Effects of fiber additives on overall

acceptability of pancakes made with Bisquick

Brenda Borba and Chelsea Cotugno

Now with added

fiber!
 Diverticulosis Disease and Diverticulitis

Diverticular disease:
● Diverticulosis is a condition characterized by the formation of pouches, or sacs, bulging out of the colon
wall where feces can accumulate. Each pouch is called a diverticulum. Most people with diverticulosis do
not have symptoms or problems, but for those that do, the condition is then called Diverticular Disease,
which can then lead to Diverticulitis.

● Diverticulitis occurs when one or a few of the diverticula, pouches, become inflamed. This can lead to
serious complications.
Definition & Facts for Diverticular Disease. (2016, May 01). Retrieved December 09, 2017, from
https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/digestive-diseases/diverticulosis-diverticulitis/definition-facts
Pancakes
Why was this of interest and relevant to your clinical condition?
Pancakes made with Bisquick are a delicious breakfast meal which do not usually contain fiber.
Adding fiber to pancakes can aid in the dietary treatment of someone with diverticulitis.
What was the ingredient you chose to replace?
We will be making traditional pancakes from Bisquick, which is very low in fiber content, and adding
ingredients to the pancake mix to boost the fiber content for people with diverticulitis to enjoy.
Which were your variables and why?
Objective Variables: Line spread, time to cook, and height and diameter of two pancakes stacked.

Subjective variables: Flavor, texture, consistency, appearance, moistness, and overall liking
Experimental Control Control Recipe
Recipe Ingredients:
1 C Heart Healthy Bisquick mix
1 Egg
½ C Milk

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl to
create pancake batter. Scoop batter
onto skillet and cook until golden on
both sides.
Experimental Variable Variable Recipes

Recipes Experimental Recipe 1:

Add 2 Tbs of flax seed meal to control
batter

Experimental Recipe 2:
Add 2 Tbs of chia seeds to control
batter

Experimental Recipe 3:
Add 2 Tbs of psyllium seed meal to
control batter
Procedure
★ Prepped four different servings of
pancake batter using the Bisquick mix,
milk and eggs.

★ Added the three variations of added

fiber, flax seed meal, chia seeds, and
psyllium seed meal.

★ Cooked and flipped the pancakes until

the pancakes were ready to be eaten!
 Objective Measure
Procedures
Viscosity of batter: tested by conducting a line
spread test using one tablespoon of batter

Cook time of pancakes: measured the time to

fully cook one pancake

Diameter of pancakes: by using a ruler, two

pancakes were stacked on top of one another to
measure the height. The diameter of one
pancake was measured.

*All objective measurements were done on the

control pancake mix as well as the three other
variations of pancake mixes.
 Subjective Measure Subjective variables

Procedures
Flavor: subjects tasted and rated the flavor of each
sample

Texture: subjects were asked to rate the graininess of

Procedure: Five paper plates were sectioned into four
quarters and labeled with randomized numbers.
Panelists were given one plate that held four different
pancake variations.
Each panelist was given a sensory evaluation.
each sample
Appearance: subjects observed the appearance in
terms of how golden was each sample
Consistency: subjects were asked to rate the
fluffiness of each sample

A cup of water was provided to sip in between each Moistness: subjects were asked to rate the moistness
sample tasting. of each sample

#710 (Control) #426 (Chia seeds) Overall liking: subjects were asked to rate the likliness
of eating each sample for breakfast
#957 (Flax seed meal) #531 (Psyllium seed meal)
 Results

Control Chia seeds

Flaxseed Meal Psyllium Husk

Powder
Objective Measures’ Results

Diameter/height
Line Spread Test Time to cook
Control Recipe (mm) (mins)
of 2 pancakes
stacked (cm)

6.6 cm diameter
Trial 1 31mm 1:20
1.6 cm height

Trial 2 31.5mm 1:17 N/A

Trial 3 32.5mm 1:38 N/A

Objective Measures’ Results

Diameter/height
Flax Seed Line Spread Test Time to cook
of 2 pancakes
Recipe (mm) (mins)
stacked (cm)

7.2 cm diameter
Trial 1 29mm 3:51
4 cm height

Trial 2 28mm 3:33 N/A

Trial 3 31mm 3:42 N/A

Objective Measures’ Results

Diameter/height
Chia Seed Line Spread Test Time to cook
of 2 pancakes
Recipe (mm) (mins)
stacked (cm)

8.7 cm diameter
Trial 1 31mm 3:30
2.7 cm height

Trial 2 31mm 3:31 N/A

Trial 3 28.75mm 4:10 N/A

Objective Measures’ Results

Diameter/height
Psyllium Seed Line Spread Test Time to cook
of 2 pancakes
Recipe (mm) (mins)
stacked (cm)

9.1 cm diameter
Trial 1 27mm 4:11
1.5 cm height

Trial 2 27mm 4:15 N/A

Trial 3 27mm 5:14 N/A

Flavor Results

Likert Scale

Psyllium seed 531

P Values: 1.00 1.00 0.08

Texture Results

Likert Scale

Psyllium seed 531

P Values: 0.33 0.001 0.07

Consistency Results

Likert Scale

Psyllium seed 531

P Values: 0.18 0.03 0.01

Appearance Results

Likert Scale

Psyllium seed 531

P Values: 0.42 1.00 0.37

Moistness Results

Likert Scale

Psyllium seed 531

P Values: 0.54 0.62 0.48

Overall Liking Results

Likert Scale

Psyllium seed 531

P Values: 0.62 0.47 0.03

Nutrition Facts Labels
Nutrition Facts Label on Variables
 Discussion and Q&A
Did you find what you expected?
We did not expect the experimental versions to
be as dry as they were, especially in regards to
the psyllium husk powder.
The thick, rubbery batter for the psyllium
pancake was surprising. We expected the
psyllium to be the least favored.
What worked well, what would you have
done differently?
Using this bisquick mix recipe worked out very
well and was very simple. We decided to use
the procedure on the box because we assume
that is what most people use when making
pancakes from Bisquick.

We were surprised that the flaxseed and chia

seed pancakes were as palatable as they were,
but the control was expected to be the most
favorable.
Overall Recommendations
● If someone wants to enjoy pancakes for breakfast, but needs to add a fiber
boost, then choosing either chia seeds or flaxseed meal would be a better
choice for palatability.
● Based on the results of the psyllium seed pancakes, we would advise only
adding one tablespoon of the supplement to your pancake batter.
● For all of these pancake variations, it may be beneficial to add a some more
liquid to the batter after the fiber supplement is added. Pay close attention to
how thick the batter is and then add a tablespoon of liquid at a time