New Baking Adventure

Justin brought home a big butternut squash that one of his coworkers had given him from his garden. I decided that I wanted to do something creative with it, and started searching on Allrecipes.com. I searched for the ingredients "butternut squash (duh) and brown sugar" hoping to find a tasty looking baked good. I came across a recipe for Butternut Squash Braid. It looked a bit challenging, but I decided to make it last night.

First I had to cook the squash. I cut it in half lengthwise, and then scooped out the seeds and pulp. I smeared a little butter on the flesh, placed cut side up in a pan with about 1/2 an inch of water. I baked at 350 for about an hour, until the flesh was pretty tender. Then I mashed up the squash.

I followed the directions precisely, and ended up with a very soft and moist and yummy bread. I decided to make it again today, but this time take pictures. I also made a couple very slight adjustments.

Without further ado, here is the Butternut Squash Braid recipe and instructions:

BUTTERNUT SQUASH BRAID

Ingredients
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (or 1 packet)
2 tbsp warm water
1/3 cup warm milk
1 cup cooked, mashed butternut squash
1/4 cup softened butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
1 egg
3 cups all-purpose flour

Don't these ingredients look pretty? (Not pictured: yeast, water, milk, cinnamon and salt.)

Directions

In a small bowl, mix together the yeast and warm water. (I don't have a food thermometer, so I just turned the hot water on and let it run until it was a nice shower temperature.) The yeast mixture might be a little pasty.

Warm the milk in the microwave or in a small saucepan on the stove. (I used the stove, and frequently checked the temperature of the milk with my finger until it was quite warm. Don't worry, my hands were clean.)

In a large mixing bowl, combine the squash, milk, butter, brown sugar, egg, cinnamon and salt. (I used my Kitchenaid stand mixer.) Then add the yeast mixture and flour. Add more flour as necessary to form a soft (and not too sticky) dough.

The dough was a little sticky, so I added a bit more flour.

Turn onto a floured surface and knead until dough is smooth and elastic, at least 5 minutes.

Before kneading.

Put dough in a greased bowl, and turn dough so the top gets greased too. Cover and let rise in a warm place for about an hour. The dough should double in size. Punch dough down.

In a greased bowl after kneading.

Ooh bigger.

I think you only need to punch it once. But the dough got sassy, so I showed it who was boss.

Divide the dough into thirds. Stretch and  roll out each third into an 18 inch rope.

From this angle, the back ball looks smaller. Whoops.

3 ropes, that aren't that even as you can see.

Braid together the dough ropes, and pinch the ends together. Gently move to a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise for about 30 minutes.

Lovely, isn't it?

Large and lovely.

Optional egg wash: In a small bowl, combine an egg and 1 tbsp water. Using a pastry brush, spread all over the braid. You probably won't use it all.

Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

Yum.

The bread should be soft and moist.

How does it look?