Foods with Prosopis spp. flour: Common and new baked products

Abstract

This chapter will focus on the utilization of flours from the pods of Prosopis which inthe western hemisphere are known as mesquite for North American Prosopis and algarrobo forSouth American Prosopis species. In Europe, the carob (Ceratonia siliqua) is also known as algarrobo. The flour of the fruit of American Prosopis spp. depending on the species has considerable variation in proteins (7%?9%), dietary fiber (25%?35%), sugars (32%?59%) and constitutes an ingredient with great potential to nutritionally improve baked goods based on cereals, with and without gluten. Their proteins contain lysine, which is a deficient essential amino acid in cereals and therefore is an ideal complement for wheat flour; in addition, it is a good source of fiber and minerals. This chapter shows various examples of the application of Prosopis spp. flour in different baked products, giving them a better nutritional and functional profile as well as the characteristic properties of flavor and texture.