## 3 Results and Discussion
### Characteristics of Extruded Corn Snacks  
#### 3.2.1 Chemical Composition and Pro-Health Components in Extruded Corn Snacks with Fruit Pomace  
As mentioned, cereal snacks are popular, and nutritionists are interested in their enrichment with all kinds of raw materials, including fruits, mixed fruits, and vegetables. Such snacks focus widespread attention among producers and food consumers. This is due to the fact that the search for a new product is still ongoing, and on the other hand, it relates to the growing consumer awareness of the relationship between the composition of the product and its nutritional and pro-health value. Such value in these snacks would consist of bioactive compounds, particularly polyphenols in the added fruit pomace. Table 3 shows the chemical composition and contents of total polyphenols in corn extrudates with the addition of blackcurrant, cherry, and chokeberry pomace. It was found that after the application of fruit pomace, the protein content in the snacks decreased from 9% to 21% as compared to the control. This tendency can probably be explained by the fact that the amount of protein in cornreal/corn grits (8.3%; [PERSON], 2018) was 1.5 times higher than in chokeberry pomace (6.8/100 g dm). Therefore, the substitution of corn grits with these pomaces reduced the amount of protein in the final product. Definitely less protein reduction occurred in snacks with the participation of cherry and blackcurrant pomace because they contained much more of this compound. However, the amount of protein in extruded snacks decreased with the application of fruit pomace because the extrusion process itself can lead to a reduction in the protein content [15], as protein losses are mainly associated with the combination of simple sugars with amino acids during thermally induced Maillard reactions. Moreover, during the extrusion process, proteins are bound to fats, which can result in some losses of this nutrient [44; 45]. The fat contents in the extrudates with fruit pomace and the control sample were at similar levels, and the highest fat content was a result of the largest addition (20%) of currant pomace (Table 3). A slight reduction in the fat content or its stabilization in the mixture after extrusion can most likely be the result of combining fat with starch or proteins [45; 46]. The content of total sugars in the extrudates depended on the share and type of the applied pomace and increased from 24 to 88% in relation to the control (Table 3). This was due to the addition of a fruit component rich in sugar, which is fruit pomace, as well as the degradation of starch chains during the extrusion process [46]. Results similar to those observed in this work were also reported by [PERSON] et al. [47], where, with the increasing share of defatted blackcurrant seeds from 10% to 50%, the content of total sugars in the extrudates also increased (from 12% to 415%) at 50% addition of blackcurrant seeds). The ash content in the samples with fruit pomace addition was constant or slightly increased as compared to the control. Changes in the ash content in final products were mainly related to the applied raw materials, i.e., the increasing share of fruit pomace, because, as reported by [PERSON] and [PERSON] [46], the amount of minerals in the plant material does not increase after extrusion. It was found that each of the analyzed fruit pomaces increased the content of bioactive compounds in extrudates. For PBC addition to corn snacks, the increase in polyphenol content ranged from 97% to 398%, based on the control sample. PCH contributed to the increase in polyphenols in the range of 76% to 318% in extruded corn snacks as compared to the control. Moreover, extrudates enriched with chokeberry pomace were characterized by a higher content of these ingredients in the range of 216% to 1030% compared to pure corn extrudates (Table 3). A general observation was made: the increase in the content of polyphenols was a function of the amount of pomace introduced into extrudates.