I absolutely love my bread machine! And while I don't actually bake my breads in it, it saves me a ton of time mixing, kneading, rising without having to attend to it, and without a ton of messy cleanup! I can put my ingredients in the bread machine pan, turn it on Dough Cycle, and I have 1 1/2 hours to shop, garden, nap, whatever!
If you haven't visited my blog before, Will, my devoted husband, grew a 3 Sisters Garden (you can view it here, here, and here) this year. The corn grew short but gave us fresh sweet corn, the beans . . . nothing . . . the pumpkins? My estimate is around 100 pounds of Sugar Pie Pumpkins!
And, while all pumpkins are edible, the Sugar Pie Pumpkin, a.k.a. pie pumpkin or sugar pumpkin, is the best pumpkin for baking and cooking in all of your favorite recipes. It has a sweeter taste than other varieties, and a smooth texture.
Pumpkin nutrition facts for one cup of pumpkin puree:
- Calories: 80
- Carbohydrates: 19 gram
- Cholesterol: 0
- Fat: less than 1 gram
- Potassium: 588 milligrams
- Protein: 2.4 grams
- Vitamin A: 310% RDA
- Vitamin C: 20% RDA
So far we've baked 7 pumpkins, ranging in weight from 2.75 to 6 pounds. Yes, I said we, Will has been helping with the picking, washing, cutting, scooping and baking process. I'm responsible for the final products.
Thus far I've made ~ 96 mini pumpkin pies, froze 2 muffin tins full of measured, 1/2-cup portions for later use, made Pumpkin Butter, roasted yummy pumpkins seeds and baked a tender loaf of Golden Pumpkin Bread!
This recipe is my adaptation of Golden Pumpkin Bread from a delightful cookbook "BREAD MACHINE how to prepare and bake the perfect loaf", by Jennie Shapter. This is not your run-of-the-mill cookbook . . . the recipes offered are artisan quality and the photos are both instructive and beautiful! (for my complete review go to my Over at Julie's Store).
Quote from Bread Machine ~ "The pumpkin purée gives this loaf a rich golden crumb, a soft crust and a beautifully moist light texture, as well as a delightfully sweet-savory flavor. It is perfect for serving with soups and casseroles". Also makes great toast with a tender crunch and nutty flavor.
GOLDEN PUMPKIN BREAD - Makes 1 - 2lb loaf.
7/8 cup cooked pumpkin, cooled (1 cup minus 1 tablespoon)
Scant 1/2 cup buttermilk (see how to make your own)
1/2 cup filterd water, or well water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 3/4 cups unbleached bread flour
3/4 cup organic corn meal (regular is most likely GMO)
1 tablespoon raw honey
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon rapid rise active dry yeast (I use SAF - found at WinCo and Smart and Final and Internet)
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin seeds (I used black walnuts)
- Mash pumpkin; put it in the bread machine pan.
- Add buttermilk, water and oil (If the instructions for your machine specify that the yeast is to be placed in the pan first, reverse the order in which you add the liquid mixture and dry ingredients).
- Add bread flour and cornmeal, completely covering liquids.
- Add honey and salt in seperate corners of bread machine pan.
- Make a shallow indentation in the center of flour (but not down as far as the liquid) and add yeast.
- Set bread machine on dough cycle; press start.
- Add pumpkin seeds when the machine beeps or during the last 5-minutes of kneading.
- Gently push down dough.
- Form into a loaf; add to greased bread pan.
- Cover bread pan with tea towel or greased plastic wrap.
- Let rise 50 minutes; or until doubled.
- Bake in preheated 350F oven for 25 minutes (Cover bread with aluminum foil the last 5 minutes. The sugars in pumpkin will brown the top too quickly.)
Soft, tender golden goodness! Golden Pumpkin Bread!
I'll bet this would make fantastic French Toast, all eggy, with cinnamon and vanilla!