The impact of redox agents on sugar-snap cookie making

The impact of the oxidants potassium bromate and potassium iodate and the reducing agents L-cysteine, glutathione and sodium metabisulfite on sugar-snap cookie making was investigated. Spread behavior of cookie dough during baking (spread rate, set time and collapse) was monitored and texture properties of the baked cookies were determined. Low levels of redox agents impacted neither dough nor cookie properties. High levels of reducing agents (10,000 ppm on a flour base) significantly decreased set time, and, hence, cookie diameter. They also decreased the degree of collapse, which then, evidently, also increased cookie height. Earlier setting and higher resistance to structural collapse, but also the higher intrinsic break strength of the cookie material when adding high levels of reducing agents could be explained on a molecular level as resulting from earlier and more pronounced gliadin–glutenin cross-linking. In contrast, when high levels of oxidizing agents were added, a postponed setting, a more pronounced collapse and decreased intrinsic cookie break strength were observed. The present work demonstrates the importance of heat-induced gluten polymerization during cookie baking and confirms that free sulfhydryl groups are necessary for the polymerization reactions. A model illustrating the role of gluten cross-linking during cookie making is put forward.