Rossana Altamirano‐Fortoul, Avelina Franco‐Vega, A.H. Cabrera-Ramírez, Victoria Guadalupe Aguilar‐Raymundo
Mesquite pod flour [Prosopis laevigata] is a promising non-conventional ingredient for cereal-based foods. This study evaluated the incorporation of mesquite flour into salt bread and sweet concha-style bread to determine its sensory, physicochemical and microbiological effects. The optimized formulations were selected based on sensory acceptance: salt bread with 5% mesquite pod flour [PST+5MP] and sweet bread with 3% mesquite pod flour [PDT+3MP]. Proximate analysis revealed that the enriched products had significantly higher fiber, ash and fat contents compared to the controls. Furthermore, microbiological analysis confirmed that these formulations remained within food safety limits during storage. The results demonstrate that mesquite pod flour can be successfully incorporated into bakery products, improving the nutritional profile and microbiological stability whilst maintaining high sensory acceptability. This research highlights the potential for using underutilised legumes as functional ingredients in the food industry