Kamut Pumpkin Bread

Kamut Pumpkin Bread

What is Kamut?

Holding Nick on wagon

“Time interval is a strange and contradictory matter in the mind. It would be reasonable to suppose that a routine time or an eventless time would seem interminable. It should be so, but it is not. It is the dull eventless times that have no duration whatever. A time slashed with interest, wounded in tragedy, crevassed with joy– that’s the time that seems long in the memory.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

All-purpose flour, Kamut grain, Kamut flour

Inspiration

What is Kamut? I had never heard of Kamut until my brother Nick made the introduction. Kamut is a high protein grain with a sweet, nutty, rich buttery taste. Nick grinds all his own whole grain flour in a burr grinder, by hand: Kamut, spelt, soft wheat and red wheat. Even more surprising is that I was unaware he has been grinding his own flour for almost twenty years! Where has the time gone? I was actually shocked. Clearly, I need to spend more time with my brother. When we both lived in Salinas, we used to bake together from The Tassajara Bread Book, by Edward Espe Brown. We both have kept our original copies, which are well worn from lots of baking. The years have flown by. We married, had families, worked and didn’t really stay in touch. When we visited, our conversations were never centered around food. Recently, when we talked about cooking and my blog, he shared his passion for whole grains as a source of protein and its importance in our diet. Nick and his wife Nancye make fresh yeast rolls for their breakfast from a mix of freshly ground flours. When he sent me samples of his marvelous flours, it was Kamut that that I found inspiring. Kamut is the trademarked name for an ancient grain, Khorasan wheat. It’s history and current production is described in this video. If Kamut flour is not available to you locally, the web site has a list of sources. You won’t be disappointed!

Various ground flours: Soft White, Hard Red, Kamut, Spelt

Essentials

Baking with Kamut flour has been magical for me. Magical? Too dramatic? I had absolutely no idea a flour made from a whole grain could be so sweet, and rich tasting yet full of protein and fiber. Quite magical to me! A heartfelt thank you to Nick and Nancye for sharing their whole grains with me! This easy recipe offers you the same magical introduction to Kamut flour, in the seasonal favorite: Pumpkin Bread. As well as containing the whole grain buttery sweetness from Kamut flour my recipe is lower in fat than most pumpkin breads as I have used apple sauce to replace some of the oil. Orange zest complements the traditional spices of fall for an aromatic and delicious Pumpkin Bread.

Ingredients for 2 loaves
1 1/2 C all purpose flour
1 1/2 C Kamut flour
1 t baking soda
2 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1/2 t mace
1/2 t ginger
1/2 C apple sauce
1 15 oz can of pumpkin puree
3/4 C grapeseed or canola oil
1 t vanilla
4 eggs
1 C sugar
1 C brown sugar
1 T orange zest
1/2 C golden raisins
1/2 C toasted pumpkin seeds

Pumpkins from field-to-table

  1. Preheat oven 350°
  2. Prepare pans: Grease and flour two 8”x4”loaf pans, set aside.
  3. Dry ingredients: Into a medium size mixing bowl sift or shake through a large sieve both flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices, set aside. Some of the bran from the Kamut flour may remain, the particles being too big to pass through the mesh. Push as much of the remaining Kamut bran through the mesh as possible. Some bran may still be left, I add it to the bowl as it is full of flavor, texture and nutrients.
  4. Wet ingredients: In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment mix together the apple sauce, pumpkin, oil, vanilla and orange zest. Mix in the white and brown sugar. Add the eggs one a time until the wet ingredients are thoroughly mixed together. Remove bowl from the stand mixer and fold in the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Do not over mix. Fold in raisins and pumpkin seeds.
  5. Baking: Pour batter into the prepared loaf pans. Top the loaves with a scattering of pumpkin seeds. Barely press them into the dough, just until they stick to the batter. Bake for 1 hour. When done, cake tester will come out clean and the bread will have pulled away from the sides of the pan and be a tawny golden brown. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Release the bread from the pan, by running a kitchen knife around the edge of the bread. Then invert the bread onto a cooling rack or breadboard to finish cooling.
  6. To serve: Slice cooled bread into desired thickness. The bread is good with honey, nut butters or cream cheese and may be toasted. My favorite is toasted with almond butter for breakfast.
Nick with me, Nick next to VW Bus, The Tassajara Bread Book
Nick with me, Nick next to VW Bus, The Tassajara Bread Book

My brother Nick and his wife Nancye
My brother Nick and his wife Nancye

Nick and Nancye's hike near Angels Camp
Nick and Nancye's hike near Angels Camp

Flower on Nick and Nancye's hike
Flower on Nick and Nancye's hike

This is not a sponsored post and the recipe and opinions are my own.

16 Replies to “Kamut Pumpkin Bread”

  1. Sounds delicious! I’ve had my Tassajara since the ’80’s. It’s the one that got me into baking bread.

  2. What an inviting post!:) Love the introduction to kamut, and the photos are amazing:)
    I am so excited to see the abundance of pumpkins you guys have over there, must be really colorful when they harvest 😉

    1. Yes! I live in the Salinas Valley, an area known for it’s long growing seasons and abundance of fresh seasonal vegetables. The pumpkins have all been harvested as we have begun our rainy reason. Is it summer time for you?

  3. The Tassajara Bread Book is in my review pile, so reading about it on your blog was a lovely surprise. It’s supposedly a classic book on bread baking and from the picture of your copy, it looks like it’s been much loved and used in your kitchen.

    1. The Tassajara Bread Book is a classic at my house! My brother and I both have our original copies. I still bake my favorite recipes, especially the Torte with Sour Cream Topping and Tassajara Yeasted Bread. I will be looking for your review!

  4. What an inspiring entry! The pumpking bread sounds amazing!
    KAMUT® is the name of the BRAND, not the wheat. One of the biggest misconceptions about KAMUT® Brand khorasan wheat is that the name “Kamut” refers to the type of wheat, while in fact, KAMUT® is the trademark name. Bob Quinn, Founder of Kamut International, wanted to assure the quality of the organic, heirloom grain, khorasan wheat. Under the brand KAMUT®, consumers know they can trust this wheat will always be grown certified organic, will always be non-GMO, and will never be altered or modified. KAMUT® brand khorasan wheat is grown under strict production guidelines and every field is tested for high quality standards. Go to http://www.kamut.com/en/trademark.html for more information about this including how “KAMUT” was picked as the name!

    1. I am so glad I found Kamut! It is such a wonderful grain! The buttery sweet flour is a perfect match for the warm spices of fall in my Pumpkin Bread. Thanks for sharing additional information on Kamut, you have an amazing product!

  5. Whole grains sound great with pumpkin. Great-looking loaf too! I love the idea of grinding grains at home, and I wish I could find kamut locally. I once spent a week calling/visiting every food store in town in search of it.

    1. I am very blessed to have my brother and his wife share their whole grain flours with me. I found one store locally that carries Bob’s Red Mill Kamut flour, while my local Whole Food’s does not. I share your frustration, having spent a day looking for wheat berries, and another time I searched for Biscoff. I was so excited when I finally located what I was looking for! This really is a great Pumpkin Bread, and lower in fat as well.

  6. Wow, sounds amazing!! I want to try – I think Bob’s Red Mill has Kamut – I will look for it. Gorgeous pictures too.

    1. Yes, I believe Bob’s Red Mill carries Kamut. I was totally surprised by the sweet buttery flavor, very different than whole wheat. Next to try will be biscuits and scones. Will enjoy hearing your thoughts on Kamut!

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