Sprouted oats (Avena sativa L.) in baked goods: from the rheological properties of dough to the physical properties of biscuits

This study investigated the impact of sprouted oats (SO) on dough properties and biscuit features. Unsprouted oats (USO) and SO (for 48 h and 72 h) were studied in wheat dough at 10, 20, and 30%, and gluten aggregation, mixing, and extensional properties were evaluated. USO caused a weakening in gluten aggregation capacity, an increase in water uptake, development time and dough rigidity, and a decrease in extensibility. Dough enriched in SO showed mixing profiles similar to wheat, but using SO strongly affected dough extensional properties, indicating gluten weakening. Changes in rheological properties suggested the use of SO at 20% level in biscuit production. Using oats did not affect either biscuit size or volume, but decreased both the hardness and the toughness of the product, with 72 h-SO having the greatest impact, especially on hardness. Further study will address consumer acceptability and nutritional features of the developed baked product.