Pumpkin Hazelnut Babka #BreadBakers

Our challenge for October was to incorporate the fall staple of pumpkin into a bread.  There are so many awesome pumpkin recipes out there and I had lots of ideas, but settled on this one for relative ease and ingredients on hand.  (Big surprise, I picked a sweet option, but pumpkin is also a wonderful savory ingredient.)  Adding pumpkin to bread dough doesn't give a concentrated "pumpkin" flavor, just a beautiful color and a tender crumb structure.  The quintessential "pumpkin spice" flavor that many folks associate with pumpkin is completely optional.  I did add a little pumpkin spice to the filling but the flavor for this bread was more along the lines of a cinnamon roll or sticky bun since the pumpkin was in the dough and not the filling.  

Also, for this particular filling I decided to add in a heaping teaspoon of mahleb.  I have used this lovely little spice (mahleb, mahaleb, mahlepi, mahlab, mahlep) before in various bakes: flaounes, sticky buns, ciambella, muffins, vasilopita, and tsoureki. It is a beautifully floral, sweet spice with cherry, almond, and vanilla notes, along with the delicate floral, and is made from the ground kernel of the St. Lucie cherry pit. If you happen to have any on hand, I wholeheartedly recommend adding it to the filling for any sort of cinnamon roll or babka! This filling smelled utterly sublime; a mixture of mahleb, Ceylon cinnamon, and pumpkin spice. (I also recommend keeping the pre-ground version of the spice well sealed in the freezer to preserve the flavor.)  The finished babka with that blend had a beautiful and uniquely spiced flavor, not like pumpkin pie, and not like a cinnamon roll.  Absolutely delightful.

*Note that some canned pumpkin puree, particularly some organic brands, have a lot more moisture in them.  If the puree can be scooped, the lesser amount of flour will work, if the puree can be poured, you will definitely need more flour to get the dough to be nicely cohesive, (but still sticky). 

Pumpkin Hazelnut Babka
makes 1 loaf 

340-375g (2½-2¾ cups) all purpose flour (amount will depend on the moisture in the pumpkin)
2 tbsp + 1 tsp sugar, divided
1½ tsp instant yeast
½ c milk, lukewarm
1 egg, room temp.
¾ tsp sea salt
4 tbsp butter, softened, cubed
1 tsp vanilla
⅓ c pumpkin puree

100g (scant 1 cup) hazelnuts
70g (¼ cup + 1 tbsp) butter, softened
100g (½ cup + 1 tbsp) light brown muscovado sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon or pumpkin spice (I used 1 tsp mahleb as well, just for flavor funsies, so 1 tsp each, mahleb, Ceylon cinnamon, and pumpkin spice)
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch salt

Syrup:
60g (¼ cup + 1 tbsp) sugar
60ml (¼ cup) water

Whisk together the milk, 1 tsp sugar, and yeast in a stand mixer.  Let activate for 5-10 minutes until foamy.  

In another bowl, combine the flour, (start with 340g) 2 tbsp sugar, and salt.

To the yeast mixture, add in the egg, pumpkin puree, and vanilla.  Then add the dry ingredients.  

Mix on low speed until combined, then increase speed to medium and knead for about 5 minutes until the dough is smooth.  If the pumpkin puree is particularly wet, you may need the extra ~30g flour (¼ cup or more) to get the dough to the somewhat sticky stage.  (It should not be totally goopy and batter-like but will be a very soft and sticky dough.)

Add the softened butter, 1 cube at a time, and mix on medium for about 5 minutes until incorporated.  The dough should pull away from the sides slightly while kneading though it will still stick to the fingers a little.
Place the dough in a bucket or bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a lid and let rise in the fridge for 8 hours or preferably overnight.  (This dough is nicely forgiving and will sit for 24-48 hours in the fridge if you happen to forget it!)

The next day, the dough should have doubled in size.  Remove from the fridge and set out to warm up while preparing the filling.

Chop the hazelnuts very finely.  In a bowl, mix the softened butter, sugar, spices, vanilla and a pinch of salt into a smooth paste then stir in the chopped nuts.

Turn out the dough and gently pat and roll it out on a lightly floured surface to a rectangle about 11x15-in.
(The dough is very soft, but easy to work with on a lightly floured surface.)  Spoon dots of the filling evenly over the dough and spread with an offset spatula or knife, leaving a ½-in border. Roll the dough up tightly from one of the long edges, as for cinnamon rolls.

Use a sharp knife to cut the sausage in half lengthwise, turning the cut side of the filling facing up. "Twist" the two halves together into a braid.  (Keeping the cut sides up, lift and cross the two pieces repeatedly over each other from the middle to the ends.  There is no real twisting motion although that is the common language used for this shape.)

Line a tall, 8.5-in (2lb) loaf tin with baking parchment. (If the loaf tin is a shorter 8x4-in meant for quick breads, upgrading to a 9x5-in pan may work better.)  Place the babka in the loaf tin, squishing it to fit if necessary.  Loosely cover the tin and set aside to rise until doubled in size, about 1 ½ - 2 hours depending on the ambient temperature.

When the loaf has nearly finished rising, pre-heat the oven to 350°F.  Bake for about 45-50 minutes until deep golden.  The loaf should reach 195ºF in the center when tested with a probe thermometer when it is fully baked.  Cover with foil halfway through baking if necessary, to prevent over-browning.

While the bread is baking, prepare the simple syrup.  Combine the sugar and water in a small pan over a medium heat.  Stir until the sugar dissolves and the syrup just comes to a simmer.  Remove from the heat and set aside.

Once the babka is done, remove it from the oven and brush the top evenly with the syrup.  Continue brushing on all of the remaining syrup.

Leave the loaf to cool in the tin for 15-20 minutes while it absorbs the syrup then carefully lift it out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely before slicing. 

Enjoy plain, buttered, warmed, or toasted, with butter! 

Be sure to check out the rest of our pumpkin bakes:

• Sourdough Pumpkin Bread: A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Cheesy Pumpkin Scones:  Food Lust People Love
• Sourdough Pumpkin Rolls:  Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Pumpkin Hazelnut Babka:  A Messy Kitchen
• Pumpkin Raisin Biscuits: Palatable Pastime
• Red Pumpkin Paratha: Sneha's recipe
   

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the #BreadBakers home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.