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Moisture diffusivities and their temperature dependence of two types of crusts (crackers and cookies), three types of fillings (chocolate, marshmallow, and strawberry jam), and six types of composite snack foods were determined at 20-40℃. Interfacial moisture content between crust and filling and the time required for each layer to reach a specific moisture content were predicted. Cookies showed a higher moisture diffusivity than crackers, and, among the fillings, chocolate showed the highest diffusivity, followed by jam and marshmallow. Cookies have lower activation energy than crackers, and marshmallow showed the highest activation energy among the filling, followed by jam and chocolate. Samples composed of crackers showed a higher interfacial moisture content than those of cookies. Samples filled with jam showed the highest interfacial moisture content, followed by those filled with marshmallow and chocolate. Cookies required a longer time to reach the specified moisture content than crackers. In the case of fillings, marshmallow required the longest time, followed by jam and chocolate. Moisture diffusivities of crusts and fillings can be successfully used for the prediction of shelf-life of composite snack foods composed of crust and filling.
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