Cucuzzara(Squash Bread with Tomatoes, Onions, & Peppers)
Submitted by Spoiledkitty218
Cucuzzara is a rustic Sicilian squash bread loaded with sauteed butternut squash, roasted red peppers, tomatoes, and onions, baked into golden durum flour loaves. Makes 4 hearty loaves.
YIELD
4 loavesPREP
10 minCOOK
60 minREADY
Cucuzzara is old-school Sicilian bread baking at its finest, where the vegetables aren’t a topping but part of the dough itself.
Sauteed butternut squash, roasted red pepper strips, tomatoes, and sweet onions get folded right into a durum flour dough made with biga starter.
The vegetables release their moisture as the bread rises, creating a soft, golden crumb packed with pockets of savory flavor.
Four hours from start to finish, but most of that is just waiting while the dough does its thing. The actual hands-on work is barely 10 minutes.
Baker’s Tips
- Cool the sauteed vegetables completely before adding them to the dough. Warm veggies will kill the yeast and you’ll end up with dense, flat loaves.
- Knead with wet hands as the recipe says. This dough is sticky from all the vegetables and wet hands keep it from gluing to your palms.
- The biga (pre-ferment) adds complex, slightly tangy flavor. If you don’t have one ready, mix equal parts durum flour and water with a pinch of yeast the night before.
Ingredients
Directions
About 1 hour before you are ready to make the bread, warm ¼ cup olive oil in a skillet and sauté the onions over medium-low heat until they are soft but still slightly crunchy.
Add the squash and pepper. Cover and cook for 20 minutes.
Add the tomatoes and cook another 3 to 5 minutes. Cool.
Stir the yeast into the water and let proof for 10 minutes.
Add the biga and mix well.
Add the rest of the olive oil. Stir in the cooked vegetables.
Add the flour and salt slowly, mixing until the dough comes together.
Knead with wet hands until the dough is form, velvet and elastic.
Place dough in an oiled bowl, cover and let rise until doubled, about 3 hours.
Divide the dough into 4 pieces and; shape into long cylinders.
Place on floured baking sheets, cover and let rise until well doubled, about an hour.
Preheat the oven to 400℉ (200℃).
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until golden.
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