Volume 16/2024 INFLUENCE OF MONK FRUIT AND STEVIA AS NATURAL SWEETENERS ON THE HARDNESS, TOTAL PHENOLIC CONTENT, ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY, AND SENSORY EVALUATION OF OMEGA DARK CHOCOLATE Authors Izzreen, I.1*, Nawirah Alia, B. H.2, Fatin Nadhirah, H. F.2, Johari, K.1, Nafisah, M.2 and Wan Saidatul Syida W. K.2 ABSTRACT Nowadays, the incorporation of natural sweeteners such as stevia (Stevia rebaudiana) and monk fruit (Siraitia grosvenorii) to replace the sucrose in chocolate products has gained attention among health-conscious consumers who are increasingly seeking out healthier snacking alternatives, and high-quality chocolate while providing delectable flavour. This study aimed to determine the hardness, water activity, total phenolic content (TPC), antioxidant activity: 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity and sensory profile of omega dark chocolate (enriched with 2.5% sacha inchi oil oleogel) with 29.5% natural sweeteners (monk fruit and stevia). Omega dark chocolate (ODC) formulated with sucrose (refined sugar) was used as a control. The addition of natural sweeteners had no significant impact (p>0.05) on the water activity (aw = 0.36) of ODC compared to the control. However, the addition of natural sweeteners lowers the hardness (p<0.05) of ODC than control. Meanwhile, formulated ODC containing monk fruit and stevia exhibited higher TPC (27.19-28.20 mg GAE/g) and antioxidant activity (91.34-91.52%) than the control. Sensory evaluation involving 85 panellists showed that ODC samples (sucrose, monk fruit, or stevia) received similar scores (p>0.05) for all attributes (colour, glossiness, texture, cocoa flavour, sweetness, bitterness, and overall acceptability), and were well-accepted by consumers (range sensory scores: 6.12-7.51). Therefore, the application of monk fruit and stevia as sucrose replacers in omega dark chocolate has the potential to be a healthier option, especially regarding total phenolic content and antioxidant activity for health-conscious consumers. VIEW PDF DOWNLOAD