The effect of production process on antioxidant compounds in enriched pasta.

The importance of antioxidant compounds in foods and for the human body is well known and it is mainly due to their oxidative stability and functional properties (1). The aim of the study was to evaluate the antioxidant effect in pasta enriched in antioxidant compounds (phenols and tocols). The concentrations of antioxidant compounds were assessed in raw flours, and in crude and cooked pasta in order to evaluate the effect of the enrichment and the influence of the processes on the final products. Phenols and tocols from four different samples of pasta (pasta made with semolina, whole grain semolina, 30 % of tomato powder and 30 % of spinach powder) and their relative raw flours were analyzed with spectrophotometric and analytical analyses (HPLC coupled with different detectors). The whole wheat semolina showed a total phenol content and antioxidant activity higher than the semolina but also a greater sensitivity to degradation during production. Semolina was generally richer in tocols than whole wheat semolina and this trend was also found in the corresponding pasta samples. Although the enrichment with vegetable flours improved the total phenols content and the antioxidant activity, a strong decrease in these bioactive compounds was recorded in the final products due to the production process. Differently, the enrichment of semolina paste with vegetable flours determined a variation in tocols concentration, even if without significant differences in tomato- enriched pasta. In cooked pasta samples no differences were repoted in free phenols amount, while the bound phenolic acids strongly increased.