Debora Delcuratolo

Non-conventional parameters for quality evaluation of refined oils with special reference to commercial class olive oil

Forty olive oil samples (refined olive oil plus virgin olive oil) were tested to check the possibility of using recent non-conventional analytical parameters to assess quality. The routine analyses prescribed by the EEC Reg. No 2568/91 and subsequent extensions were carried out on all samples. The analytical techniques used included silica gel column chromatography for the separation of polar compounds from oil, and their subsequent high performance size-exclusion chromatography (HPSEC) analysis to quantify the oxidation, polymerisation and hydrolysis product classes. Based on the results obtained, it seems logical to use the percent oligopolymer content to measure the level of oxidation in commercial class olive oil. The diglyceride level can provide information about the extent of hydrolytic degradation.

Comparative Study and Quality Evaluation of Italian Focaccias Seasoned with Extra Virgin Olive Oil

An extra virgin olive oil was used as seasoning for three different types of focaccia produced on an industrial scale. This oil and samples of the oil extracted from the focaccias after baking were submitted to routine analyses and to silica gel column chromatography to separate polar compounds. These were then subjected to high performance size-exclusion chromatographic (HPSEC) analysis and it allowed to determine oxidative and hydrolytic degradation products. The results were compared with those obtained from artisan focaccias, seasoned with the same oil and toppings, by statistical analyses. The different technologies and the toppings employed directed in different ways the oxidative and hydrolytic processes in the oil.

Focaccia Italian Flat Fatty Bread

Publisher Summary Focaccia is a typical bakery product of many Italian regions, and it shows variants depending on the productive area. Today, focaccia is largely appreciated for its sensory properties and has its own market. It is usually consumed, still hot, as a “street food,” immediately after its production. Focaccia is made of a few simple ingredients—flour, water, fatty substances (oil or lard), yeast, and salt—but a myriad of nuanced differences are obtainable by topping it, prior to cooking, with fresh tomato, onions, potatoes, olives, cheese, etc. or flavoring it with herbs (rosemary, sage, oregano, etc.). Durum wheat, re-milled semolina is used in the production of some types of focaccia. Olive oil, notably extra-virgin olive oil, is an essential ingredient in many types of focaccia. Focaccia usually appears as a circular flat bread, single layered, oily, and variously topped. The productive steps of the various focaccia types are: mixing, kneading, leavening, flattening, proofing, and baking. In the past, only a sourdough-based prolonged productive process was performed; however, today, fresh compress bakers yeast is used in the majority of bakeries to prepare focaccia.