Oatmeal Pumpkin Seed Bread

5 from 2 votes

A delicious, savory yeast bread that is great for toast and sandwiches.

Prep Time1

Cook Time45

Rising/resting Time4

Total Time1 45

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Keyword: bread, pumpkin

Servings: servings (2 loaves)

Mix the yeast and salt with the water, melted butter and honey in a 5-quart bowl, or a lidded (not airtight) food container.
Mix in the oatmeal, pumpkin, and flours without kneading, using a spoon, a 14-cup capacity food processor (with dough attachment), or a heavy-duty stand mixer (with a dough hook). If you're not using a machine, you may need to use wet hands to incorporate the last bit of flour.
Cover (not airtight) and allow to rest at room temperature until the dough rises and collapses (or flattens on top), approximately 2 hours. (I moved mine to a clean, lightly oiled bowl and covered it with a dish towel).
The dough can be used immediately after the initial rise, though it is easier to handle when cold. Refrigerate in a lidded (not airtight) container and use within 9 days.

Lightly grease two 8-inch nonstick loaf pans. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and divide the dough into two equal pieces. Dust each piece with flour and quickly shape them each into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all sides, rotating the ball a quarter- turn as you go.
Flatten each piece of dough with your hands and roll each out into a ½-inch-thick rectangles. As you roll out the dough, use enough flour to prevent it from sticking to the work surface but not so much as to make the dough dry.
Sprinkle seeds and cranberries over each rolled out dough and roll the dough up to encase them. Fold the dough over again to work the seeds into the dough.
Using a small amount of flour, form each dough into a loaf shape. Place the loaves in the prepared pans and allow to rest and rise for 2 hours (or just 40 minutes if you're using fresh, unrefrigerated dough).
Twenty minutes before baking time, preheat the oven to 350°F., and place an empty broiler tray on any other shelf that won't interfere with the rising bread.
Just before putting the bread loaves in the oven, brush each with egg wash (I sprinkled additional pepitas on top too), and place them on a rack near the center of the oven. Pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the broiler tray and quickly close the oven door. Bake the for 45 to 50 minutes, until deeply browned and firm. Allow to cool before slicing or eating.

*I can find rye flour in the health food section of my regular market... Bob's Red Mill brand makes rye flour.
*Pepitas can usually be found in the Latin food's aisle of your grocery store. To toast pepitas, put them in a dry frying pan over medium heat. Stir them often until fragrant and beginning to turn color.