Pumpkin Bread

Hi guys!

As I mentioned in an earlier blog, my pumpkin hunting went a little all-over and I needed to come up with recipes to use all of the pumpkin - approx. 6kg or 12lb of butternut squash. One recipe that instantly crossed my mind was pumpkin bread. My grandmother has been baking this bread for decades as well as mother and everybody at our family loves this. It tastes great with cheese or sweet jams, peanut butter or chocolate spread. 

Here's the recipe:

1kg (2lb; 4 + 2/3 cup) all-purpose flour
40g (1 1/2 oz) yeast
60g (little less than 1/3 cup) granulated sugar
120g (4 oz) margarine, melted and cooled
1 teaspoon salt
500g (1 lb) mashed pumpkin
lukewarm water 
1 eggyolk

1) Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl. 

2) Mash the pumpkin. It might work by putting raw pieces in a blender. If the pumpkin is a little too hard, you can also cook it for a few minutes until it is softer and you're able to blend it. Add it to the flour-mixture. 

3) Dissolve the yeast in about 1/4 cup of lukewarm water. Pour the yeast in the flour and start  the kneading on low. Drizzle in the melted margarine and knead until the dough comes together. If the mixture is too dry, add tablespoons of lukewarm water, one at a time, until the dough is soft and a little moist in texture. The dough should be cleaning out the bowl with no moist residue sticking to the walls. 

4) Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let it sit undisturbed for about 1 hour.

5) Preheat the oven to 200°C (392°F). Part the dough in three equal parts and roll it out to long strings. Braid the strings. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave it to rise for another 30 minutes to 1 hour.

6) Whisk the egg yolk and a little water together and brush the braid with it. Bake for 45 minutes.

Active preparation time: about 30 minutes
Total preparation time: 3 hours

Here's how it turned out:

The pumpkin really adds a nice touch and moisture to the bread. I love this served warm with chocolate spread like nutella. 

Have fun trying!