Objectives of the project

The project focuses on utilizing modified legume flour with improved digestibility and enriched with antioxidant and antimicrobial extracts, in order to develop small practical meals that will require little or no preparation by the consumer. In particular, it aims to develop easy-to-digest ultra-thin pasta based on legume flour, which will be specially designed for consumption by people with chewing difficulties, providing them with up to 45% more protein than ordinary pasta.

Individual objectives of the project are the:

• Development of plant extracts from oregano, rosemary, and Magnolia (Magnolia officinalis) with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties.
• Development of innovative encapsulation structures with controlled release and extended bioactivity endurance of the extracts’ active components.
• Development of a modified legume flour, such as from chickpeas and lentils, with improved digestibility and enriched with antioxidant and antimicrobial extracts.
• Development of a plant-based food with an alternative structure that will require little or no preparation by the final consumer, without added artificial preservatives and gluten, with a high protein content and enriched with vegetable fibers from pureed vegetables or even fruits and with ingredients that promote good consumer health.
• Evaluation of the new product in terms of its antioxidant, antimicrobial and prebiotic activity.
• Techno-economic analysis and environmental assessment of the processes and the product through life cycle analysis.

In summary, the project will contribute to the development of new innovative food products by promoting the more effective interconnection of the country's research system with the productive field of the economy. The project aspires, with its completion, to contribute to the dynamic introduction of Greece into the international trade of plant foods, of high nutritional value, suitable for consumption by people with chewing and swallowing difficulties.

Methodology

For the improved digestibility of the legume flour, such as chickpea and lentil, enzymatic hydrolysis will be applied, while the recovery of the bioactive components with antioxidant and antimicrobial activity from the selected plants will be carried out through innovative, green extraction technologies. The enriched legume flour will be used to develop easy-to-digest ultra-thin pasta enriched with pureed vegetables (e.g., spinach, carrot, pumpkin, potato, celery) or even fruits (e.g., apple, fig, banana. In addition, a study will be carried out to determine the shelf life of the product and evaluate the antimicrobial activity of the extracts, nutritional characterization and labeling of the product and finally, pilot production of the final product and its safety study. 

Expected results

The present project focuses on the utilization of modified legume flour, enriched with antioxidant and antimicrobial extracts, as a raw material for the development of easily digestible ultra-fine pasta of high nutritional value, which will be specially designed for consumption by people with chewing and swallowing difficulties.

The expected results of the project include the:

• Development of green extraction technologies and isolation of high-quality extracts with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties
• Development of a method for analyzing the plant extracts, such as oregano, rosemary, and Magnolia (Magnolia officinalis)
• Techniques for the development of innovative encapsulation structures that will achieve the controlled release and prolonged bioactivity of the extracts’ active components
• Development of small practical vegetable pasta meals that will require little to no preparation by the consumer, suitable for people with chewing and swallowing problems, enriched with ingredients that promote the good health of the consumer
• Evaluation of the new product in terms of antioxidant, antimicrobial and prebiotic activity
• Evaluation of the environmental footprint of the production processes and the final product