## 3 Results
### Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA, DTG)  
In Figure 1a,b, TGA and derivative (DTG) thermograms of GTW samples before and after cooking are reported. All the curves were normalized with respect to starting sample weights. From the analysis of GTW thermograms, it is possible to observe a lower water content after cooking (black curve). In fact, in _Gnochi_ dough, both starch and proteins are involved  
Figure 1: **(a)** TGA thermograms and **(b)** DTG curves of _Gnochi_ GTW before and after cooking. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c} \hline \hline \multirow{2}{*}{**Sample/Elements**} & **Raw** & **Raw** & **GTW** & **GSW** \\  & **GTW** & **GSW** & **Cooked in Unsalted** & **Cooked in Unsalted** \\  & & & & **Water** & **Water** \\ \hline Acids & & & & \\ Acetic acid & \(3.58\pm 0.11\) & \(5.61\pm 0.13\) & Nd & Nd \\
2-methylbutanoic acid & \(0.24\pm 0.01\) & Nd & Nd & Nd \\ pentanoic acid & Nd & \(0.48\pm 0.03\) & Nd & Nd \\ Hexanoic acid & \(1.21\pm 0.07\) & \(1.88\pm 0.01\) & \(0.82\pm 0.01\) & Nd \\ Heptanoic acid & \(0.41\pm 0.02\) & \(0.78\pm 0.02\) & \(0.24\pm 0.01\) & Nd \\ Octanoic acid & \(0.53\pm 0.01\) & \(1.60\pm 0.01\) & Nd & Nd \\ Nonanoic acid & \(0.53\pm 0.02\) & \(2.41\pm 0.09\) & Nd & Nd \\ Dodecanoic acid & \(0.49\pm 0.02\) & Nd & Nd & Nd \\ Tetradecanoic acid & \(1.32\pm 0.09\) & Nd & \(0.21\pm 0.00\) & Nd \\ Hexadecanoic acid & \(3.21\pm 0.13\) & \(4.55\pm 0.06\) & \(0.22\pm 0.00\) & Nd \\ Tot & \(11.51\pm 0.23\) & \(17.31\pm 0.09\) & \(1.49\pm 0.00\) & Nd \\ \hline Terpenes & & & & \\ alpha pinene & \(0.86\pm 0.00\) & \(1.42\pm 0.04\) & Nd & \(1.04\pm 0.03\) \\ delta 3-carene & \(1.55\pm 0.08\) & \(3.35\pm 0.14\) & Nd & Nd \\ p-cymene & Nd & \(0.68\pm 0.02\) & Nd & Nd \\ tot & \(2.41\pm 0.08\) & \(5.45\pm 0.08\) & Nd & \(1.04\pm 0.02\) \\ \hline Esters & & & & \\ Ethyl Acetate & Nd & \(5.81\pm 0.04\) & Nd & Nd \\ Tot & Nd & \(5.81\pm 0.04\) & Nd & Nd \\ Phenols & & & & \\
3-ethylphenol & \(0.31\pm 0.01\) & \(0.61\pm 0.01\) & Nd & Nd \\ \hline Phenol & \(0.08\pm 0.00\) & \(0.28\pm 0.02\) & \(0.25\pm 0.02\) & Nd \\ Tot & \(0.38\pm 0.01\) & \(0.89\pm 0.07\) & \(0.25\pm 0.02\) & Nd \\ Terpenes & & & & \\ alpha pinene & \(0.86\pm 0.00\) & \(1.42\pm 0.04\) & Nd & \(1.04\pm 0.03\) \\ delta 3-carene & \(1.55\pm 0.08\) & \(3.35\pm 0.14\) & Nd & Nd \\ p-cymene & Nd & \(0.68\pm 0.02\) & Nd & Nd \\ Tot & \(0.38\pm 0.01\) & \(0.89\pm 0.07\) & \(0.25\pm 0.02\) & Nd \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} Results are reported as A% = Area Peak Compound/Area Peak Total Compounds (A% \(\pm\) SD), Nd (not detected).  
\end{table} 
Table 3: _Cont._in physical interactions due to the presence of polar residues in both macromolecular structures; thus, starch and protein can form a gel when hydrated and heated and the gelling strength is influenced by several factors such as heating rate, holding time and temperature, pH, ionic strength, minerals contents, all factors resulting in a complex physicochemical environment [42]. After starch-protein gelation, upon _Gnocchi_ heating and cooling, a chemico-physical aggregation (hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic interaction, and Van der Waals forces) of the polymers occur, likely due to starch retrogradation, a process of recrystallization that takes place during food cooling and storage. In particular, after amylose releasing in boiling water, the branched amylopectin fraction, organizes in a tight and compact structure drastically reducing the available water binding sites. For this reason, as expected, the water content in cooked and cooled gnocchi is reduced (Figure 1a). The presence of amino acids influences starch pasting and retrogradation inducing a tight and strong physical network [43]. The main differences are correlated to the loss of food product quality, such as gnocchi staling, loss of viscosity, and of course, syneresis, as evidenced by [PERSON] et al. [44].