Аннотация
Introduction Developing functional foods with high bioactivity often compromises sensory characteristics, making optimization essential. Methods This study evaluated the functional composition, antioxidant activity, vitamin content, microbiological safety, sensory acceptability, and phenolic bioaccessibility during simulated gastrointestinal digestion of a pumpkin–apple–honey–walnut appetizer enriched with 1%–5% of rosehip extract or powder. Data of the six formulations investigated were analyzed using two-way ANOVA (rosehip form × rosehip concentration) with Tukey’s HSD post hoc test, sensory scores were analysed with a linear mixed-effects model with assessor as a random effect. Results and Discussion Sensory acceptability (9-point hedonic scale) was significantly influenced by the concentration regardless of additive form. Rosehip levels of 1% and 3% maintained high acceptability, whereas 5% significantly reduced taste and texture scores. Significant form × concentration interactions were observed for protein, carbohydrate, fat, antioxidant content and vitamins A and E. Specifically, as concentration increased from 1% to 5%, vitamin A declined by 36% in extract-fortified samples and by 41% in powder-fortified samples due to matrix dilution, with powder consistently retaining higher vitamin A levels. Conversely, rosehip powder provided superior antioxidant content (1.19–1.33 mg/g at 3%–5%) compared to the extract (0.87–0.92 mg/g), whereas rosehip extract induced a more pronounced relative gain in vitamin E (15%). Simulated gastrointestinal digestion showed that total phenolic content and radical-scavenging activity were primarily released during oral and gastric stages (>95%), while flavonoids and reducing power accumulated progressively, with enriched formulations consistently outperforming the control. Microbiological quality remained within regulatory limits across all formulations, with rosehip enrichment showing no adverse effect on microbiological quality at any tested form or concentration. Rosehip form and concentration jointly dictate a trade-off between sensory acceptability, nutrient composition, and phenolic bioaccessibility of the developed appetizers. While 1%–3% enrichment gave the most favourable sensory scores, the choice between the rosehip form such as powder (for antioxidants and vitamin A) and extract (for vitamin E) should be tailored to the intended functional target.