Happy Halloween! Today I am baking a gluten free pumpkin bread. I do mean ‘bread’, in the French way, le pain, not the American classic, which is more like a cake. I am super happy how this bread turned out: soft and fluffy, with hints of pumpkin and spices flavors. That lovely pumpkin shape makes it festive, ideal for the season! {Recette en français à la fin de l’article}
“… If you bring me back my Aurélie, I will bake you a bread that will be so delicious (…) you won’t say anymore: I ate cheese on a slice of bread, you will say: I ate a slice of bread on cheese”. (“… Si vous me ramenez mon Aurélie, je vous ferai un pain comme vous n’aurez jamais vu. Un pain qui sera si bon (…) vous ne pourrez plus dire: j’ai mangé une tartine de fromage sur du pain, vous direz: j’ai mangé une tartine de pain sur le fromage”.
The Baker’s Wife (La Femme du Boulanger, 1938). Image source: www.compagnons-boulangers-patissiers.com
This promise is made by the desperate baker of a Provence village, whose wife run off with a handsome shepherd. In this 1938 French comedy The Baker’s Wife (in French, La femme du boulanger), the heartbroken baker no longer bakes bread, and the whole village anxiously awaits the wife’s return, else they’ll never see another loaf of bread!
Why do I share this quote? Because this is exactly how I felt about my pumpkin bread, after finally nailing down the recipe. The best breads are delicious enough to eat on their own. 
Did you see how the baker is kneading his dough, the old-fashioned way with his bare hands? How wonderful! It is not always possible to do that with a gluten free dough, because it is often very moist. With my pumpkin bread dough, you will have a chance to get your hands on the dough.
First I used my KitchenAid mixer to combine the pumpkin puree, flours and spices (a blend of cinnamon, ginger, clove and nutmeg) and other liquid ingredients. A mixer is not a must though, I often prepare bread just with a spatula. Next, I shaped the dough into a smooth ball. To get the pumpkin shape, I tried different techniques, until I found this one, my keeper: I simply tied a string over my dough, crossing it at the center. You may be tempted to add flour to ease the dough manipulation. Try to avoid it as much as possible or your bread may get too dense or dry.
My pumpkin bread is best eaten fresh the day you bake it. The Hokkaido pumpkin puree gives a moist and soft texture, and that beautiful mustard-yellow shade. To me the pumpkin shape is an invitation to gather around the table with family or friends… everyone tearing a slice, enjoying the dégustation together. You can sprinkle the bread with pumpkin seeds, and use the Hokkaido pumpkin stern as a center decoration as I did. Bon appétit!
- 1 Hokkaido pumpkin (150 g pumpkin puree)
- 120 g organic brown rice flour
- 120 g potato starch
- 60 g tapioca starch
- 10 g psyllium
- 10 g fresh yeast
- 5 g salt
- 20 g olive oil
- 1 tbsp honey
- 210 g lukewarm water
- Spices: Blend of 1 tsp cinnamon, ½ tsp ginger, ¼ nutmeg, ⅛ clove.
- Pumpkin seeds to garnish
- Cook the Hokkaido pumpkin with water in a large saucepan for about 30 minutes until tender. Peel the skin. Cut it in two and remove the stringy pulp and seeds (you can save the seeds to dry and roast). Mash 150 g of flesh into puree. Let it cool down.
- Mix fresh yeast with lukewarm warm water, add honey and combine.
- In a bowl combine rice flour, starches, psyllium, salt and spices with a whisk. Add the pumpkin puree and yeasty water and mix with a spatula (or in your stand mixer) until a dough forms.
- Place the dough on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Form a smooth ball.
- Take a long piece of string and place it half way on top of the dough. Flip the dough over and cross the string pieces on the bottom. Flip over again and do the same thing until the dough is divided in 8 parts.
- Cover the dough and let it rise for 1,5 hour.
- Preheat oven 210 degrees. Sprinkle pumpkins seeds on the top of the dough and place in the oven for 50 minutes. After 20 minutes, decrease the temperature to 190 degrees. Bake until goden brown. The bread should sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
- Remove from the oven and place on a rack to cool down. Cut and remove the strings.
- 1 potimarron Hokkaido (150 g de purée)
- 120 g farine de riz complet
- 120 g fécule de pomme de terre
- 60 g fécule de tapioca
- 10 g psyllium
- 10 g levure fraîche de boulanger
- 5 g sel
- 20 g huile d'olive
- 1 càs de miel
- 210 g eau tiède
- Epices: 1 cc cannelle, ½ cc gingembre, ¼ cc muscade, ⅛ clou de girofle.
- Graines de courge
- Laver et cuire le potimarron dans une casserole avec un peu d'eau environ 30 minutes jusqu'à ce qu'elle soit tendre. La couper en deux et retirer les filaments et graines. Ecraser la chair et la mixer en purée. Laisser refroidir.
- Mélanger dans un bol la levure fraîche et l'eau tiède, ainsi que le miel.
- Dans un récipient combiner la farine, les fécules, le psyllium, le sel et les épices. Ajouter la purée de potimarron et le mélange eau-levure. Mélanger à la spatule ou avec la feuille K de votre mixeur, jusqu'à ce que la pâte prenne forme.
- Poser la pâte sur une plaque de cuisson recouverte de papier sulfurisé. Former une boule.
- Prendre une longue ficelle de cuisson et la poser à mi-longueur sur la pâte. Retourner la pâte et croiser la ficelle en dessous. Tourner à la nouveau la pâte et croiser. Continuer de sorte que la pâte soit divisée en 8 portions.
- Couvrir la pâte et laisser reposer pendant 1h30.
- Préchauffer le four à 210 degrés. Parsemer la pâte de graines de courge puis placer au four pour 50 minutes. Après 20 minutes, baisser le four à 190 degrés. Cuire jusqu'à ce que le pain soit doré et sonne creux lorsque vous tapotez en dessous.
- Laisser refroidir sur une grille puis couper les fils.
Leave a Reply