Pumpkin and pumpkin seed bread: the recipe

At a glance

• Method: Preferment, without autolyse
• Preferment: Poolish — 20% of the flour
• Mixing: Stand mixer

• Number of pieces: 2
• Weight per piece: 680 g
• Preferment weight: 266 g
• Dough weight: 1092 g
• Total dough weight: 1360 g

Want to change the number of pieces, their weight or anything else? The calculator redoes the quantities. Open the calculator

Ingredients

Quantities for 2 pieces of 680 g, kitchen at 21 °C

Want to change the ingredients or use your own flour? The calculator redoes quantities and timing. Open the calculator

Method

1. Toast the seeds and cook the pumpkin (see notes)
2. Poolish: make it and let it ferment (at room temperature) (14 hours)

   • Weigh the ingredients
   • Make a mix with 1 ice cube and 113 g of water at room temperature (to get it to 12 °C)
   • Dissolve the yeast in the water
   • Mix until you get a smooth batter
   • Seal it airtight (a lid, or plastic wrap pressed onto the surface)
3. Weigh the ingredients and knead (30 min)

   • Use water at 24 °C

   Mix everything except the toasted pumpkin seeds, holding back 10% of the water for the bassinage. Once that last water is incorporated, add the seeds too.
4. End of mixing, start of bulk rise (at room temperature) (3 hours)

   Fold the dough three times, every 45 minutes.
5. Reinforcement fold 1 of 3
6. Reinforcement fold 2 of 3
7. Reinforcement fold 3 of 3
8. Divide/shape: weigh and form the pieces (5 min)

   • Divide into 680 g (1.5 lb) pieces and pre-shape into rounds. Once the dough has relaxed, shape into round loaves and place them seam side up in floured bannetons.
   • Alternatively, shape into cylinders and place them into loaf pans.
9. Start of proofing (at room temperature) (55 min)

   About 50-60 minutes at 24 °C.
10. Ready to cook

    Slash the loaves as desired before loading the oven.

Want to change when you start or when you bake? The calculator gives you the schedule with exact times. Open the calculator

Baking

1. • conventional oven, with steam
   • Overall temperature: 230 °C
   • Time: 15 minutes
   • Normal steam (not double, unlike the other soaker recipes in this family).
2. • conventional oven, without steam
   • Overall temperature: 215 °C
   • Time: 21 minutes
   • Lower the temperature and continue baking.

The calculator adapts baking times to the weight of your pieces. Open the calculator

Preparation notes

Pumpkin seeds

Toast them in a dry skillet, or in a moderate oven, for 6 to 8 minutes, until they darken slightly.

Pumpkin

1. Roast it in the oven until soft, then let it dry out well (keep baking it uncovered, or drain it) before running it through a food mill or mashing it: A too-watery purée throws off the recipe's hydration.
2. Let it cool down well before using it: Hot, it risks killing the yeast.

Bassinage

If mixing with a stand mixer or spiral mixer, pour in the last 10% of the water gradually, in a thin stream, only after the gluten network has formed — 10% here, not the 20% of the other recipes in this family.