Pumpernickel Bread Made in the Bread Machine

Make a dark and hearty loaf of pumpernickel bread easily in your bread machine with this simple and delicious recipe!

Full of whole grain flavor and a touch of caraway this loaf is great for savory sandwiches and as a side dish.

The bread maker allows you to make this rustic loaf easily while you attend to other things and still have fresh bread for sandwiches at lunch.

Basic Ingredients

Nothing fancy here, all of the simple ingredients are likely already in your pantry. No reason to make things too complicated. You do have a few options, however.

Molasses

I like and always have Blackstrap Molasses on hand. This adds a certain level of darkness in color and a slight bitterness that I enjoy.

If you don’t have or don’t like Blackstrap Molasses, any molasses would work well. Use what you prefer.

Butter

If you want to keep the bread vegan, you could use olive oil or maragine instead.

Pumpernickel Flour

If you can’t find pumpernickel flour in your grocery store, swap out dark rye flour instead. It should work just as well and be very similar in flavor.

Caraway Seeds

These are optional. Not everyone is a fan of caraway, so feel free to skip it entirely. You could swap out poppy seeds if you want something seedy and flavorful but would rather skip the caraway. Fennel seeds would also likely work and be a different flavor.

Yeast Choices

I use instant yeast for ease in every bread machine recipe I test. If you want to use active dry yeast or bread machine yeast, simply follow your manufacturer’s instructions but I can’t say for certainty in what amount.

About My Bread Machine

This recipe was tested on a Welbilt Bread Machine. I bought it at a thrift store for $6.50. It makes great bread but every machine is different. Please follow any specific instructions provided with your machine if they differ from how this recipe is written.

To Prevent Sticking

I had multiple loaves become hopelessly stuck to my bread pan and had to learn a trick or two to prevent it. Here’s what I do, if you’d like to try it:

After the final kneading cycle (for my machine there’s a 2 second third cycle of punching down), I remove the bread dough quickly from the machine, remove the kneading paddle and then spray the pan with some non-stick spray. Then I put the dough back in, close the lid and let the machine finish rising and baking.

I use needle nose pliers to remove the paddle.

This very simple step has stopped bread from sticking to the paddle hopelessly and coming out of the pan a broken mess.

My bread machine instructions do not tell me that this is necessary – meaning the bread could be baked with the paddle attached but I found it much easier to remove the paddle.

How to Serve

This truly is an everyday kind of bread. Use it as your basic bread for breakfast toast, simple sandwiches, or as a side dish for soup and salad meals. 

Use leftovers to make french toast or bread pudding. 

How to Store

Keep any leftover bread in an airtight container, where it should stay fresh for up to 4 days at room temperature.

For longer term storage, put bread into plastic bags and freeze. Use up any frozen bread within 6 months for best flavor. Let the bread thaw on the counter prior to serving.