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Pumpkin Sourdough Bread

Pumpkin Sourdough Bread

1221kcal
5 from 1 vote
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Prep 30 minutes
Cook 40 minutes
Levain Build 8 minutes
Total 21 hours
A beautiful, naturally leavened pumpkin sourdough loaf made with a mix of high-protein bread flour, stone-ground whole wheat, pure pumpkin purée, and toasted wheat bran. Built on a long 8–10 hour levain build, structured bulk fermentation with coil folds, and a cold overnight retard for a light, open crumb and deep flavor.
Servings 1 loaf
Cuisine American / Artisanal Sourdough

Ingredients

Levain / Starter Build (7:00 AM)
Main Dough (5:00 PM)
  • 240 g Bread flour (80%)
  • 60 g Stone-ground whole wheat flour (20%)
  • 216 g Water (72%)
  • 60 g Mature sourdough levain (20%)
  • 60 g Pumpkin purée (20%)
  • 6 g Fine salt (2%)
Shaping & Coating
  • Wheat bran (for dusting and coating the loaf)

Equipment

  • Digital Kitchen Scale
  • (optional) Stand Mixer or Spiral Mixer
  • Round or Oval Proofing Basket (Banneton)
  • Dutch Oven / Cast Iron Pot
  • Scoring Lame or Razor Blade
  • Parchment Paper

Method

Build the Levain (7:00 AM)
  1. Dissolve 5 g sourdough starter in 35 g water. Add 30 g bread/AP flour and 5 g rye flour; mix until smooth.
  2. Cover loosely and let ferment at room temperature (74–78°F / 23–26°C) for 8–10 hours until tripled in volume with active bubbles.
Autolyse & Mix Dough (5:00 PM – 6:30 PM)
  1. 5:00 PM (Autolyse): Combine 216 g water, 240 g bread flour, and 60 g whole wheat flour. Mix until no dry flour remains, cover, and rest for 1 hour.
  2. 6:00 PM: Add 60 g mature levain. Knead on low speed (or using hand methods like Rubaud) for 3–4 minutes. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
  3. 6:30 PM: Add 6 g salt and 60 g pumpkin purée. Mix for 3–5 minutes until completely incorporated and smooth.
Bulk Fermentation & Folds (7:00 PM – 10:15 PM)
  1. Perform stretches and coil folds to build strength:
  2. 7:00 PM: Stretch & Fold #1
  3. 7:30 PM: Coil Fold #1
  4. 8:15 PM: Coil Fold #2
  5. 9:00 PM: Coil Fold #3
  6. 9:45 PM: Coil Fold #4
  7. Let rest undisturbed at 74–78°F until the dough increases by 50–60% in volume, feeling light and airy with dome-shaped edges.
Preshape, Shape & Cold Proof (10:15 PM – Next Morning)
  1. 10:15 PM (Preshape): Turn dough onto a floured surface, fold onto itself, round into a loose boule, and let rest uncovered for 30 minutes.
  2. 10:45 PM (Shape): Sprinkle dough with wheat bran. Flip over, fold the sides inward, and roll into a tight batard or boule.
  3. Place seam-side up into a proofing basket lined with wheat bran. Rest for 15 minutes at 80°F, then cover tightly and place in the refrigerator for 14–24 hours.
Bake
  1. Preheat Dutch oven in the oven at 500°F (260°C) for 45–60 minutes.
  2. Flip chilled dough onto parchment paper and score the top with a lame.
  3. Load into the hot Dutch oven, cover with the lid, and bake at 500°F for 15 minutes with steam.
  4. Remove the lid, reduce temperature to 450°F (232°C), and bake for an additional 20 minutes until deep golden brown.
  5. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

Nutrition

Calories1221kcalCarbohydrates249gProtein42gFat6gSaturated Fat1gPolyunsaturated Fat3gMonounsaturated Fat1gSodium2348mgPotassium631mgFiber15gSugar3gVitamin A9349IUVitamin C3mgCalcium87mgIron6mg

Notes

  • Why Pumpkin Purée Requires Less Water: Beginners often make the mistake of adding pumpkin purée into a standard sourdough recipe without adjusting the baseline liquids. Pumpkin purée is made up of roughly 90% water weight; because of this, the liquid water in this master formula is dropped down to 46% to ensure your dough stays strong, manageable, and holds a proud, high-rising shape in the oven.
  • The Non-Negotiable Tying Rule: When executing the decorative twine-tying step, ensure you leave a comfortable amount of slack in the strings. If you tie the kitchen twine tightly against the cold dough, it will slice completely through the delicate skin during the explosive oven spring, ruining your decorative segments and resulting in a messy, deflated bake.
  • Managing Stickiness From Simple Gums: Pumpkin flesh contains natural complex starches and soluble fibers that can make the dough feel notably stickier and softer during hand-kneading than standard white flour bakes. Do not worry or try to fix this by continuously dusting in extra raw flour. Trust the 4 structural stretch-and-fold rounds—the gluten chains will steadily organize and clear your hands cleanly.
  • Baking without Twine Strings: If you don't care for the geometric pumpkin shape and prefer a traditional artisan aesthetic, you can safely skip the string step entirely. Simply turn the cold dough boule out straight onto a sheet of parchment paper, use your lame to slash one deep, curved crescent line across the top crown to secure a proud ear, and drop it straight into your preheated Dutch oven.

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