Influence of Selected Product and Process Parameters on Microstructure, Rheological, and Textural Properties of 3D Printed Cookies

One of the major advantages of 3D food printing is the customizability in terms of structure, design, and nutritional content. However, printability of the ingredients and the quality of the 3D printed food products are dependent on several product and printing parameters. In this study, nutrient dense cookies were developed with underutilized ingredients including jackfruit seed powder and finger millet powder as base materials using 3D food printing. The hardness, rheological behavior, and microstructure of 3D printed cookies with different products (e.g., water butter ratio) and printing (e.g., fill density and temperature) parameters were analyzed. The 3D printed cookies were developed by extruding at 27 and 30 °C with fill density values of 50%, 70%, 90%, and 100% and water butter ratios of 3:10 and 6:5. The 3D-printed cookie dough exhibited a more elastic behavior with higher storage modulus values than the loss modulus. The hardness of the baked cookies was influenced by printing temperature, fill density, and water butter ratio of 3D printed cookie dough and their interactions. The closed porosity of 3D printed cookies increased while the open porosity decreased with an increase in fill density. The baking times required were longer for 3D-printed cookies with higher fill density values. Overall, this study shows the importance of considering the specific ingredient and printing parameters to develop high quality 3D-printed cookies.