PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

The Use of Protein Powder in Banana Pancakes for Picky Eaters

Hoang-Kim (Kimmy) Nguyen
San Francisco State University

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

Abstract
Background
Children are notorious picky eaters causing many of them to have a
variety of deficiencies, including protein deficiencies. Many may not like
supplemental protein vitamins or gummies because of the texture
differences, so for this experiment, protein powder is used to replace allpurpose flour to provide additional nutrients while hiding in a banana
pancake. Banana pancakes have that bread-like texture and carbohydrate
taste which children tend to be fond of along with a natural sweetness from
the banana.

Objective
This experiment is to test if protein powder is an adequate substitute
for all- purpose flour for protein pancakes to add additional nutrients.

Design
The independent variable is the all- purpose flour which is replaced
with protein powder. Dependent variable includes viscosity of the pancake
batter, fluffiness of the pancake, texture of the pancake, taste and flavor of
the pancake, and moisture of the pancake. Three formulas are made in this
experiment including the original recipe with containing all- purpose flour
(#216), the 75% all- purpose flour/25% protein powder recipe (#981), and
50% all- purpose flour/50% protein powder (#738). Subjective and objective
tests were conducted including a line spread tests to evaluate the viscosity

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

of the pancake batter, wettability tests to evaluate moisture of the pancake,
and surveys conducted by 25 test subjects evaluating general tastes and
likability of the different products.

Results
Viscosity of the pancake batter, moisture, and texture were all
objectively tested and affected by the protein powder. The pancake batter
that was the moistest and had the least viscose batter was the 50% allpurpose flour/50% protein powder pancake while the 75% all-purpose
flour/25% protein powder pancake had the best most rise when cooking. The
control has the most viscous batter, had the least moisture in the wettability
tests, and rose the least in these experiments.
In subjective tests, 25 random participants taste tested the various
formulas using the smiley face likert scale with 52% of the participants liking
the 50% all-purpose flour/50% protein powder pancake, 8% liking the 75%
all-purpose flour/25% protein powder pancake, and 36% liking the control
recipe. There was an outlier of 4% who did not rank the pancakes.

Conclusion
Protein powder is an adequate all-purpose flour substitute in making
banana pancakes. The protein powder not only enhances the flavor of the
pancake with the subtle vanilla flavoring, but does not compromise the
texture of the pancake which is important for children with neophobia or who
are picky eaters. Neophobia is a fear of new foods.

Introduction

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

Young picky eaters are something parents and caregivers have always
struggled with. Picky eating and neophobia to foreign foods reduces the
variety of nutrients consumed comparatively to non-picky eaters; a main
nutrient deficiency includes protein. Though there is no defined definition of
picking eating, general characteristics accepted among parents are the
resistant to try new food and to only consume familiar favorite foods (Julian,
2016). Foods children seemed to be fond of are starch/grain based products
such as breads, crackers, and noodles due to the influence of texture and
appearance of different foods to young children. This poses a problem for
parents and caretakers because new foods introduced is not taken into
consideration for children who are not exposed at an early age, including
vitamin supplements and meat proteins (which are introduced later in the
development of toddler eating). According to Appetite, a journal for
consumer psychology and portion size, picky eaters consume less meats and
other protein sources (van der Horst, 2016). Texture is also an important
factor when it comes to picky eating and needs to be introduced slowly. So
this poses a problem: how to overcome the protein deficiency for picky
eaters while introducing textures common in their favorite foods. Thats how
protein powder banana pancakes became an experiment.
The protein powder in this experiment is a whey protein powder. Whey
is a protein byproduct of the cheese making process. Whey proteins can be
used as egg protein replacements in baked goods and milk replacers in dairy
products such as ice cream (J.N de Wit 1998). This poses as a good substitute

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

for all- purpose flour because of the common texture between the two
powders while adding more nutrient density to products. Leavening is also
taken into consideration when making these protein banana pancakes.
Because all- purpose flour creates a protein structure of gluten, this allows
for pancakes to create tunneling in return create a fluffy product. The recipe
in this experiment contained baking powder as their leavening agent. A
leavening agent is an ingredient or process that imparts gas into a baked
product via chemical or biological sources like yeast. This creates a fluffier,
lighter texture in the final product. The experiment also called for sifting
which is a mechanical leavening agent. Adding protein powder as substitute
for all- purpose flour allows for the familiar textures common in a toddlers
diet in banana pancakes while also the addition of protein in growing protein
deficiencies.

Review of Literature
Protein deficiency, especially in children, is majorly detrimental to their
growth. Comparatively to adults, childrens growth rate triples by the time
they are 1 and doubles at toddler age, this causes children to fall under a
nutritional diagnosis as failure to thrive. Failure to thrive are attributed to
many factors, one being inadequate calorie intake which may occur in picky
eaters (Nelms, Sucher, Lacey 2011). Because of their rapid growth, adequate
protein requirements need to be met. Children between the age of 0-3 years
old have a protein requirement of 1.52-0.95 g/kg of weight; this is

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

exponentially more than adults that require on average 0.08 g/kg of weight
of protein (Gropper, Smith 2013).
Protein deficiency has major anthropometric effects on young children,
stunting their growth. Because the body is trying to maintain certain protein
metabolism, catabolism in less vital tissues occur (such as in the muscles).
Muscle atrophy causes a weight loss, but may also affect the height of
children (Golden 1985). In extreme cases marasmus and kwashiorkor may
occur. Kwashiorkor occurs from protein deficiency and may cause edema,
fatigue, failure to grow and gain weight, etcetera.

Method/Design
This experiment is designed to replace all-purpose flour for protein
powder to increase the nutritional density of banana pancakes while hiding
behind a bread-like texture aimed for children who are picky eaters.
Ingredients used were all-purpose flour/protein powder to create the
structure for banana pancakes, banana for flavoring, white sugar for
browning, sweetness and moisture, baking powder for leavening, eggs for
structure and color, milk to help gelatinize the starch in the all- purpose flour,
vegetable oil to create satiety and color, and salt to enhance flavors. Most
ingredients were obtained from the Miele Lab aside from the protein powder
and bananas. The protein powder used specifically for this project was
Market Pantry Vanilla Protein Powder. The recipe chosen was obtained by the
allrecipes.com website for its simplicity in ingredients, but modified. One
major modification in the recipe occurred in the processing of dry

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

ingredients; sifting of the dry ingredients creates more air molecules in
between the starch granules to create a less dense final product. The
independent variable is the all- purpose flour that is replaced with protein
powder in ratios of 75% all- purpose flour/25% protein powder and 50% allpurpose flour and 50% protein powder. Dependent variables include taste,
texture, moistness, appearance, and likeability of the final product.

Control Recipe
For the control recipe one cup of all-purpose flour was used, along with
one tablespoon of white sugar, two teaspoons of baking powder, teaspoon
of salt, one egg, one cup of milk, two tablespoons of vegetable oil, and two
ripe bananas. Dry ingredients including flour, white sugar, baking powder,
and salt was sifted together. Ripe bananas were mashed and combined with
one beaten egg, milk, and vegetable oil. Then the dry ingredients were
slowly incorporated into the wet ingredient to create a batter. To cook the
banana pancakes, butter was used to lubricate a non-stick frying pan. cup
of batter was added to the pan in medium to medium low heat until bubbles
were created via the cooking of the batter, then flipped. The cooking time
took about a few minutes for each pancake. The batter yielded ~12-15
pancakes. Heating of the pan and manipulation of the heat in the pan posed
a huge problem to obtain a golden brown coloring and making sure the
pancake was fully cooked. To look for a fully cooked pancake, tunneling must
be formed which also concludes there is structure formation.

75% All-Purpose Flour/ 25% Protein Powder

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

For the 75% all-purpose flour/ 25% protein powder recipe, of a cup
of all-purpose flour was used while of a cup of protein powder was used.
The same processes of sifting the dry ingredients together, mashing the ripe
bananas, and combining both dry and wet ingredients was performed as
above along with the same cooking process.

50% All-Purpose Flour/ 50% Protein Powder

For the 50% all-purpose flour/ 50% protein powder recipe, of a cup
of all-purpose flour was used while of a cup of protein powder was used.
The same processes of sifting the dry ingredients together, mashing the ripe
bananas, and combining both dry and wet ingredients was performed as
above along with the same cooking process.

Testing
Objective and subjective tests were conducted to the variable batches
of pancakes to test different dependent variables of the banana protein
pancakes. The three objective tests conducted were the line spread test,
wettability, height/length tests. For the line spread tests, cup of batter was
poured into a ring mold in the middle of the line sheet and released for the
set amount of time of a minute. Measurements were recorded on how far the
batter had spread in a minute. Wettability tests are performed to tests the
moisture of a product. The moister the product is, the more water it will
obtain. The test was conducted by weighing the pancake, submerging the
pancake in water for one minute, and weighing the pancake again after the
submersion. Conducting weight by difference helps determine the amount of

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

water absorbed by the pancake. The last test conducted is the height/length
tests. To measure the density/fluffiness of the pancake, the height of each
pancake was taken and also the diameter of the pancake.
Subjective tests were conducted with a sample size of 25 randomized
people. Because this test was directed towards children, data such as gender
and age were obtained. The subjective tests are not accepted because our
sample pool did not meet the targeted age range. Test subjects rated the
products from strongly disagree to strongly agree on a smiley face likert
scale and the were asked what did they like/dislike about the pancake. They
also ranked which pancake they liked from most to least. The smiley face
likert scale was chosen to aim towards our target population of
toddlers/young children.

Results and Discussion

Objective Evaluation
The amount of protein powder affected the viscosity of the pancake
batter, the moisture of the pancake, and the fluffiness of the pancake. As
more protein powder was added, the less viscous the batter became with
values slowly increasing from the 12 unit mark of the control batter, to the
13.5 unit mark for the 75% all-purpose flour/25% protein powder batter, and
the 18.5 unit mark for the 50% all-purpose flour/50% protein powder batter.
Moisture was also affected as shown by the wettability test. The control
recipe only absorbed 5.8 grams of water within the one minute while 75%
all-purpose flour/25% protein powder pancake absorbed 13.4 grams of water

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

and the 50% all-purpose flour/50% protein powder pancake absorbed the
most water at 14.7 grams.
Both 75% all-purpose flour/25% protein powder pancake and 50% allpurpose flour/50% protein powder pancake measured at the height of 0.6
mm, concluded that they both rose the same amount, but the 50% allpurpose flour/50% protein powder pancake resulted in wider pancakes at 4.5
inches comparatively to the 4 inches of the other pancakes. This also
resulted in the least amount of pancakes with a yield of 12 pancakes per
batch.
Control
Line Spread Test w/in 1
min.
12 unit mark

Wettability Test w/in 1

min.
Before After
Differen
ce
49.2 g 55 g
5.8 g

75% All Purpose Flour/ 25% Protein Powder

Line Spread Test w/in 1 Wettability Test w/in 1
min.
min.
13.5 unit mark
Before After
Differen
ce
46.3 g 59.7 g 13.4 g
50% All Purpose Flour/ 50% Protein Powder
Line Spread Test w/in 1 Wettability Test w/in 1
min.
min.
18.5 unit mark
Before After
Differen
ce
44.4 g 59.1 g 14.7 g

Height/Length Tests
Height

Length

0.3 mm

4 inches

Height/Length Tests
Height

Length

0.6 mm

4 inches

Height/Length Tests
Height

Length

0.6 mm

4.5 inches

Subjective Evaluation
During subjective evaluation, texture and taste were the main
components that swayed voters and the in house taste tests. As seen in the

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

objective tests, the 50% all-purpose flour/50% protein powder was the
moistest and also had the most votes between the voting poll at 13/25
participants votes equating to 52%. Adjectives used to describe the 50% allpurpose flour/50% protein powder pancake was moist and flavorful along
with strong, but not overpowering banana taste. On the likert smiley face
scale, most participants were in agreeance or strong agreeance with the 50%
all-purpose flour/50% protein powder pancake. This increased affinity
towards the 50% all-purpose flour/50% protein powder pancake may be due
to the subtle sweetness in vanilla flavor that the protein powder provided.
The second most liked pancake was the control recipe. Though this
recipe had the densest texture, it also catered to those who like a strong
banana flavor. Participants described the pancake as sweet and that it
really taste likes bananas. It ranked first with 9 participants out of the 25
ranking it as their favorite and a percentage of 36%.
The least liked product was the 75% all-purpose flour/25% protein
powder pancake. On the likert smiley scale, it ranked as neutral with words
like basic and comments like nothing to comment about on the survey. It
had 2 out of the 25 participants ranking that pancake as their favorite which
concludes to 8% of the population.
Subjective pooling posed one outlier out of the 25 participants that did
not rank their favorite pancake.
In House Subjective Tests
Control
Appearan Golden brown color,

75/25
Golden brown on

50/50
Flat and thin, lack of

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

ce

Aroma

uniformity of
interior, big air
pockets present on
the inside, pale
cream color on the
inside, aeration
present
Mild, banana-bread
like smell

the outside

Mouthfee
l

Moist, chewy, less

pressure to chew

Texture

Fluffy, moist,
squishy and tender
to the touch,
bounces back when
poked, shows
elasticity, clean and
pliable breaks, a
little sticky possibly
from the banana
Strong banana
flavor

Flavor

aeration, not very

pleasant to the eye,
burnt
looking/overall light
color with dark
spots, sheen from
the butter
Strong banana
Vanilla scent from
aroma, mast vanilla protein powder
scent
partially masking
the banana smell
Moist, melts in the
Soft and chewy,
mouth, dense
crispy on the edge,
moist, fluffy
Soft, very fluffy and Very floppy, squishy
a little squishy,
and tender interior,
crispy on the
crunchy bread-like
outside, dense
exterior, more
consistency
pliable because of
thinness, clean
break, no crumbles,
fluffy
Slightly sweet

Balance of vanilla
and banana flavor

Most Favored

4%
36%

52%
8%

Control

75/25

50/50

Outlier

Figure 1: This graph shows which recipe is most favored with 13 participants choosing the 50/50
recipe, participants choosing the 75/25 recipe and 9 participants choosing the control recipe with 1
outlier.

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

Errors
Though the experiment was designed to be conducted with as little
errors as possible, afterthought of the process proved such experiment could
have been conducted better. One error that could have been fixed had to do
with the bananas used to make the pancakes. To make a more consistent
product, bananas of the same ripeness must be used. This could be done by
evaluating how yellow the banana is through a spectrometer which was not
provided. Another error is in the mashing on the bananas. Each banana was
hand mashed, which may have cause micro inconsistences between batches.
This could be avoided by using a food processor to puree the bananas
instead of mashing them. One error during tasting day was the delegation of
different batches. During most test days, one person had cooked all the
batches, but during tasting day (to save time) batches were split between
the three experimenters. Human error could have made the batches different
between test and tasting days. The last error outside the control of the
experimenters was the age of test subjects. Though the product was directed
towards toddlers and young children, many of the test subjects ages ranged
from 18-75 years old.

Conclusion
Overall, protein powder was an adequate substitute for all-purpose
flour to increase the protein intake without compromising the taste and
texture of a banana pancake too severely. This is proven by the objective
tests with the 50% all-purpose flour/50% protein powder pancake containing

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

the most moisture in the wettability test and ranking the highest in the
subjective tests between the 25 participants. This experiment can be used
for future parents who have a child who is a picky eater in introducing more
protein into their diet with the sweetness of bananas without compromising
the texture of their most favorite foods which tend to be breads, crackers,
and pastas.

PROTEIN BANANA PANCAKES AND PICKY EATERS

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Golden, M. (1985). The consequences of protein deficiency in man and its
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Gropper, S.S. Smith, J.L. (2013) Advanced nutrition and human metabolism.
United States of America: Yolanda Cossio.
Julian, J., personal communication, September 03, 2016
Nelms, M. Sucher, K.P., Lacey, K. (2011). Nutrition therapy and
pathophysiology. United States of America: Cengage Learning.
Van der Horst, K. Deming, D. Lesniauskas, B. Carr, T. Reidy, C. (2016). Picky
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