Physicochemical and pasting properties of barley/wheat flour blends and the physical, baking and sensory characteristics of cakes

Background: Since barley possesses various components beneficial to health, replacement of wheat flour with barley flour in bakery products could be an attractive approach. Hence, the objective of this study was to replace wheat flour with barley flour for the preparation of cakes. Materials and methods: Test blends were obtained by incorporating barley flour into wheat flour at 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% levels of substitution and the physiochemical and pasting properties of the blended flour were studied. The study also investigated the physical, baking and sensory characteristics of the cakes. Results: There was a slight increase in protein content from 8.4% to 9.6% and a reduction in moisture content from 13.57% to 11.27% with increasing levels of barley flour. Pasting properties showed significant differences among the samples, with a slight increase in pasting temperature and significant variations in stirring number. The baking time, symmetry index and volume index of cakes decreased with increased barley flour content, but there was no change in organoleptic properties. Conclusion: Wheat flour can be replaced with up to 50% barley flour with little decline in the quality parameters of cakes.