After my success with the whole wheat bread yesterday I bit the bullet and created my own pumpernickel bread recipe based on what I learned yesterday and two other recipes. The results were excellent. (Whew!)

PUMPERNICKEL MINI LOAF BREAD

INGREDIENTS
• 2 ½ cups warm water (100°-110°F)
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 2 Tbl molasses
• ¼ cup honey
• 3 ½ cups (400g) pumpernickel flour
• 2 Tbl unsweetened cocoa powder
• ¼ cup Vital Wheat Gluten
• 1 Tbl lemon juice
• 1 ½ tbl (13.5g) instant yeast
• 1 tsp (6g) salt
• 2-3 cups (240-360g) bread flour
• rolled oats (for dusting loaves)

METHOD

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, stir together water, oil, molasses, and honey until mixed well.
2. Add pumpernickel flour to water mixture.
3. Add cocoa, yeast, and salt, Vital Wheat Gluten, lemon juice and stir until blended.
4. Let mixture sit for 10 minutes.
5. Stir in bread flour, one cup at a time, until dough clings to hook and almost clears the sides of mixer, about 3-4 minutes.
6. Continue to knead with the dough hook for 6-8 minutes
7. Turn dough out on a lightly greased counter and knead by hand for 5-8 minutes until the dough is smooth and supple.
8. Divide dough by weight into 8 equal portions. Mine were 192 g each.
9. Place each portion into a mini loaf pan and dust with rolled oats.
10. Allow dough to rise in until it is about 1 inch above the the edge of the pan, about 30-60 minutes. Take note of how high the bread is before starting proof. Mine was almost an inch to begin and I let it rise to 1 1/2 to 2”. There was a lot of oven spring also.
11. Toward the end of the rising time, preheat oven to 350 F.
12. Bake at for 18-25 minutes. (Internal temp should be 190-200 deg. F)