Cereal Chem 67:73-77   |  VIEW ARTICLE

Influence of Chemical and Physical Modification of Soft Wheat Protein on Sugar-Snap Cookie Dough Consistency, Cookie Size, and Hardness.

C. S. Gaines. Copyright 1990 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

Across-cultivar mixograph patterns of 64 flours were evaluated together with protein content. They were found to predict sugar-snap cookie diameter less well than a combination of break flour yield, alkaline water retention capacity, and protein content. Soft wheat proteins within five cultivars were modified with potassium iodate, L-cysteine, N-ethylmaleimide, and ditheoreythritol. The protein-modifying agents significantly affected cookie spread and weight, although they had relatively little effect on dough consistency as measured by the Instron universal testing machine. Proteins within cultivars were also modified by mixing (at two levels of dough water addition) sugar-snap cookie doughs at four mixing times. Dough liquid level affected cookie spread and top grain and universal testing machine consistency. Longer mixing time increased sensory ranking of cookie hardness, although hardness increased without a significant change in dough consistency. Any gluten developed during mixing was relatively small compared with the increase observed in cookie hardness. Soft wheat proteins functioned by affecting sugar-snap cookie size, weight, and texture without forming an extensive gluten network.