Abstract Preparation practices and physicochemical characteristics of moin-moin commercialized in Salvador (Brazil) as a street food by typically clothed women called baianas de acarajé were studied. Four moin-moin samples were collected from each of the thirty sales points included in the study and analyzed for moisture, protein, fat, ash, carbohydrates, fiber, total carotenoids, weight, color and texture. The ingredients used for the preparation of moin-moin were as follows: grated dry shrimp heads (100.0%), grated onions (96.7%), salt (73.3%), Crude Palm Oil (53.3%) or Crude Palm Olein (46.7%) and garlic (16.7%). Peanut, codfish, cashew nuts, wheat flour, ginger and tomatoes are further ingredients frequently used. Texture analysis revealed that moin-moin is a soft, fragile and brittle food product. The content of total carotenoids ranged from 6.99 to 64.88 ppm with an average value of 28.49 ± 4.00 ppm, giving the product an ocher-orange/yellow-orange color. An average sized moin-moin ball (186.6 g) contained 14.08% protein, 13.08% lipids, 30.83% carbohydrates, 4.01% fiber and 297.42 kcal, corresponding to 18.77%, 23.78%, 10.28% and 14.87% of the daily requirements of an adult for protein, lipids, carbohydrates and energy, respectively.

Abstract The objective of the present study was to characterize the physicochemical composition and to quantify the fatty acids of chocolates produced from different cocoa varieties (Theobroma cacao L.) cultivated in the Southern Region of Bahia. Nine samples of monovarietal chocolates were evaluated, according to their physical, thermal and fatty acid profile. The results were subjected to tests of variance and multivariate statistics. The chocolates PH16 and TSH1188 presented higher melting point. It was possible to identify a linear correlation between the fat content of the chocolates and the break force parameter. The chocolates showed higher concentration of saturated fatty acids, mainly palmitic acid (16:0) and stearic acid (18:0), followed by the unsaturated fatty acids among which oleic acid (18:1n-9) and linoleic acid (18:6) were predominant. The principal component analysis allowed to discriminate the different varieties of chocolate according to the profile of fatty acids. The thermogravimetric analysis of the samples showed a similar profile. The differences found in the samples of chocolates were attributed to factors such as the fruit maturation process, the cocoa variety and to which they were subjected during processing.

Abstract This work aimed to evaluate the performance of different drying methods in the development of phenolic compounds, methylxanthines, and antioxidant activity in cocoa bean and to evaluate the presence of ochratoxin A (OTA). Antioxidant activity was determined using DPPH, FRAP, ORAC and β-carotene-linoleic acid assays. Phenolic compounds and methylxanthines were determined using high-performance liquid chromatography with an ultraviolet detector (HPLC-UV). OTA was determined by ultra-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (UPLC-FLR). It was found that during cocoa drying, there was a reduction in antioxidant activity with reduced phenolic compound content (0.04 mg.g-1 of catechin before drying to 0.02 mg.g-1 after drying) and reduced methylxanthines (19.44 mg.g -1 of theobromine before drying to 11.71 mg.g-1 after drying). Only one sample showed contamination by OTA (7.1 μg.kg-1). The traditional drying method showed the highest conservation of antioxidant activity and methylxanthine and phenolic compound content.

A "vassoura bruxa" causada pelo fungo Moniliophthora perniciosa, é uma das doenças mais importantes do cacau na América Latina, provocando uma redução de cerca de 70% na produção das amêndoas na Bahia. Para tentar resolver o problema, muitos cultivares resistentes à enfermidade têm sido recomendados para os agricultores. Por outro lado, as características do chocolate são oriundas de várias substâncias, cuja formação depende da origem genética do fruto, do meio ambiente onde o cacau é cultivado e das operações de processamento. Assim, neste trabalho, objetivou-se determinar os compostos fenólicos monoméricos, metilxantinas e a atividade antioxidante em massa de cacau e chocolates provenientes de cultivares resistentes à "vassoura de bruxa" e não resistentes à doença. Os compostos fenólicos totais na massa de cacau não variou entre os cultivares com valores que variam entre 25,03mg g-1 a 23,95mg g-1. Chocolates feitos a partir de cultivares não resistentes à doença apresentaram maior teor de fenólicos totais (19,11mg g-1) que os cultivares resistentes, SR162 e PH16 com 16,08mg.g-1 e 15,46 mg.g-1, respectivamente. Os conteúdos de epicatequina foram superiores aos de catequina em todos os cultivares. Houve diferenças significativas entre as amostras de massa de cacau analisadas para a cafeína. Chocolates produzidos a partir do cultivar SR162 apresentaram maior quantidade de compostos fenólicos e metilxantinas. A amostra de chocolate com a atividade antioxidante mais elevada é a SR162, seguida dos cultivares não resistentes e PH16, mostrando uma relação entre a atividade antioxidante e o conteúdo de compostos fenólicos monoméricos.

The "witch broom disease" caused by the fungus called Moniliophthora perniciosa is one of the most important cocoa diseases in Latin America, causing around 70% production reduction in the southern Bahia. In attempt to solve the problem, many cultivars resistant to the disease have been recommended to farmers. On the other hand, the chocolate flavour is composed by many compounds whose formation depends on the genetic background, environment where cocoa is grown and processing operations. Therefore, this work aimed at determining the monomeric phenolic compounds, methylxanthines and antioxidant activity of cocoa mass and dark chocolate from cocoa cultivars resistant to "witch broom disease" and non resistant to the disease. The total phenolic compounds in cocoa mass did not vary among cultivars with values ranging from 23.95mg g-1 to 25.03mg g-1. Chocolates made from non resistant cultivars showed higher total phenolic compounds (19.11mg g-1) than SR162 and PH16 with 16.08mg g-1 and 15.46mg g-1, respectively. Epicatechin had higher content than catechin and the levels of these two compounds were higher in SR162. There were significant differences among samples of cocoa mass analyzed for caffeine. Chocolate made from SR162 had the highest amount of monomeric compounds due to its high concentration of catechin and epicatechin. The chocolate sample with the highest antioxidant activity was the SR162, followed by non resistant blend and PH16, showing relationship between the antioxidant activity and monomeric phenolics content.