Date fruit (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is largely produced in North Africa and in the Middle East oases. Tunisia is a major worldwide producer and exporter; the annual production is estimated to 260 000 tons dominated by Deglet Nour variety. Date fruit is a principal source of carbohydrates and dietary fiber and is considered as a complete food or added in many traditional recipes. Lben is one of the popular traditional dairy products in North Africa and is characterized by its specific acid taste, nutritional value, and health attributes. The main objective of the current study was to evaluate the effect of the addition of date powder (6%; w/v) on the main quality attributes of Lben produced under optimized conditions in terms of starter level, temperature, and time of fermentation (temperature: 18.5°C, fermentation time: 20.6 h, and starter-level: 1.1 × 101 g/L). Solubility, antioxidant and total phenols of date powder were determined to evaluate its supplementation aptitude in the food matrix. Techno-functional properties of date powder were described by its solubility index (93.72±0.01 ml/gbs) in water and density (0.45±0.05 g/cm3). Phenolic content of date is 588.59 mg GAE/100 gbs and DPPH radical scavenging capacity is 55.25 %. L*, a*, b* color parameters of date powder were 63.35±1.72, 19.10±0.50, and 29.91±0.08, respectively. The supplementation of date powder in Lben allowed better flavor appreciation with a significant contribution to the sweet taste; to the reduction of the acidity from 84 to 76.37°D and the final lactic bacteria count from 1.9.109 to 1.5.108 CFU/mL. The incorporation of date powder affected also the final pH of Lben which increased from 4.51 to 4.58 and the mean sensory acceptance (4.7/6 points scale) with some modifications of appreciation attributes of the product mainly the color, sweet taste, and balance sweet/sour taste. These descriptors were correlated in the principal components biplot representation of Lben sensory attributes. Date powder improves the physicochemical and sensory attributes of supplemented Lben and could be used as fortifying ingredient having multifunctional properties.
