its antioxidant power.The nutritional value of lentils and the technological properties of carob are useful in increasing nutritional and functional value of wheat bread.