Butternut Squash Bread

My husband and I used to live in Seattle.  He loves it there, with the temperate climate and fantastic restaurants, longtime friends and access to a lot of good jobs.  I didn't so much love living there.  I was terribly homesick for the Midwest and my family and so when given the opportunity, I jumped at the chance to move back here.

However, Seattle is such a great city to visit and because we have some friends still living there, we try and make it back for a visit every year.  This year we went back in August, for a big birthday celebration.  The friend we stayed with lives right above Macrina Bakery.  Literally right above it.  Each morning I would go down and ogle the pastry display case and wait for my coffee and cinnamon roll.  They have a huge window that faces the street that you can watch as they prepare the days cakes and other goodies.  As a souvenir for myself, I picked up the Macrina Bakery cookbook.

This delicious take on pumpkin bread is from that cookbook.  Ideally, instead of using pumpkin, you make it with roasted butternut squash.  It is packed with pecans, walnuts, and pumpkin seeds adding crunch to this super moist bread (really more of a coffee cake).

Butternut Squash Bread adapted from Macrina Bakery Cookbook
2 cups roasted butternut squash
4 eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk (I used powdered buttermilk and water)
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 cups white granulated sugar
1 cup oil (I used peanut oil)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup hulled toasted pumpkin seeds (make sure they are hulled, I used ones with the shell on and it made for some chewy bread)
1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts

Toast the seeds for about 20 minutes and toast the nuts for about 15 minutes on 375 degrees.  Toasting the nuts and seeds add a ton of flavor.

Mix together the remaining ingredients.  Fold in the3/4 of the  nuts and seeds.

Pour the batter into two greased loaf pans.  Sprinkle the remaining nuts and seeds on the top of the loaf.  Bake loaves for an hour to an hour and 15 minutes. 

Allow to cool and enjoy.