When pumpkin season hits, it’s more about the time of year than cooler, Fall weather upon us. Even though it may be warm and humid out, it’s still time for that delicious smell of Fall baking.
Yummy bagels, tasty muffins and mouthwatering breads – there’s no doubt about it, pumpkin is used in just about anything and everything.
Pumpkin makes muffins moister and breads more flavorful. This recipe for pumpkin yeast bread is no exception.
If the thought of pumpkin and yeast bread don’t really sound like a match – just wait….
I promise you those slices are delicious – full of flavor and with a beautiful pumpkin color.
It’ll make your table look amazing and will satisfy any craving!
It’s one you just have to try.
It’s hard to describe a recipe like this because the bread is just so darn good that you’ve got to make it and see that amazing texture for yourself, but the baker part of me also wants to share a little about the flours and why these flours are used and others aren’t.
Here’s the best, and simplest way to describe it:
In gluten free baking, flours are super important. That sounds silly. Of course, they are important!
No but they are really important.
The flours have to have the right amount of protein for the bread to rise beautifully. Otherwise it falls flat.
Protein is essential in producing a robust loaf of bread. Too little of it and the loaf won’t be sturdy.
So what will happen is you’ll take a nice looking loaf of risen bread batter and stick it in the oven and then after a few minutes… flop. Not only will it sink, but it’ll get dense and won’t taste like that bread you imagined.
So protein is important.
The flours used in this recipe and their protein content:
Brown rice flour – 7.5% protein
Sorghum flour – 11.8% protein
Light Buckwheat flour – 13.3% protein
Almost as important as protein is the liquid content of the bread – this recipe uses about a cup and a half of liquid content.
That’s the water, milk, egg and honey. The pumpkin is functioning as a binder so it is not really a liquid, but more of a texturizer. (Not sure if that is even a word in baking, but that’s pretty accurate!).
The result is a phenomenal loaf of bread that tastes amazing by itself or even better with a dab of butter (or dairy free if you opt for it).
As long as you have the flours and the weight of the starch for this bread, it’s an easy win. Oh and the pan too. These pans are amazing and bake up a beautiful, tall loaf of gluten free bread every time.
Other than that, it’s just mixing each set of ingredients and then mixing them together.
A little rise time and pop it in the oven.
A tasty gluten free pumpkin yeast bread will be ready to enjoy in no time.
Recipe
Gluten Free Pumpkin Yeast Bread {Dairy Free Option}
Ingredients
- ½ cup milk warmed to 80 – 90 F (or dairy free milk)
- ½ cup water warmed to 80 - 90 F
- 2 Tbsp. honey
- 2 ¼ tsp. active dry yeast
- ½ cup brown rice flour
- ½ cup sorghum flour
- ½ cup light buckwheat flour
- 133 grams tapioca starch 1 cup + 1 Tbsp.
- ½ cup oats coarsely ground
- 2 tsp. psyllium husk powder
- 1 ½ tsp. baking powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. cinnamon
- ¼ tsp. ground ginger
- ¾ cup pumpkin puree
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 1 tsp. molasses
- 1 Tbsp. coconut oil melted
Instructions
- Line the bottom of an 8” x 4.5” loaf pan with parchment and spray the uncovered sides with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a measuring cup, combine the milk, water and honey. Add in the yeast and stir until combined. Let stand until the mixture gets puffy, about 5 - 7 minutes.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the flours, starch, psyllium husk powder, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and ginger. Mix well.
- Add the yeast mixture, pumpkin, egg, molasses and coconut oil and mix well. Scrape the bowl down and beat on medium for 2 minutes.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan and let it rise in a warm spot for 20 - 30 minutes.
- While the loaf is rising, preheat the oven to 350 F. Bake in the center of the oven for 35 - 40 minutes until the top is golden brown and sounds hollow when you tap on the top.
- Let the loaf cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely before slicing.
- Store in a cool dry place for 2 days. Wrap extra slices in tinfoil in a plastic bag before freezing.
Notes
- Proof the yeast until it reaches a frothy texture.
- Use the pan size recommended in the recipe.
- A 20 - 30 minute rise time is all this bread needs - otherwise, you risk it collapsing while baking.
Nutrition
Crystal
Thank you for this amazing recipe! I don’t have sorghum so I substituted for more brown rice, I also don’t have tapioca so I used a variety of other light flours and starches. Still came out perfect, wonderful texture and great taste. Family loved it, will make again.
Christine
Thanks Crystal! I love this spin on pumpkin bread too! And great substitutes.
Christine