Sephardic Pumpkin Challah: It’s Not Just for Thanksgivukkah

Remember Thanksgivukkah? Back in 2013, Thanksgiving fell on the first day of Hanukkah (or vice versa, depending on how you look at it), and the internet went crazy. Pumpkin latkes, pumpkin donuts, pumpkin challah . . . you name it, someone pumpkin’d it.

But unlike those first two, it turns out pumpkin challah is more than just an outdated online meme. In fact, the pumpkin has a surprisingly rich Jewish history, which I discussed at length in my post on Moroccan pumpkin soup.

To recap, Jewish merchants were instrumental in spreading pumpkins across the Mediterranean during the Columbian exchange, so much so that the presence of pumpkin in Mediterranean dishes from the early modern era is often a sign of Sephardic influence.

According to Claudia Roden, Jews who stayed in Spain and Portugal post-1492 and converted to Christianity were among the first Europeans to adopt these new ingredients, largely due to their prominence as maritime merchants.

After a few generations, many of these families opted to leave for friendlier climes where they could return to practicing Judaism in the open, mostly in North Africa or the Ottoman Empire. These communities already had sizeable Sephardic populations; the newcomers brought with them the New World foods they’d started eating since the expulsion, and these foods—not just pumpkin, but also chocolate, vanilla, and tomatoes—spread rapidly through the Sephardic world.

Today, pumpkin remains a popular vegetable in Sephardic and Italian Jewish cuisine, especially when it comes to autumn holiday meals. This pan de calabaza, pumpkin bread, is a traditional Sephardic Rosh Hashanah dish, but I thought it would work just as well for Sukkot (or, for that matter, any fall Shabbat), what with the harvest vibes and all. I adapted this recipe from Maggie Glezer’s A Blessing of Bread; Glezer, in turn, adapted hers from Gilda Angel’s Sephardic Home Cooking (which I’ve not yet gotten to read—it’s on the wishlist!).

The pumpkin here does more for the color and texture than for the flavor (pumpkin is actually pretty bland, minus the spice). This bread is lightly spiced, but basically it’s just challah, just orange. Bonus: the pumpkin makes it stay moist for longer than your standard loaf.

For some extra Sukkot spirit, I decided to shape one of my loaves like a lulav and etrog. I’ve seen lots of people doing it on Facebook this year, and it seemed like a fun but achievable shape to try. I admit mine is a little simpler than some of the designs I’ve seen, but nonetheless I’m quite pleased with how it turned out. I just freestyled the design based on some photos I saw, so I’m afraid I don’t have step-by-step instructions for you. But trust me, I am no challah artist. If I can figure it out, chances are high that you can, too.

Pan de Calabaza (Sephardic Pumpkin Bread)

Makes 2 loaves

1 package / 2 ¼ teaspoons yeast
2/3 cup warm water
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon or cardamom
3 3/4 cups unbleached white flour (you can substitute up to 1 3/4 cup with whole wheat flour)
1/3 cup sugar
1 ½ teaspoons salt
½ cup pumpkin  or butternut squash puree (homemade or canned)
¼ cup canola oil
1 egg, plus 1 egg for glazing

Pour warm water into a large bowl. Add yeast. Let stand for 10 minutes, then stir to dissolve.

Add cinnamon/ cardamom, ¾ cup flour, sugar, salt, squash puree, oil, and egg to the yeast mixture. Mix lightly. Add the additional 3 cups flour. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 510 minutes until the dough is pliable and fairly smooth (or mix in a stand mixture). If it’s too wet, keep adding flour in small amounts.

Lightly oil the bowl, put the dough in it, and cover. Let dough rise in a warm place until it has tripled in size, 2–3 hours.

Punch down dough and cut it into two equal pieces. Divide and shape according to your preference.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Place loaves on the sheets, cover, and let rise until doubled in size, about 40 minutes. Glaze loaves with extra beaten egg. Bake at 350° F for about 25–30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Sources:  A Blessing of Bread: The Many Rich Traditions of Jewish Bread Baking Around the World (Maggie Glezer, 2004); Encyclopedia of Jewish Food (Gil Marks, 2010); “Food in the Sephardi Diaspora: From Spain to Istanbul,” Food on the Move: Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery, 1996 (Claudia Roden)