Sourdough Loaf with Pumpkin Seed Flour

 

To make this bread you will need a sourdough starter. You can read a little about converting wheat/rye based sourdough starters here. 

This recipe was designed specifically to be made with Bakers' Magic gluten free flour. The finished baked product will not be the same if you use another gluten free flour and you will need to adjust the recipe, particularly if the flour you're using contains rice flour. 

Sourdough Starter

50 g of previous days leaven

50 g Bakers' Magic Gluten free flour

100 g Lukewarm water

50 - 70 g Roasted sweet potato

The remaining 150 g of the previous days leaven I either use to make bread (below) or put it on the humus heap.

I'm not gentle when it comes to mixing the starter - I find the easiest way to mix is with a stab blender. It's quick & gets the lumps out.

Roasted sweet potato - I usually bake it whole for 1 - 1.5 hours (depending on the size). I blend it with a food processor & freeze it in ice cube trays. Two of my roasted sweet potato ice cubes weigh ~70 g. I've fed my culture on one ice cube of sweet potato however the culture is not as active. The water content of the roasted sweet potato will vary & may affect the final shape of your loaf.   

Ingredients

375 g Bakers' Magic Gluten free flour

25 g Pumpkin Seed Flour

1.5 - 2 tsp Salt

3 tsp Sugar

150 g Sourdough starter (leaven)

50 g Roasted sweet potato

50 g Oil (I use Rice bran)

350 g Warm water

Extra oil & pepitas for top of the dough

Water - the amount of water added will affect the shape of the loaf as will the method of mixing. 

Sugar - I added in the sugar as an extra food source for the sourdough culture. 

Method

I recommend using a heavy based bread tin with base dimensions of 25.5 cm x 9.5 cm & a height of 10.5 cm. 

Thermomix

Place all ingredients in the TM bowl.

Mix @ 37o C for 2.5 mins at speed 4.

Ensure all ingredients are incorporated. If not, scrape down the sides and briefly mix again.

Stand Mixer

Mush the roast sweet potato with a fork if it hasn't already been processed.

Combine ingredients using the flat beater until a uniform consistency is achieved. You may need to stop the mixer and scrap down the sides. 

Both Methods

Transfer the dough to the loaf tin. Let the dough proof for 3-5 hours in a warm moist environment. The actual time will depend on many factors particularly how active your sourdough starter (leaven) is.

Before putting it in the oven ensure that the dough has risen ~2X. 

Turn your oven on to 200o C. 

Bake at 200o C for 50 mins - 1 hr. The time will vary depending on the individual oven. If your oven has a hot spot turn the bread halfway through baking. Baking the bread for longer will result in a wonderfully crusty bread.  

Take out of the oven & cool the bread on a cooling rack. Ensure the bread is sufficiently cooled before cutting into it.

When the bread is more than a day old I refresh the bread by sprinkling it  with a little water & putting it back in the oven for ~20 mins at 180o C.

Simply enjoy!