Gluten Free + Vegan Pumpernickel Swirl Sandwich Bread!

I have wanted to come up with a pumpernickel swirl for a year. I am just beyond happy with how this beautiful bread turned out. Ive made some major strides in my bread making since getting a handle on how to use Psyllium husks properly. Its been so exciting making a variety of perfectly textured breads without needing to use eggs! Egg free bread has always been a challenge - as eggs helped offer the structure needed. Psyllium has become an amazing stand in.

I have found that 1 Tsp Psyllium husk powder + 3 Tbsp of water to replace 1 large egg works fabulous in bread recipes. So well that I think it MIGHT just work in all of my previously posted bread recipes. I cant say that for sure..but If there’s a recipe you have been eyeing that uses eggs and you cant eat them- I do think it would be worth a shot. :)

I did it first making marble rye bagels for the club- finally I got around to creating a beautiful big loaf of dark rye sandwich bread! Naturally a pumpernickel swirl sandwich bread had to come next!!

I was out of my mind excited to slice into this beautiful loaf of bread to discover it was perfect in EVERY way!! The flavor, texture, softness of the bread (and the fact it stays soft for several days so long as you store it properly in a sealed bag.)

For this recipe you will need to use this special gluten free bread pan!!

Its a miraculous invention that I couldn’t live without. Gluten free bread needs more support to give it structure and height. This pan allows for that to happen & sets your bread up for success. I have been able to achieve full sized (or bigger) loaves of bread many times over as a result.

If you use a normal pan- your bread will not rise nearly as high and as a result could end up quite dense and gummy. Getting the proper rise makes a HUGE difference.

You can order the gluten free bread pan here.

Psyllium is a really unique ingredient that has properties to it that I have not found in any other ingredients besides gluten itself. So I don’t think (at this time) anyways that I can recommend a way to substitute it successfully.

Ingredients (Some of these are affiliate links that earn me a few cents if you shop using them! :)

Better Batter Gluten Free Orginal Blend

This flour blend continues to amaze me. It can do so many things better than most other blends that I have tried. As a result its extremely popular. Around the holidays it tends to sell out everywhere. Usually its available on Amazon and at Walmart. Lately I have been ordering it from the Better Batter website directly. When they sell out- they tend to restock pretty quickly. Check back within a day or two if they are sold out when you look. I buy it in bulk now (Up to 40 lbs at a time) as I cant risk running out. I use it in too many recipes that we love.

What if you cant get your hands on it? This may be the case if you live outside the US. My friend Nichole from Gluten Free on a Shoestring has figured out a mock recipe for better batter. Her version should work great in this recipe! The owner (Naomi) of better batter has confirmed that the mix is similar to the official version.

Better Batter so kindly offered me a 30% off promo code to share with all of you! This can be used as often as you would like for every single purchase made directly on BetterBatter.com Use the code: BakingAngell30

Expandex

This bread is truly only possible because of the magic of expandex. It is a modified form of tapioca starch that was formulated to improve gluten free baking. The word Modified tends to worry people- so let me explain further. Essentially they studied tapioca and removed portions of it leaving only the parts that would allow for it to cause amazing elasticity (aka its name) in gluten free recipes. This flour allows me to get an incredible rise with everything I use it in. It traps the air bubbles in the dough just like regular flour with gluten does! Its honestly incredible. If you eat any processed or store bought foods you have eaten many forms of modified starch. Its nothing new- its just semi new to the home baker. Its non gmo and I typically get it from the brand Judee’s on amazon. Under no conditions can you sub it out for another regular starch.

Outside of the US there is a product called Ultratex 3 I have not worked with it but from what I understand its comparable! I would use that in the exact same quantity as the expandex amount that I call for.

Yeast: I recently learned about a special yeast made for sweet breads. Breads with sugar that are higher in fat have a harder time rising and typically take much longer to do so. Which means that this yeast has some extra oomph to it. Which gives me confidence that it could really benefit gluten free bread recipes. https://amzn.to/3AQPMsZ

If you don’t want to go to the trouble of getting that specific bag- any brand will do. Just make sure that its fast acting or listed as instant.

Sugar- REAL Sugar is important. Its what feeds the yeast and makes this bread possible. I do not recommend swapping in a liquid sweetener as that could throw off the recipe. Please don’t use any keto sugars or even coconut palm sugar. It may not work as well.

Pumpernickel Rye Swirl Sandwich Bread

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Yield: 1 Large Loaf

Author: Brittany Angell

Prep time: 30 MinCook time: 60 MinInactive time: 90 MinTotal time: 3 Hour

This is one of those epic- I cant believe this is gluten free moments. The flavor, texture - everything about this bread is perfect in every way. It took a lot of creative trial and error and solutions to figure out this beautiful bread. Part of getting it to the finish line was realizing it would work best if I made this dough a little bit backwards- by adding the yeast AFTER the dough has had a chance to chill. These seems counter intuitive but I found it gave me the tallest bread out of the bunch of variations that I tried. While this bread is definitely a little bit more of an advantaged recipe I believe that anyone can make it- especially if you watch the class posted first!

Ingredients

• 589 grams of Warm Water
• 14 grams (4 Tsp) Psyllium Husk Powder
• 31 grams (2 Tbsp) Organic Cane Sugar
• 398 grams Better Batter Original Blend
• 50 grams Garbanzo Flour Or Superfine Rice Flour (White or Brown- but MUST be superfine)
• 134 grams Expandex
• 2 tsp Salt
• 1 Tbsp Vinegar (18 grams)
• Add after the dough chills: 1 Tbsp Fast Acting/Instant Yeast
• optional: Olive oil & Oats for the top of the bread.

Pumpernickel Flavor (to add to half of the chilled dough)

• 2 1/2 Tbsp Cocoa Powder (I prefer Hersheys special dark)
• 1 1/2 Tsp Caraway Seeds
• 1 1/2 Tbsp Blackstrap Molasses
• 15 grams Garbanzo Bean Flour

Instructions

1. Carefully measure luke warm water to a stand mixer bowl. Then measure in the psyllium husk powder & give the mixture a quick whisk until combined.
2. Add in the sugar, flours, salt and vinegar. Turn the stand mixer on low using the paddle attachment- then work up to high & mix for 1-2 minutes scraping down the sides once or twice. Don't add the yeast at this point. Seal the bowl tightly with ceran wrap & place the bowl into the fridge to chill for at least 1-2 hours. If you are able to plan ahead- overnight is even better. This will make the dough easier to work with allowing both the flour and psyllium to absorb some of the water.
3. After the dough has chilled remove the mixing bowl from the fridge. Turn the oven on to 275 degrees (as we will be using the oven as a proofing box). Once it reaches 275- turn the oven off.
4. Place the bowl back on the stand mixer & add the yeast. Using the paddle attachment mix in the yeast well. Spray a medium bowl with oil & then place it on a kitchen scale. Add 610 grams of the dough to the bowl then set it aside.
5. To the remaining dough in the stand mixer bowl- add in the pumpernickel flavor. Cocoa, Caraway Seeds, Molasses & Garbanzo Bean Flour. Mix well scraping the sides of the bowl down once or twice.
6. Place large piece of parchment on the counter. Add a few tbsp (about 2) of better batter to the surface to help prevent sticking. Drop the plain dough onto the prepare parchment and then sprinkle another tbsp of flour on top. Make sure you hands have some flour on them and carefully press the dough out so that its about 12 inches long and about 8 inches wide.
7. Brush a thin layer of water over the surface of the dough to soak up some of the flour. Then add a layer of the pumpernickel dough on top. sprinkling flour over it and patting it out carefully so that the two types of dough are pressed together. Brush another thin layer of water over the surface of the pumpernickel dough. Using a bench scraper push in the sides to make sure the shape of the dough is still about 12 by 8 so that it fits into the pan.
8. Carefully roll the dough up tightly using the bench scraper to prevent the dough from sticking in any spots. As you
9. Seal it up tight- seam side down. Cut the parchment down a smaller size and use it to lift into the bottom of the gluten free bread pan. Press the parchment over the sides of the pan and then place the top piece of the gluten free bread pan on. We don't want the parchment to cover the top section of the bread pan. The dough needs to be able to stick to the top portion of the pan for it to reach its maximum height.
10. Brush the top of the bread with water smoothing out any imperfections. Spray oil on a piece of ceran wrap and drape it over the pan. Cover the ceran wrap/ pan with a kitchen towel. Place into the warmed (but turned off) oven for 1 hour.
11. After the hour - remove the pan from the oven and turn the oven on to 450 degrees. Remove the ceran wrap off the pan- brush it with a little more water, place the ceran wrap and towel back on. Put it on the warmest spot on your stove and let it proof further for 30 minutes while the oven preheats. It should reach the top of the pan or be a little bit taller when its done rising.
12. Remove the ceran wrap & towel. Brush gently with oil (if you brush too hard it will deflate the dough). Cut a slit down the center & sprinkle with oats (optional).
13. Place into the hot oven & set the timer for 25 minutes. After the 25 minutes turn the oven temperature down to 350 degrees. Set the timer for another 30-35 minutes. After baking remove from the oven & let it cool for several hours before slicing. (Cutting into it too soon can cause the bread to collapse some-and make the texture end up gummier/more dense.)
14. Store the cooled bread at room temperature in a sealed bag! It will remain soft for several days as long as its properly stored. It can also be frozen for another day. Typically we slice it up- and store it in the freezer to pull out as we want more!

Notes

If you have not used your yeast in awhile and are concerned it may not work- I recommend doing a small test batch by combining it with a little warm water and a splash of sugar. If it bubbles and froths within 10 minutes you know that it is active and will work as it should in the bread!

In the class I mentioned that the timing of when the yeast is added is important. I have found adding it right before shaping gives me the tallest loaf possible. However the bread WILL turn out if you add the yeast with the rest of the ingredients prior to chilling the dough- the bread will just be about 1/2 an inch shorter. With gluten free bread the first rise seems to be the biggest rise and so we want to use that to our advantage.

Did you make this recipe?

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