You should all be proud of me...I am branching out on my squashes. If the world was a perfect place, I would eat kabocha everyday of my life (and a mango, as well). But the world isn't perfect and so it allows me to try out all different types of squashes and pumpkins. This bread uses acorn squash. I find this recipe on the most imaginative bread recipe blog out there...even the name is really cute
The Knead for Bread. This bread has a perfect texture, slightly moist, with a touch of sweetness. I copied the recipe almost exactly, except I didn't have whole flax seeds (my mom didn't have any because they are no use nutritionally in their whole form, can't blame her for not buying them), so I put some oats on top, instead.
Ingredients Squash Ingredients
- 1 acorn squash
- 2 teaspoon butter
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons maple syrup
Day before:
- 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
- 3/4 cup lukewarm water
- 1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
- "Day of"
- 2 3/4 to 3 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 cup mashed squash ( above )
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast
- 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup flax meal
- 2 tablespoon flax seeds
Method Take your acorn squash and cut in half ( length wise ). Take a fork and poke holes all around the inside of the squash. Spread butter all around the inside of both halves. Pour equal amounts of brown surgar and maple syrup between both halves. Place the squash into a baking dish and add enough water to fill the dish about 1 to 2 inches. Bake in a preheated oven for 1 hour or till the squash is soft when poking with a fork. After baked, remove the inside of the squash and mash with a fork. Reserve one cup of the mashed squash and eat the rest. ( You can do all this the day before ). Take the "day before" ingredients and mix together in a bowl with a wooden spoon. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest on the counter for 12 - 16 hours. In a large bowl pour out the " day before" mixture. It should have grown and bubbled. Add in the mashed squash, water, salt and instant yeast. Mix with a wooden spoon till the mixture is smooth. Add in the flax meal and the flax seeds. Mix till well blended. Add in half the whole wheat flour and mix till smooth. Slowly add the rest of the flour a little at a time, about a heaping tablespoon. When it becomes to hard to mix, pour out onto a flat surface and knead the dough for about 8 minutes. You may need a little more flour, but you want the dough to be a little on the sticky side. After kneading, add a little oil to a large bowl. Place kneaded dough and flip over a few times to lightly coat all sides of the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 1 1/2 hours or till double in bulk. Remove dough from bowl and press to release the gas. Cut into 2 equal parts. Shape into 2 round balls and place onto a piece of parchment paper sprinkled with cornmeal ( optional). Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 1 hour or till double in bulk. Remove the plastic wrap. Take an egg white and beat till foamy. Brush the tops of the dough with the foam and sprinkle a little flax seeds on top. Score the top of the breads with a sharp knife. Place into a preheated 375 degree oven with a baking stone or on a cookie sheet. Create some steam by placing a cast iron pan on the bottom of the oven the same time that you turn on the oven. Once you place the breads into the oven pour about a cup of boiling water into the hot pan and close the door. Bake for 30 minutes or till when tapped on the bottom of the loaf it sounds hollow.
