# Revitalizing traditional Turkish tort cheese into spreadable form: Enhancing bioactive and sensory attributes with utilization of carob molasses pulp that is a food waste

## TL;DR

This study transforms traditional Turkish Tort cheese into a spreadable form by adding carob molasses pulp, improving its nutrition, shelf life, and taste.

## Contribution

A new spreadable cheese formulation using carob molasses pulp to enhance bioactive and sensory properties of traditional Tort cheese.

## Key findings

- Adding carob molasses pulp increased antioxidant activity, total phenolic content, and dry matter while reducing pH, fat, and protein.
- Cheese with 5% carob molasses pulp was the most preferred due to improved spreadability and sensory attributes.
- The new formulation resulted in a more durable, stable, and nutritionally enriched cheese product.

## Abstract

Tort cheese is a traditional cheese that is a gastronomically valuable product, especially in the Mediterranean Region of Turkey, obtained by prolonged boiling of whey, which is one of the most important dairy byproducts. Due to the difficulty of production and its short shelf life, this cheese, which is produced in limited quantities and has low nutritional value, is among the forgotten products. In this study, a spreadable new cheese formulation was developed to increase the edibility and nutritional value of traditional Tort cheese. In this context, pulp (carob molasses pulp (CMP)) from carob molasses production was added to the cheese in different proportions (5%, 10%, and 15%), and some physicochemical, textural, and sensory properties of the cheeses were examined. As a result of the research, it was determined that the addition of CMP caused a decrease in the pH, fat, and protein content of the cheeses, while significantly increasing the dry matter, acidity, ash, carbohydrate, antioxidant activity, and total phenolic content. With CMP addition, the hardness and water‐holding capacity of the cheeses increased, while spreadability, adhesiveness, and syneresis decreased. As the concentration of CMP increased, the L* and b* values decreased, while the a* value increased. In terms of sensory properties, the least preferred sample was the control, while the sample with 5% CMP addition, which is the most spreadable cheese, was the most preferred. As a result, a new product with lower fat content that was more durable and stable, rich in bioactive properties, and with improved sensory attributes was developed.

The primary objective of this research is to render Tort cheese, a forgotten traditional Turkish cheese, more palatable, particularly to children. To achieve this goal, a new formulation has been developed by enriching spreadable cheeses with pulp (carob molasses pulp (CMP)), a byproduct of carob molasses production, thus providing an alternative to traditional spreadable cheese. A new product with lower fat content, more durable and stable, rich in bioactive properties, and with all sensory attributes more improved was developed and consequently, this approach not only economically valorizes a food waste but also produces a new dairy product with an enriched composition.