Pumpkin bread

Preparation – 50 minutes + 1 hour waiting time

Peel the pumpkin and remove the seeds using a spoon. Cut the pumpkin into small cubes of around 2 cm. Bring water to a boil in a large saucepan.

Boil the pumpkin pieces with the cloves and sage leaves for 10 minutes. Drain and place the pumpkin pieces in a blender. Purée until smooth.

Add the wholemeal flour to the work surface. Make a well in the middle of the flour. Pour the milk into the well and mix in the (fresh) yeast.

Sprinkle salt on the edge of the flour, then add the remaining ingredients: olive oil, spices and the pumpkin purée. Mix into a dough; you can do this manually or using a food processor with a dough hook.

Knead for about 10 minutes until an elastic dough forms. Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a bowl. Cover with a damp tea towel.

Let it rest for at least an hour, in a warm place. 

Baking the pumpkin bread – 1 hour

Remove the dough from the bowl after an hour. You can bake 1 large pumpkin loaf or several small loaves. Shape the pumpkin dough into a ball and place on a baking tray lined with baking parchment.

Leave the dough to rise again for half an hour, under a tea towel. Preheat the oven to a temperature of 200 degrees Celsius. Bake the pumpkin bread for 30-35 minutes.

Check whether the bread is cooked by looking at the outside of the bread. If you can see a nice brown colour and the bread sounds fairly hollow when tapped, then it is done. Delicious!