Pumpernickel Bread

Pumpernickel dough is very dark in color when baked, even when compared to breads made with flour that includes bran. The finished product tastes very similar to rye bread, but differs in that pumpernickel recipes often call for molasses, helping to give pumpernickel its dark color. Pumpernickel is about three times as dense as wheat bread.

Traditional German pumpernickel contains no coloring agents (such as molasses), instead relying on the Maillard reaction to produce the characteristic deep brown color, sweet dark chocolate coffee flavor, and earthy aroma. Loaves produced in this manner require 16 to 24 hours of baking in a low temperature (about 250°F or 120°C) steam-filled oven. They tend to have a much more intense flavor than the approximations provided by adding molasses, coffee, cocoa powder, or other darkening agents employed by many bakeries. Other than in a few traditional German bakeries, most bakers eschew the long baking time for obvious economic reasons and, in addition to coloring and flavor agents, often add wheat flour (to provide gluten structure and increase rising) and commercial yeast (to quicken the rise compared to a traditional sourdough). The result is a loaf that resembles commercial rye bread with darker coloring. Many bakers also add a significant amount of caraway seeds, providing an alternate flavor that is now characteristic of many commercial pumpernickel (and light rye) breads.

Pumpernickel loaves are almost always baked without a baking pan, resulting in a rounded loaf. Pumpernickel bread is often difficult to find in the United States at supermarkets and smaller groceries, but can be found throughout Europe and the United Kingdom.