Evaluating the Quality Characteristics of Brownies Prepared with Varying Amounts of Sugar Cecilia Smith, Kara Wilcoxon Family and Consumer Sciences, Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, IL Abstract The chocolate brownie recipe on the back of the Hodgson- Mill Whole Wheat Insta-Bake Mix box contains a high sugar content. The recipe needs to be altered so it can contain less sugar, while still maintaining its sweet taste. The purpose of this experiment was to evaluate the firmness, chewiness, and moistness of brownies prepared with the full sugar content of the Hodgson Mill recipe (control), half the sugar content, and a non- nutritive sweetener. The five panelists that tasted and evaluated the brownies reported, on average, that the control brownies scored a 3.55 on firmness, a 3.43 for chewiness, and a 3.20 for moistness. The variation containing half the sugar the recipe calls for was reported to be 5.45 on the firmness scale, a 4.88 on chewiness, and a 4.75 on moistness. The panelists found the variation that was prepared with a non- nutritive sweetener (sucralose) was a 6.02 regarding firmness, a 5.53 in terms of chewiness, and a 6.83 for moistness. The where was a significant difference in panelist opinions of firmness, chewiness, moistness, and overall acceptability. The control was most preferred among the panelists, variation 1 (half sugar) seemed to be acceptable, and variation 2 (non-nutritive sweetener) was quite unacceptable according to the panelists. The unacceptability of the variations and the acceptability of the control means that further experimenting with varying sugar amounts in brownies is required in order for consumers to reduce their intake of sugar, while still maintaining a sweet taste. Methods On two separate days, brownies were prepared with Hodgson Mill Whole Wheat Insta-Bake Mix. The control recipe was prepared as the back of the box instructs. The second variation uses half the amount of sugar as the control recipe. The second variation was prepared with sucralose, a non-nutritive sweetener (does contain sugar). Five panelists (2 Food Science students, 3 non- Food Science students) were requested to taste test the brownies and score them using a hedonic scale concerning the firmness, chewiness, and moistness. The same five panelists reported for taste tasting and evaluation on both days of replication. Height index was also tested for each brownie sample on both replication days. Results The five panelists evaluated the prepared brownies regarding firmness, chewiness, and moistness (Figure 1). For firmness, the control scored a 3.55, variation 1 scored a 5.45, and variation 2 scored a With regards to chewiness, panelists scored the control, variation 1, and variation 2 as 3.43, 4.88, and 5.53, respectively. In terms of moistness, a score of 3.20 was issued to the control, 4.75 to variation 1, and 6.83 to variation 2. Some panelists chose to give feedback on the brownies they tested; it was reported that variation 2 was far too dry, variation 1 was said to have a “different” taste or not much flavor. The control was the favorite among the panelists who gave feedback; they spoke positively of its consistency, flavor, and texture. On the first replication day, the control, variation 1, and variation 2 had height indices of 3.25 cm, 3.20 cm, and 3.25 cm, respectively. On the second replication day, the control had a height index of 3.40 cm, variation 1 had a height index of 4.00 cm, and variation 2 had a height index of 3.55 cm. Conclusion/Application The unacceptability of the variations and the acceptability of the control means that further experimenting with varying sugar amounts in brownies is required in order for consumers to reduce their intake of sugar, while still maintaining a sweet taste. Figure 2. Standing Height Indices of Brownie Samples on Replication Days 1 and 2 Figure 1. Panelist Scores on Quality Characteristics Ballot Scales Firmness: Very Soft (1) to Very Firm (9) Chewiness: Very Mushy (1) to Very Rubbery (9) Moistness: Very Moist (1) to Very Dry (9)