Optimizing a gluten-free bread formulation using different amounts of sucrose and honey

Gluten-free bread (GFB) is generally characterized by a high glycemic index (GI), which may affect the onset of Type 1 diabetes. GFB may have high added sugars or sodium content as sensory enhancers. Sugar is an important ingredient of GFB, as it contributes to sensory properties. GFB has often a low fibre content, thus carbohydrates are more rapidly absorbed with a resulting spike of blood sugar. The substitution of sugar with natural compounds as nutritional improvers is being studied. Honey is perceived as natural food supplement and may be proposed as a valid substitute to sucrose in GFB. Our study is aimed at developing GFB using different combinations of sucrose/honey in order to identify the best percentages of addition and substitution capable to improve the rheological and sensory properties of the resulting GFB. Nine different breads were produced with 9 combinations of sucrose - honey, accounting for a total 9% sugar, flour basis. Breads were characterized from a chemical - physical and rheological point of view. Results showed that hardness and fermentation time decreased significantly with increasing sugar concentration, while substitution of sugar with honey resulted in an increase in both values time. The specific volume was dependent on both sugar concentration and percentage of honey to sugar substitution. Increasing sugar concentration resulted in a higher browning index, while the percentage of honey to sugar substitution had an opposite effect.