Quality evaluation of breakfast cereals made from blends of millet, orangefleshed sweet potatoes, wheat and mungbean

Breakfast cereals made from composite flour blends of mungbean seeds, millet, orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP) and wheat were evaluated for proximate, antioxidant, and sensory qualities. Crude protein ranged from 7.65-12.91% while crude fiber ranged from 2.19 - 4.91% and carbohydrates 60.53-74.88%. The carotenoid content ranged from 0.22 to 8.35 mg/100g, with significant differences (p<0.05) between most samples. The DPPH antioxidant activity of the cereals varied from 23.99 to 35.11% and a significant difference (P<0.05) was observed with in all the blends. The general acceptance scores ranged between 5.25 and 6.95, with significant differences across the samples compared to the control (breakfast cereals containing 100% wheat) flour, the breakfast cereal possessed the highest average scores for appearance (P<0.05). Samples 5:10:5:80 and 15:10:5:70 had higher energy values of 329.66 and 326.92 Kcal respectively compared to other flour blends although their values were significantly lower than the control (0:0:0:100) which had an energy value of 356.26 Kcal. This study has demonstrated that quality breakfast cereals can be made from composite flour blends of mungbean seeds, millet, orangefleshed sweet potato (OFSP), and wheat flours thus providing a reference for researchers and policy makers, while promoting the use of underutilized crops like mungbean and OFSP.