Pumpernickel Recipes

CLASSIC PUMPERNICKEL BREAD

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup of the warm water, yeast and sugar. Let sit in a warm place until the yeast mixture turns bubbly (about 5-10 min.).
• In a large mixing bowl (I use my Kitchenaid stand mixer with a dough hook), combine remaining 1 cup water, molasses, salt, shortening, caraway seeds and yeast mixture. Beat until smooth.
• Slowly beat rye flour into the yeast and molasses mixture. Mix in the all-purpose flour and mix until it is a soft, smooth dough ball.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. If dough is too moist, add a little more flour. If dough is too dry add a little more water.
• Knead the dough for 5 minutes.
• Lightly grease (or spray with cooking spray) a large bowl. Add the dough, turning once to coat the entire surface of dough with oil. Cover dough with a clean cloth and let rise in a warm place until almost doubled in size (about 1 1/2 hours).
• Punch down dough. Separate dough into 2 equal parts. Form 2 round, slightly flattened loaves. Score a 3/4 inch deep 'X" into the tops of both loaves with a sharp knife.
• Grease (or spray) a large baking sheet; sprinkle with cornmeal. Put the loaves on top and then cover with a clean cloth and let rise until doubled - about an hour.
• Preheat oven to 375 degress F. Bake 30-35 minutes or until crusts are dark brown and loaves sound hollow when tapped.
• Remove from baking sheet and cool on a rack before slicing.

PUMPERNICKEL BREAD

Steps:

• Load bread machine according to machine standards.
• Use this recipe on the whole wheat cycle but can be made on the white or delay cycles.

PUMPERNICKEL BREAD

Steps:

• Brush a large bowl with butter; set aside. Combine 1/4 cup warm water with sugar; sprinkle yeast over top. Set aside. In a small saucepan, heat espresso, chocolate, molasses, and 1 1/2 cups water over medium. Cook, stirring often, just until chocolate is melted, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool until warm but not hot (below 110 degrees).
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, combine both flours, caraway, and salt. Add the chocolate mixture then yeast mixture. Mix by hand, using the hook, to combine. Turn mixer on medium and mix until dough comes together in a smooth, springy ball around the hook, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove a small piece of dough and stretch it. If the dough holds together in a thin "windowpane" without breaking, the gluten is sufficiently developed. Add butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, until incorporated, about 4 minutes. Turn out onto a well-floured surface and knead a few times to form into a ball. The dough will be slightly sticky; don't be tempted to add more flour. Transfer to buttered bowl, turning once to coat, and cover loosely with buttered plastic. Let sit at warm room temperature until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.
• When dough has doubled, turn out onto a work surface. Pat dough out into a rectangle, roughly 10 by 12 inches with short side facing you. Fold bottom edge two-thirds of the way up the rectangle, and top edge down to cover. Rotate dough 90 degrees and repeat the fold. (This is called a business-letter turn.) Return to buttered bowl and top with buttered plastic. Let sit at warm room temperature until doubled in size again, about 1 hour. Remove from bowl, gently deflate, and work into a round boule about 6 inches in diameter. Place a clean dish towel in a medium bowl and generously dust with flour. Place boule, seam-side up, in bowl. Loosely fold floured towel ends over dough to cover. Let sit at warm room temperature until doubled, 30 to 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat oven to 450 degrees and place a 9- or 9 1/2-inch enameled cast-iron pot in oven with the lid to preheat. When dough is ready, carefully remove the lid, pull back corners of towel, and flip bowl upside down to transfer bread to the heated pot, seam-side down. Quickly slash an "X" in the top of the bread with a serrated knife and using an oven mitt, cover with lid. Return pot to oven and bake 20 minutes. Remove lid and continue to bake until bread feels hollow when tapped and internal temperature registers 205 degrees, 20 to 30 minutes more. Immediately turn bread out of pot onto a cooling rack. Let cool at least 2 hours before slicing.

PUMPERNICKEL BREAD II

Steps:

• Mix well bread flour, rye flour, cornmeal, salt, yeast, cocoa, and brown sugar. Add milk, oil, and molasses. Mix thoroughly. When mixed well enough that the dough holds together, knead by hand 15-20 minutes.
• Cover, let rise in bowl 30 minutes. Punch down, form, and place into 9 1/2x5 inch pan. Cover with damp cloth and let rise about 1 hour.
• Bake in preheated 375 degree F (190 degrees C) oven 25 to 30 minutes, covering top with aluminum foil last 10 minutes.

PUMPERNICKEL BREAD

Steps:

• Put the berries in a small saucepan and pour boiling water over them to cover by at least 1 inch (2,5cm). Cover and set aside to soak overnight.
• For the levain, mix the rye flour, water and sourdough starter in a small bowl until well combined. Cover and let it rest overnight in a warm place.
• Add enough water to the soaked rye berries so that there is about three times as much water a berries. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about 1 hour, or until the berries are soft. Check for water once in a while to make sure the berries are always covered with plenty of water, and add more water if necessary. Drain the cooked berries and set aside to cool.
• In a large bowl mix the dark rye pumpernickel meal, cracked rye and salt. Add the levain and 1⅓ cup (300ml) water. Mix until well combined and no traces of flour remain. Add the cooked berries, syrup and sunflower seeds. Knead the dough using the dough hook of an electric mixer or your hands and add the rest of the water during kneading, as needed, until the dough starts to come off the sides of the bowl. The dough should be moist and slightly sticky so it might not come off the sides of the bowl like in other bread doughs, which is fine. Dust with rye flour and cover. Let rest in a warm place for 30 minutes.
• Grease 5 (16 oz/450ml) straight-sided canning jars or 2 loaf tins.
• Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface to remove any excess air. The dough should be slightly sticky. Divide the dough into equal portions and place it into your baking pans or jars. Leaving about 1 inch (2,5cm) headspace in the jars to allow for the bread to rise (depending on the liveliness of your starter, the dough may or may not rise, mine always does). Only fill the pans to two-thirds to make smaller loaves. Grease small pieces of aluminum foil and cover the jars/baking pans, greased side down. Let rest in a warm place for 2 to 3 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 300F/150C. Remove the aluminum foil from the jars/baking pans and lightly spray the surface of the dough with water. Place the aluminum foil back on the jars/baking pans, greased side down. Make sure that the jars/baking pans are tightly covered.
• Adjust the oven rack to the lowest setting. Place the jars/baking pans in the casserole and and place it on the oven rack. Pour about 1 inch (2,5cm) hot water into the casserole. Place the lid on the casserole.
• Bake for 1 hour at 300F/150C. Reduce the heat to 212F/100C, and bake for 13 more hours. Add hot water to the casserole every few hours to maintain the water level. If you bake the bread overnight, pour more water into the casserole before you go to bed. A higher water level of 1½ to 2 inches (3-5cm) does not harm but an empty dry casserole may cause the jars to crack and should be avoided by all means.
• At the end of the baking time, turn off the oven and leave the casserole in the oven for 1 hour. Then take the casserole with the jars/baking pans out of the oven and let everything cool on the counter for another 30 minutes, or until cool enough to handle. Meanwhile keep the oven door closed to trap the residual heat. Gently unmold the breads (promptly removing them is important, otherwise you will have trouble removing them later) and place them in the warm oven for a couple of hours to dry.
• Remove the breads from the oven. Let them cool completely, then wrap them in wax paper or parchment paper and either place them in freezer bags right away, or let the bread sit in a cool place for another two days before cutting it on Day 5. Store the pumpernickel in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

PUMPERNICKEL RECIPE

Steps:

• Prepare the preferment. Combine in a bowl, cover and leave to ripen for 16 - 24 hours.
• Prepare the scalded rye. Pour the boiling water over the rye grains and leave overnight.
• Prepare the rye soaker. Combine in a bowl, cover and leave overnight.
• 11.30am - Add one litre of water to the scalded rye soaker, bring to a boil and simmer for approx. 1 hour until soft.
• 12.30pm - Strain the rye and discard any remaining water. Set aside to cool.
• 1pm - In a large bowl combine 700g of sourdough (the rest goes back into the fridge for your next bake), the cracked rye soaker, the cooked and cooled rye berries, the 550g extra cracked rye, the water (150g), salt (22g), maple syrup (120g) and mix until the dough comes together well. Mix for a few minutes (I just do this with my hands). Once this is done, cover the bowl and leave to rest for 30 minutes.Note: The dough should not be wet. It should stick together well and not fall apart. It should peel off the side of the bowl easily and stick on a spoon when held up.
• 1.45pm - Oil a large and a small loaf tin (I use a silicone brush to do this), then place the dough into the baking tins. Again, just use your hands to do this and even out the dough surface across the tin. Fill the tins only half full. Cover the tins - if you are using Pullman forms, use the Pullman tin cover, otherwise use a polythene bag to ensure the dough doesn't dry out.
• 2pm - Leave to prove for 3 hours (depends on room temperature, so do keep an eye on the dough during this time). The dough will have risen, probably not quite to the top of the tin, but it should have visibly risen.
• 4.30pm - Preheat the oven to 150°C.
• 5pm - Brush the top of the dough with a little water. Fully wrap the baking tins with two tight-fitting layers of tin foil to avoid the steam escaping and the dough drying out during the long baking process. Note, that I cover even the Pullman tin in these additional layers. Place the wrapped tins at the bottom shelf of the oven and bake for approximately 14 hours (best done overnight).
• 6pm - Turn down the temperature to 120°C.
• 7am - After baking, turn off the oven and leave the baking tin in the cooling oven for another hour.
• 8am - Take the loaf out of the baking tins and wrap in a kitchen towel for another 24 hours.
• Cut into thin slices and enjoy with butter and jam or smoked fish for a hearty breakfast!

PUMPERNICKEL BREAD I

Steps:

• Place ingredients into the bread machine in order suggested by the manufacturer.
• Use the Light Crust or Whole Wheat settings. Start the machine.

STEAKHOUSE-STYLE PUMPERNICKEL BREAD RECIPE

Steps:

• Grease two 9 x 5-inch loaf pans. Set aside.
• In a large bowl add all the dry ingredients: both flours, cocoa powder, yeast, sugar, and salt. Stir together.
• In a separate bowl mix the warm water, molasses, and oil together.
• Add the wet into the dry ingredients until your dough comes together.
• Knead the dough until it is smooth and no longer sticky, roughly 6-8 minutes. You can do this by hand or use a stand mixer.
• Grease the bowl with a little oil place in the dough. Cover the dough and allow to rise until it has doubled in size, roughly 60-90 minutes.
• After proofing, knock back the dough before shaping into 2 loaves and placing in your prepared loaf pans.
• Cover again and place in a warm place till doubled, roughly 45 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
• Bake for about 40 minutes. The dough should sound hollow once tapped on the base.
• Cool on a rack before slicing. Store bread at room temperature for up to 3 days. It can also be frozen for up to 8 weeks.