Dark Pumpernickel Rye Bread
Warm up a cold winter's night with this hearty, dark rye bread and a good bowl of hot soup. While the traditional German pumpernickel bread is made with sourdough starter and rye, our recipe for American dark rye pumpernickel bread uses a mixture of bread flour and rye flour, plus Red Star Active Dry Yeast. The result is a soft loaf that is easier for beginners to bake (though experienced bakers will enjoy this recipe, too).
Yield 1 round loaf
Ingredients
- 2 cups bread flour, divided
- 5 teaspoons cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 3/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 (0.25oz) package (7g) or 2 1/4 teaspoons Red Star Active Dry Yeast
- 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons brewed coffee (cooled to 120-130°F, warm but not too hot to touch)
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons dark molasses
- 1 cup medium rye flour
Topping (optional)
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- Caraway seeds
Instructions
- Add 1 cup bread flour, cocoa powder, sugar, salt, onion powder, and yeast to stand mixer bowl; whisk to combine. Add coffee, oil and molasses to flour mixture. Mix with paddle attachment for 4 minutes on medium speed.
- Switch to dough hook attachment. Gradually add rye flour and enough of the remaining bread flour to form a firm dough. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 to 7 minutes.(NOTE: For hand mixing: following above steps, mix ingredients in large mixing bowl using a wooden spoon or dough whisk. Knead on floured surface until smooth and elastic.)
- Place dough in lightly oiled bowl and turn to grease top. Cover; let rise until indentation remains after poking dough with finger down to second knuckle, about an hour.
- Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; punch down to remove air bubbles. On lightly floured surface, shape dough into a round loaf. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet or in 8-inch layer cake pan. Cover; let rise in warm place until indentation remains after touching (about 30 minutes).
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. (See optional topping instructions below.) Remove from pan; cool before slicing.
- Optional Topping: Combine 1/4 cup water and 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch; heat to boiling. Five minutes before the loaf is finished baking, remove from oven and brush top with cornstarch glaze. Sprinkle with caraway seeds, if desired. Return to oven and bake approximately five more minutes until glaze is glossy and loaf sounds hollow when tapped.
Notes
Get Bread Machine Method here.
TIPS:
- Scoring is not necessary for this bread, but you can score it if desired.
- If you’d like to add caraway seeds to the loaf rather than just on top, add 2 teaspoons during step 2.
- Coffee can be substituted with water in this recipe.
- If you prefer to proof overnight in the refrigerator, decrease your coffee temperature to 100-110°F. The next day, let the dough sit on the counter for an hour before preheating the oven to bake.
- Rye flour has a low protein content, which is why this recipe was developed with bread flour, which has a high protein content. The high protein content is required to get a decent rise in the bread.
- You may also use a Dutch oven to bake your rye loaf. Preheat the Dutch oven for 30 minutes before baking, shape the loaf on parchment and put it in the preheated Dutch oven. Follow the recipe as written for baking times and temperatures.
- The caraway seed topping is optional, but you can also substitute them with dill seeds, anise seeds or fennel seeds for a similar licorice-like flavor.
