Possibilities of using acorn flour in products Based on flour

Oaks (Quercus spp.) are widespread species of temperate zone of the northern hemisphere including Europe, North Africa, Middle East, Asia and North America. Acorns, the fruit of the oak, have been used in human nutrition for thousands of years and more recently archaeological research confirms that in the past acorns have been important sources of food in different cultures around the world. Today it is used as food in Turkey, Korea, North Africa, China, the USA and as an important part of cultural heritage in some parts of Spain. Acorn was staple food in the diet of the Balkan peoples, but despite its long culinary tradition acorn has been neglected. The sad fact is that we have forgotten all about nutritional value of acorns that our ancestors knew and used. The aim of this study is a qualitative analysis of the existing literature concerning the investigation of food products from acorns, primarily the possibility of using acorn flour in products based on flour. Based on citation bases Web of Science and Scopus 42 articles have been selected that included the period from 1977 to 2015. Most of the studies were published by authors from the United States (14), Italy (6) and China (5). Additional searches were done by using Google Web Search. Regarding these results acorn flour can be used in modern diet as a replacement for wheat flour in wide range of applications in food production, primarily production of cakes, cookies, muffins, pancakes, pasta, noodles, flatbreads, pizza crust, pie crust, and also for thickening sauces and soups. However, analysis of the literature reveals a lack of research in Croatia, and generally points out the need for greater representation of these issues in the future