A recipe for pumpkin flavored and pumpkin shaped sourdough bread!
Many versions of pumpkin shaped artisan bread have been floating around the internet for some time. However, I wanted to give a festive go at my own interpretation. This recipe for sourdough bread replaces a bit of the water with pumpkin puree. Some added honey and pumpkin pie spice adds aroma, flavor and a bit of sweetness. Even though this bread is almost too beautiful to eat, it is absolutely delicious served with a smear of brown sugar cinnamon cream cheese. Happy Autumn Solstice!
INGREDIENTS IN PUMPKIN SHAPED SOURDOUGH BREAD
- Water. If your tap water has a funky flavor after it sits at room temperature, use filtered water. The DDT (desired dough temperature) of this loaf is 78° F, so be sure to warm or cool your water as necessary. Check out Maurizio Leo’s very handy Water Temp Calculator for this step.
- Sourdough starter (at or past peak). This recipe calls for about 1/2 cup (120 grams) of active sourdough starter. You can also make a levain ahead of time from your primary starter.
- Pumpkin puree. A little canned pumpkin puree replaces some of the water in this recipe and adds some color to the loaf without weighing it down.
- Honey. I love the mild sweetness this honey imparts to the dough.
- Bread flour. Use a bread flour that has between 11-12% protein content.
- Pumpkin pie spice. Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and cloves – these spices are what give the dough a “pumpkin” flavor.
- Fine sea salt. Without salt, bread will taste flat.
HOW THIS RECIPE COMES TOGETHER
- 1. Feed your starter or make a levain. You can use your primary sourdough starter or make a levain from your starter to bake with. You will need 1/2 cup (120 grams) of active starter or levain that is at peak or just past peak.
- 2. Mix the dough then perform stretch and folds. Combine all of the ingredients together and mix them into a cohesive, shaggy dough. Let it rest for 30 minutes. Then perform 3 sets of stretch and folds with 30 minute rests in between each.
- 3. Bulk ferment. After the stretch and folds are complete, let the bread dough rise in a warm place until nearly doubled. If the dough is kept around 78° F, it will be properly fermented 4-6 from the time of mixing. If it is cooler, the dough will rise much slower and need to rise more like 75%.
- 4. Pre-shape, final shape and overnight proof. When the dough is risen properly, aerated and a bit bubbly on the edges, turn it out onto a floured surface and pre-shape it into a tight ball. Cover and let it rest for 20-30 minutes. Flip the dough, shape it for the final time and place it in a banneton basket. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours.
- 5. Wrap, score and bake. When you are ready to bake, cut 4 lengths of kitchen twine, saturated them in oil and then place them on a piece of parchment or silicone transfer mat in a snowflake pattern. Turn the dough out onto the twine then wrap the twine around the dough and tie at the top. Bake the bread in a Dutch oven with the lid on for 25 minutes. Then lower the oven temperature to 400° F and bake with the lid off for 15-20 additional minutes.
- 6. Remove the twine and decorate. When the bread is cool enough to handle, cut and remove the twine. Place a cinnamon stick in the top of the baked bread.
ADDITIONAL NOTES AND TIPS FOR SUCCESS
- – Let your dough rise in a marked container like this one so it is easier to gauge how much your dough is rising during bulk fermentation.
- – Make sure to lightly grease whatever container the dough rises in so it will easy release when you are ready to shape it.
- – This bread will bake best if it cool proofs overnight before baking.
- – Don’t skip oiling or lightly greasing the twine that will wrap around the bread. This twine will not leave little fibers on your bread.
- – Dust a little extra flour on the top of your bread so whatever design you score will be more defined.
- – This is my favorite bread lame because it’s very easy to hold, the blade retracts and it’s magnetic so you can keep it on your fridge.
- – To avoid burning the bottom of your bread, line the bottom of your Dutch oven with dried beans or rice. You can also use a double layer of parchment paper under the loaf. Make sure the baking vessel is on a center rack as opposed to a bottom rack in the oven.
- Want to bake a simpler loaf of sourdough bread? Try my Simple Sourdough Bread and Simple Sourdough Country Bread recipes.
Pumpkin Shaped Sourdough Bread
A recipe for pumpkin flavored sourdough bread that is in the shape of a pumpkin!
Equipment
- 1 kitchen scale
- 1 instant read thermometer
- 1 large mixing bowl
- 1 bench scraper
- 1 Dutch oven or chicken roaster
- kitchen twine
- kitchen shears
- bread lame
- parchment paper or silicone baking mat
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (250 grams) water
- 1/2 cup (120 grams) sourdough starter at peak or just past peak
- 1/4 cup (53 grams) honey
- 1/2 cup (113 grams) pumpkin puree
- 4 1/2 cups (510 grams) bread flour
- 1/2 tbsp (10 grams) sea salt
- (3 grams) pumpkin pie spice
- neutral oil for coating the kitchen twine
- 1 cinnamon stick for the pumpkin stem
Instructions
Determine Water Temperature
- The DDT (desired dough temperature) for this loaf of bread is 78° F. First, take the temperature of your flour by inserting an instant read thermometer into your bag or bin of flour. The following chart will give you an idea of what temperature your water should be when mixing the bread dough.
- Water Temperature Cheat SheetAir/flour temp: 65° F / Water temp: 117° FAif/flour temp: 68° F / Water temp: 108° FAir/flour temp: 70° F / Water temp: 102° FAir/flour temp: 72° F / Water temp: 96° FAir/flour temp: 75° F / Water temp: 87° FAir/flour temp: 78° F / Water temp: 78° F
Mix the dough
- Weigh the temperature appropriate water, starter, honey and pumpkin puree into a bowl. Stir until smooth.250 grams water, 120 grams starter, 53 grams honey, 113 grams pumpkin puree
- Next add the flour, salt and pumpkin pie spice. Stir into a shaggy but cohesive dough with your hand or a dough whisk. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.510 grams bread flour, 10 grams sea salt, 3 grams pumpkin pie spice
Stretch & folds
- Perform 3 sets of stretch and folds everything 30 minutes after the initial 30 minute rest period. To perform a stretch and fold, grasp the edge of the dough, pull it up and over then tuck it under. Repeat this motion all the way around the dough 2-3 times. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes between each set of stretch and folds.
Bulk fermentation
- The temperature of your dough will determine when bulk fermentation is over. If this dough is kept around 78° F, it will be properly risen in 4-6 hours from the time of initial mixing. The dough should be nearly doubled and visibly puffed with some air bubbles around the edges. I like to use a container like this one to help me judge how much the dough has risen.
Pre-shape
- Gently turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Stretch the dough just a bit into a slightly flattened disc. Lightly lift the top (12 o'clock) edge gently upward and down to meet the middle of the dough. Then fold in the right and left sides over the center. Finally, tug the top section up and use it to flip the dough over so all the seems are now down on the counter. Using a bench scraper if needed, round dough in a counter clock wise motion that creates some tension and forms it into a dome-shape. Cover with a tea towel and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Final Shape
- Prepare your banneton basket by dusting it with flour if necessary. Uncover the dough and lightly flour the top. Using a bench scraper, scoop underneath the loaf and flip it so the bottom is now facing up. Repeat the same process as before in the pre-shape, creating tension without tearing the dough.
- When the dough is rounded, gently lift the dough up and tip it into the prepared banneton basket so the rounded side meets the basket and the bottom is facing up. At this point, if your dough is on the colder side and you suspect it could rise a bit more, you can leave it on the counter for bit. Either way, cover the dough with a towel, cloth or shower cap first before placing it in the refrigerator for a cold overnight proof.
Cold Overnight Proof
- This step is necessary to get the definition in the pumpkin shape which will come later. Ideally, the dough should chill for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours before baking.
- Shape, Score & Bake
- When you are ready to bake the bread, place a Dutch oven in the oven and preheat it to 450° F. Let the Dutch oven heat for at least an hour before baking.
- Prepare a sheet of parchment paper or a silicone baking mat like this one by placing it on a counter top. Cut 4 lengths of kitchen twine to about 24" long. Dip the kitchen twine in a little bowl of neutral oil or lightly spray the twine with non-stick cooking spray. This will prevent the twine from sticking to the bread as it bakes.
- Lay one length of twine vertically on the paper or mat. Then cross it with another length laying horizontally. Lay the other two lenghs of twine between the cross at angles so they cross in the center and effectively create a snowflake or star pattern.
- Remove the banneton from the refrigerator. Uncover the dough and gently turn it out onto the twine so the top of the dough is directly over the center of the twine. Bring each end of twine up over the dough and tie it to its opposite at the top. Repeat until all of the twine is tied around the dome. Be sure not to tie the twine too tightly so the dough can expand around it.
- At this point, you can bake the bread or you can do some decorative scoring in the openings between the twine. Dust a bit of flour over the bread if you want some more contrast and definition in the scoring.
- Remove the preheated Dutch oven from the oven with sturdy oven mitts. Set it down and gently remove the lid. Place the bread inside the Dutch oven and return the lid. Then return the whole Dutch oven to oven and close the door.
- Bake with the lid on for 25-30 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 400° F and remove the lid from the Dutch oven. Bake for an additional 15-20 minutes. The internal temperature of the bread should be around 200° F. Remove the bread from the Dutch oven and let it cool a bit before removing the strings. Stick a cinnamon stick in the center top so it resembles a pumpkin stem.
- I recommend letting the bread cool for at least 2 hours before slicing. Store the bread in bread bag or container at room temperature for 5-7 days.
Thanks for the excellent instructions!
Thank you for the kind comment, Marjie!