Baking bread that looks like a pumpkin is fun and it can be a pretty centerpiece on your autumn table. To make this shape, you tie strings around the dough just before putting it in the oven. As the dough bakes, it expands and bulges out between the strings, making the bread look like a pumpkin or at least like some sort of gourd. The challenge in making this bread is that the dough\u2019s oven spring often ruptures one or more of the segments, resulting in an imperfect (but still lovely) bread like the one below. Fortunately \u201cmess ups\u201d taste good and can be a perfect way to begin freezing bread for our Best Sourdough Stuffing<\/a> recipe.<\/p>\n The gourdlike blisters come from water brushed on the dough<\/p>\n<\/div>\n So that your pumpkin bread might turn out perfect the first time, I played with some different approaches to avoid segment rupture and give tips below. I also tested using turmeric to color the crust orange. My first attempt with turmeric was quite messy, so I found a way to bake the color into the crust, so your fingers and cutting board can remain stain-free when the time comes to eat the bread. If you don\u2019t have parchment paper<\/a> or if you have a porous, light colored work surface, e.g. unsealed white marble, it is probably best to skip the orange crust. <\/strong>A golden brown or white flour crust is also beautiful! Also note that crust color will vary with how long the lid is off the baking vessel during the bake and your choice of flour, both the wheat varietal and whether the flour is whole grain, sifted, or refined.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/breadtopia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20251031_153423a-Copy.jpg\")
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