Effect of Finger Millet (Eleusine coracana) Flour and Maize Flour on Nutritional, Texture and Physico-chemical Qualities of Edible Dessert Cup

The concept of edible tableware is a recent area of development to address the alarming situation that the excessive generation of non-recyclable plastic wastes has created. Non-biodegradable plastics are a major threat to the environment. The demand for green alternatives are increasing, the edible tableware is a new concept in which the utensils like plates, bowls and spoons are eaten along with the meal.

Various composite flours can be used for making edible dessert cups. Finger millet, one of the nutritious and commonly available millets can be utilised for the development of edible dessert cup effectively. Hence, the present study was carried out to formulate healthy and environment friendly edible dessert cups. Finger millet flour was used in varying proportions ranging from 90 to 40 per cent along with 10 to 60 per cent maize flour. The best treatment was selected through organoleptic evaluation and textural properties.

Among various combinations 50 per cent finger millet flour and 50 per cent maize flour was found to be better than other combinations with respect to organoleptic and textural properties. The selected edible dessert cup was subjected to physico-chemical analysis and observed to have pH (5.32), water absorption index (4.44%), water solubility index (8.56%) and oil absorption capacity (1.20%). The selected edible dessert cup was subjected to proximate analysis and observed to have moisture (3.46%), energy (406.39 Kcal), carbohydrate (83.31 g 100 g^-1), protein (9.31 g 100 g^-1), fat (3.99 g 100 g^-1), crude fibre (1.95 g 100 g^-1), starch (50.62 g 100 g^-1) and total ash (1.44 g 100 g^-1). Biodegradable tablewares plays vital role in green marketing for sustainable environment.