This gluten-free pumpkin challah is not only fluffy, but it is also full of delicious fall flavors. Challah should be fun, so why not vary the flavors throughout the year? I share all of my tips to make the best loaf of challah!
I have been experimenting with flavors and am proud of my new gluten-free pumpkin challah recipe. You can work and braid the dough, even with the pumpkin puree and fall seasonings used!!
You can braid this challah the traditional way, make it in a round shape for Rosh Hashana, or use the dough to make gluten free challah rolls! Anyway, you make it, know that my recipe will taste incredible!
If you love to bake challah, try my original plain flavored Gluten Free Challah recipe. You can also check out all of my easy gluten free bread recipes if you are looking for more fun recipes to try.
Why my family loves this gluten free pumpkin challah recipe:
- Fall flavors of pumpkin and cinnamon stand out in this recipe.
- You can braid the dough as you would a gluten challah! The gluten free flour blend I recommend below is seriously life-changing when it comes to the ability to braid the dough.
- Even with pumpkin, the texture of this gluten free pumpkin challah is soft and springy!
- Leftovers make incredible French Toast!
- You can freeze this challah so you have it when you need it.
If you love to make recipes for Shabbat, you will love my Gluten Free Matzo Ball Soup recipe! It uses my Grandma’s Homemade Chicken Soup recipe, and it gets rave reviews.
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Allergen Information:
This homemade pumpkin challah loaf is gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free, and oat-free. Make it dairy-free using dairy-free butter.
Flour Blend Tested:
- The best gluten-free flour blend for making gluten-free challah is Authentic Foods Steve’s Gluten Free Bread Blend.
- You can also use Cup4Cup, but note you need to reduce the liquid amount because this blend requires less liquid than Steve’s blend.
Check out ALL of my bread recipes using Authentic Foods Steve’s Gluten Free Bread Blend.
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- Gluten Free Flour Blend – I tested this gluten-free challah recipe using Authentic Foods Steve’s Gluten Free Bread Blend. I don’t know what magic they worked into the dough, but I can’t say enough good things about this flour blend. It is perfect for any bread where you need to work the dough. Other blends can work, but it is important to use a blend that works with yeast. You will need to tweak the liquid amounts as well because most blends don’t need as much liquid as Steve’s blend.
- Xanthan Gum – If the blend you use doesn’t have xanthan or guar gum, you will need to add one teaspoon. This helps hold the bread together because it mimics gluten.
- Pumpkin Spice and Ground Cinnamon – Double check your spices are gluten free. Many do not contain gluten ingredients but may be made on shared equipment. I like to use McCormick and Penzey’s spices.
- Salt – Use kosher salt or sea salt.
- Butter – I recommend using unsalted butter.
- Pumpkin Puree – Be sure to use pumpkin puree and NOT pumpkin pie filling. You can use canned or roast a pumpkin and puree it.
- Yeast – Be sure to verify the yeast you use is gluten free. Red Star Platinum is NOT gluten free.
- Eggs – Use size large.
Step-By-Step Photos and Directions:
Step 1: Add warm water to a glass dish, making sure the water is no hotter than 110º F. Add the yeast and sugar. Let the yeast mixture sit for 5 minutes until it is frothy and full of bubbles.
Step 2: Add the melted butter, egg, pumpkin puree, yeast mixture, and spices to a standing mixer. (Note: you can also mix this up in mixing bowls.) Put on the paddle attachment. Mix until the wet ingredients are combined together.
Step 3: Add the gluten-free flour and salt to the stand mixer bowl. Add a paddle or dough hook attachment. Mix the ingredients on medium speed until you have a nicely formed dough. Do not mix long; you only need about 20-30 seconds if you use my preferred gluten free flour blend.
NOTE: Don’t forget that if you are using Cup4Cup, add 1/4 cup additional flour or reduce the amount of liquids used. (Do not add extra if you use the Authentic Foods brand I recommend.)
Step 4: Your dough should make a nice ball.
👀 Sandi Says: You will only get one good rise from the gluten-free dough, so you need to shape your challah BEFORE raising the dough.
Step 5: Divide your dough into three equal-sized balls of dough. Roll them out like snakes so that they are all the same length. Place the strands side by side and braid them into challah, crossing each strand over itself. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and place it warmly to rise.
Gluten Free Dough Rising Tip:
Turn your oven on to 200º F. Turn it off when it hits 200 degrees, keeping the door closed. Place the baking sheet with the challah into the oven. I always rise my dough in a warm oven. Let the challah rise until it doubles in size, which takes about 45 minutes if you use the recommended flour blend.
Step 6: This is what the pumpkin challah will look like when it has doubled in size.
Step 7: Whisk a small egg in a bowl. Brush the egg wash over the challah dough. This will help it get golden.
Step 8: Bake the challah at 350º F for 25 minutes. The actual baking time will vary depending on the size and thickness of the challah you make.
Remove the gluten free pumpkin challah from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool. Do not slice the challah until it has cooled. Serve for Shabbat or anytime.
Gluten Free Bread Troubleshooting Tips
Why is my gluten-free bread sticky or gummy?
If you notice your gluten-free bread dough is too sticky, it usually means you have too much liquid in the dough, or you didn’t bake the bread long enough. The best way to fix sticky dough is to add more gluten-free flour or bake it for a longer time period. Some gluten free flour blends are very starchy, and you need to use more flour with these blends than other blends.
Why didn’t my gluten-free bread rise?
There are many potential reasons why your gluten-free bread didn’t rise. Here are the three most common issues I have found in my experience with making gluten-free bread:
- Was the yeast expired? Did you use the right type of yeast that the recipe called for? (Active dry yeast or Rapid-rise yeast.)
- What temperature was the water in which you proofed the yeast? It should be no hotter than 110º F.
- Did you use purified water? Chlorine and other chemicals in tap water can kill yeast.
Why did my gluten-free bread fall apart?
If your gluten-free bread is falling apart, chances are that you didn’t use a binder in the flour blend. Gluten in wheat is the “glue” that holds regular baking together. Gluten-free flour doesn’t have the same “glue,” so you have to add it. Here is a good article on gluten-free binders and how they work.
Ensure the gluten-free flour blend contains either xanthan gum, guar gum, or psyllium husk. Note: One of the blends I often recommend in yeast recipes, Authentic Foods Steve’s Gluten Free Bread Blend, uses vegetable fiber, which includes psyllium husk. If your blend doesn’t have one of these, you must add it to your ingredients.
For more bread troubleshooting, read my Gluten-Free Bread Troubleshooting Guide for more information and tips. Also, be sure to store your bread properly. Read How to Store Gluten-Free Bread to see how I store my gluten-free bread to keep it fresh the longest.
Frequently Asked Questions:
This pumpkin challah will keep fresh for up to 3 days. Store it in an airtight container in your refrigerator. Note that gluten-free flour doesn’t have the same preservatives, so it will not keep fresh outside the refrigerator.
To braid round challah, roll two long strands out of the dough. Twist the strands around each other, then roll them into a round shape. (Similar to how you would roll cinnamon rolls.) Bake it in that round position.
Yes, you can freeze this challah. I recommend you do this. Slice the challah or freeze it whole. If you slice it, you may want to place wax paper between each slice to prevent it from freezing.
More Gluten Free Pumpkin Recipes:
- The Best Gluten Free Pumpkin Scones
- Gluten Free Pumpkin French Toast Casserole – use leftover challah in this recipe.
- Easy Gluten Free Pumpkin Biscuits
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Biscotti
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. Please include which flour blend you used. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Gluten Free Pumpkin Challah
Ingredients
Yeast Mixture
- 2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast * see note
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- ¾ cup warm water 110º F
Bread Mix
- 2 ½ cups gluten free flour blend * see note!
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200º F, then turn off the oven. This is where you will rise your dough.
- Heat the water to 110º F in a glass dish. Add the sugar and stir to dissolve the sugar. Add the yeast. Let it sit for 5 minutes until it is bubbling.
- Add the pumpkin, vanilla extract, butter, and egg to the bowl of a standing mixer. Attach the paddle attachment and mix for 30 seconds.
- Pour in the yeast mixture and mix for 15 seconds.
- Add in the flour, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Mix on low speed, gradually increasing the speed as the dough forms.
- You only get one rise, so you need to shape the bread.
- NOTE: If you are not using the recommended flour, Authentic Foods Steve's GF Bread Flour, you will need to add more flour. For Cup4Cup you need an additional 1/4 cup of gluten free flour. I didn't test any other brands, so keep in mind you will need to add more if you used another flour.
- Break the challah dough into three evenly sized balls. Roll each into a rope. They should all be the same length and thickness.
- Place the ropes on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Braid the three ropes crossing each over the other until you have a braided challah loaf.
- Cover loosely with plastic wrap and put it into the oven to rise. Let the challah rise for one hour or until it doubles in size.
- Remove the bread from the oven and remove the plastic wrap. Preheat the oven to 350º F. Bake the challah for 25-30 minutes. The actual baking time will vary depending on how thick the challah is.
- Remove the challah and cool on a cooling rack.
Notes
- I highly encourage you to use Authentic Foods Steve’s GF Bread Flour Blend. It is life changing. You can braid and work the dough as you would a gluten dough! If you can’t use this, the only other flour blend I have tested is Cup4Cup. You need to add 1/4 cup of additional flour if you use Cup4Cup or other blends.
- If your flour blend doesn’t have xanthan gum, add one teaspoon.
- Store the challah in an airtight container. It freezes really well too!
SPECIAL NOTE
Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn’t test, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
All the AF recipes use gram measurements. I’m wondering if you could please add that to the recipe as well??? Even Aaron Rice at AF recommends going by gram weight for the best consistent results.
Hi Terry, I do not own a kitchen scale and I really do not want to switch 400-500 baked goods recipes. The cost to redo every recipe with weights would be time and cost prohibitive. From what I see, every gluten free flour’s weight varies due to the level of starches. I have readers using multiple flour blends and for me to test everyone isn’t really feasible for me. I believe there are some good gram conversion apps online that may be helpful for you.