Fats and Oils Lab 5 Delilah Bisase

Date: October 30, 2015

Purpose: To subjectively and objectively evaluate the different outcomes between brownies
baked with varying combinations of fats, eggs, and egg substitutes (aqua fava).
Experimental Procedure: Line spread tests were conducted on the batter and wettability tests
were conducted on the finished product. To conduct the line spread test, 1/8 cup of batter was
poured onto the center circle of the line spread sheet scale and the distance of spread after 5
seconds was recorded. To conduct the wettability test 1 square (~1/4 inch) of brownie was
submerged in water for 5seconds, and the weight of it was recorded both before and after dipping
in the water.
Results:
A common thread among the brownies made with egg substitute is that they were denser than
their egg containing counterparts, which had more fluff and albeit small, some presence of air
pockets. The presence of egg affected flavor in the coconut oil batch; the ones made with egg
had a strong coconut flavor, while the ones made with egg substitute had a barely detectable
coconut flavor. Overall, brownies made with egg also had a less rich cocoa flavor in comparison
to the ones with egg substitute. Egg also appears to affect the line spread; with egg the line
spread is generally smaller than without egg. The canola oil / egg substitute brownies created
what was essentially a thick chocolate sauce, as the brownies did not rise at all during baking.
The unsweetened applesauce created the driest and crumbliest of all the brownies. Brownies
made with oil were considerably denser and less risen than brownies made without oil.
Line Spread & Wettability
Fat

Line Spread
(Egg)

Line spread
(egg substitute)

Wettability
(egg) % change,
weight before /
weight after (g)

Butter

Canola Oil

Coconut Oil

Unsweetened
Applesauce

136%,
2.8g / 3.9g
111%, 4.5g /
5.0g
142%, 2.1g /
3.0g
175.2%, 3.3g /
5.78g

Wettability (egg
substitute) %
change, weight
before / weight
after (g)
125%, 12g / 15g
n/a
120%, 1.5g /
1.90g
177%,

Fats and Oils Lab 5 Delilah Bisase

Discussion:
The fatty acid chain length and the degree of saturation are two key characteristics that
majorly impact an oils properties and reactions when cooking (Batten, 2015). Coconut oil is
comprised of mostly medium chain fatty acids. Butter and coconut oil contain primarily
saturated fatty acids, while canola contains primarily mono-unsaturated fatty acid (MUFA). In
regards to health, saturated fats are associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular disease
development whereas unsaturated fats (MUFA and poly unsaturated, PUFA) generally are not.
Diets rich in PUFAs are associated with more desirable blood lipid profiles (Brady, 2015).
Canola oil is a very healthy oil as it has a high content of unsaturated fatty acids. Olive oil is
another popular MUFA, and is more expensive than canola oil. Olive oil contains about 15%
more MUFAs, but has less than half the percentage of linoleic acid, 7.5% in comparison to 20%,
than canola oil (Brady, 2015).
In baked sweets such as brownies, the goal is to have a risen product, however; the
texture cannot be too tough because then it would be bread. The addition of a solid fat in the
form of butter or shortening keeps gluten formation to a minimum by essentially coating the
flour, and thus shortening the product. Form personal experience, I have noticed that
consistently when a cake is baked with butter it has more crumble and is drier, while cakes baked
with oil present more moisture, density, and a decreased crumble. Apparently, the butter and egg
must posses the ability to hold air, while oils do not, which would explain the brownies with oil
having such great density, especially the coconut oil batch. This also explains why the canola oil
/ egg substitute brownies did not rise at all. Egg yolks also contain lecithin, an emulsifier, which
aided in the recipes mixture of oil and water. Our bean derived egg substitutes (aqua fava)
although they contained protein properties, I do not believe they contained any emulsifying
properties.
Unsweetened applesauce is not a fat, but due to its pectin content, which reacts with
water to form a goo, it has the ability to mimic the actions of fat in this recipe. I have also seen
avocado used as a fat replacer in brownies as well. Coconut oil is comprised of mostly medium
chain fatty acids, mainly lauric acid, (Brady, 2015). Chain length affects digestion and
absorption, as short and medium chain fatty acids require less enzymatic digestion, bypass the
lymphatic system, and go straight to the blood bound to albumin. Long and very long chain fatty

Fats and Oils Lab 5 Delilah Bisase

acids require extensive emulsification and enzymatic digestion prior to absorption. This has
implications for persons with compromised pancreatic activity or gastrointestinal disorders.
Today the product I enjoyed most was the brownie baked with coconut oil and egg. It
had the best flavor and the texture was soft, but not chewy like the canola oil/egg brownies. The
brownies made with applesauce had the driest, most cake like taste, but according to the
wettability results they were moistest products, as they had the greatest difference in before and
after weight. In contrast the other three batches, deemed drier by the wettability results, in my
opinion had a moister mouth feel. It is possible that the other three were just oily, hence making
them soft and moist, while the applesauce ones may have actually had a higher water content.

Fats and Oils Lab 5 Delilah Bisase

References
Batten, C. (2015). Fats and Oils [PowerPoint slides]. San Francisco State University
Brady, J.W. (2013). Introductory Food Chemistry. Hong Kong: Cornell University Press