DETERMINATION OF OPTIMAL CINNAMON POWDER LEVEL IN BISCUITS USING MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS AND EXPERIMENTAL VALIDATION

Abstract

The incorporation of plant - based functional ingredients into bakery products represents a promising approach to enhance their nutritional and technological properties. In this study, the optimal level of cinnamon powder in butter biscuits was determined using a combined experimental and data - driven approach. Biscuits containing 0 - 6 % cinnamon powder were produced and evaluated in terms of physicochemical composition, color characteristics, texture, electrochemical parameters (pH, EC, TDS, ORP), and sensory attributes. A multivariate analysis framework was applied, including Z - score normalization, correlation - based feature selection, regression modeling, and linear programming, to identify the most informative variables and determine the optimal formulation. The results showed that cinnamon addition significantly affected moisture, dietary fiber content, color parameters (L*, a*, b*), and electrochemical properties, as well as sensory acceptance. The proposed model identified an optimal cinnamon powder level of 3.12 %, representing a balance between improved nutritional value and acceptable sensory and technological characteristics. At this level, biscuits exhibited enhanced functional properties, moderate color change (ΔE), and high overall acceptability. The study demonstrates the applicability of data - driven methods for formulation optimization in bakery products and provides a basis for the development of functional foods enriched with cinnamon.