This is an Asian inspired recipe for soft, light and cottony savory pumpkin bread with cheese in between. It is fun to just pull-apart and savor it.
Pumpkin and cheese? Why not? As always I love baking bread, and most of the time (not always) I feel guilty using regular wheat flour…somehow I not a big fan of whole wheat, and I am always trying to find a healthier” version for bread…now I found a solution for it…pumpkin pure…
Pumpkin pure can be easily added to the bread dough without any fuss…and if I do not emphasize it, you might not even notice the presence of the pumpkin…well, that might not be true…because of the vibrant yellow…which gives a nice and healthy look to the loaf.
Now going back to pumpkin and cheese…who said that pumpkin yeasted bread has to be always “sweet”? Well, I can guarantee you that once you try this bread you will definitely change your mind…
Please note that in this recipe I used the Kitchen Aid mixer and the USA loaf pan, which is my favorite, no need to oil and the bread always come out so easily.
Ingredients:
Water Roux or Tangzhong
- 35 g bread flour
- 175 g water
Main dough
- 600 g bread flour
- 180 g pumpkin puree
- 80 g sugar
- 45 g dry milk
- 8 g sea salt
- 10 g dry yeast
- 2 to 3 tablespoons heavy cream
- 60 g butter
Cheese Filling
- 250 g grated cheddar cheese
- 2 green onions finely chopped
- 1 ½ tablespoon butter, melted
Method:
Bread Dough
Water roux
Whisk together the water and the flour in a small pan until the mixture is well blended and free of lumps.
Stir the mixture while it cooks over the medium heat to reach 65C/150F. It takes about 2-3 minutes. Continue whisking until the mixture starts to thicken. The mixture of flour will have “lines”.
Remove from the heat.
Transfer to a bowl, cover with a plastic film to avoid “skin” from forming.
Ready to add to the bread dough once is cool.
Water roux or Tangzhong can bend kept in the fridge for up to 48hours.
Dough
Place all the cooled water roux and all the ingredients listed under main dough into a mixer except for the butter. Mix until all the ingredients are together, it will be sticky.
Increase the speed to number 2 and continue to mix for another 2 minutes until the dough is smooth.
Add the butter and continue the mixing until the dough is smooth, elastic and comes out of the mixing bowl, this will take approximately another 10 to 15 minutes. You will notice that the dough will no longer stick to the wall of the mixing bowl and pass the window pane test.
Place the dough into a medium to large bowl. Cover and let it proof until the size double from the original size.
Knock back the dough and split into 2 portions (approximately 600 g each) and let it rest for 5 minutes on the counter.
Roll one piece of the dough out to form a square of approximately 27 x 27 cm (11 x 11 in).
Brush the dough with the melted butter for the filling and sprinkle it with the green onion and cheese.
Cut into three equal trips. Stack onto of each other and cut across six equal strips. Layer the squares into the loaf pan like a book. Do the same with the remaining dough.
Cover pan with the towel and let rest in a warm place for another 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
Layer the squares into the loaf pan like a book. Cover pan with the towel and let rest in a warm place for another 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 350F and place pan onto the middle rack in your oven. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the top of your loaf is dark brown.
Remove from the oven and let rest for 15 minutes on a wire rack. Loosen the edges around the loaf and invert it onto a wire rack.
Serve warm.
So…was I able to change your mind and make you accept pumpkin and cheese?
If you enjoy this recipe with pumpkin pure, you might want to try Pumpkin Dinner Rolls or Pumpkin Soft Cookies.
Did you know that pumpkin is loaded with antioxidants such as carotenoids? This explains its bright orange color. Pumpkin is also a great source of dietary fibers.