Integrating Traditional Wheat-Based Foods with High Health Value Flours: Castanea spp. Agro-Biodiversity in Bakery Products

In European countries, the utilisation of chestnut flours (CF) has been increasing in the bakery industry because the CF ingredients provide not only nutritional and health benefits but also improve organoleptic and health-promoting properties. This work aimed to describe the phytochemical properties and antioxidant capacity of chestnut flours from different Castanea spp. genotypes and origins, studying the effects of the addition of CF to traditional wheat-based cookies on their quality and sensory traits. Commercial chestnut flours were also considered. CF used in addition to wheat-based flours may increase the quality and health-promoting value of bakery products for its many benefits: (i) nutritional and phytochemical value; (ii) zero-Km availability in many producing areas (Europe, Asia, Australia, and North and South America); (iii) for these areas, food security is connected to a vulnerable wheat-based food system. Chromatographic and spectroscopic methods were utilised to assess the composition and antioxidant properties of the considered chestnut flours. The sensory value of the prepared chestnut/wheat-based cookies was also assessed by a panel of common consumers (hedonistic test by a 9-points hedonistic scale). Monoterpenes were the main substances in the flour phytocomplex, reaching 80–90% of the total, followed by phenolics (8–12%) and vitamin C in trace (1–3%). Antioxidant capacity ranged from 9.64 ± 0.96 mmol Fe +2 kg −1 DW (BOUC flour from cv Bouche de Bétizac) to 17.33 ± 1.35 mmol Fe +2 kg −1 DW (CANA flour from cv Canalutta). In this research study, the cookies derived from CANA and BOUC flours were considered the most appreciated products by consumers, with values of 7.09 ± 0.46 and 6.88 ± 0.18, respectively. These results confirmed that integrating phytochemical data with sensory results is very important for food industries to obtain a complete description of the analysed flours and consequently of the derived products to produce new bakery products highly appreciated by consumers with high health value in comparison to the traditional products.