Pan del Dia de los Muertos y Calabaza en Tacha

October begins preparation for my favorite tradition, Dia De Los Muertos. You can’t forget the dead nor should you, and in addition you should bake for them. two simple recipes from the center of Mexico(Read about he history of the tradition HERE). Enjoy. – Corinna

Calabaza en Tacha (courtesy of Inside Mexico)

Ingredients

1  4 to 5 lbs Pumpkin approx.
8 Cinnamon sticks
Juice of 1 Orange
4 cups water
2 lbs Piloncillo (you can use brown sugar or raw sugar)

Cut the pumpkin into medium (2½” to 3″  squares or triangles). Remove seeds and strings.  With a sharp knife make diamond designs over the pulp

Put the sugar in a pan with the cinnamon, orange juice, and water. Bring to a boil and stir until the piloncillo has dissolved.

Place the first layer of  pieces of pumpkin upside down so they absorb as much juice as possible. The second layer should be with the pulp upwards. Cover and simmer.  When ready the top of the pumpkin pieces  should look somewhat glazed, and the pulp soft and golden brown.

Let cool and serve with the syrup. You can also add cold evaporated milk!
I prefer to have the pumpkin after it has been in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.

Pan De Muerte (courtesy of Chow.com)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 teaspoon anise seed
• 1/2 ounce (2 packets) active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick)
• 4 large eggs
• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface
• Vegetable oil, for oiling the bowl
• 1 egg yolk beaten with 2 teaspoons water

Instructions

1. Combine the sugar, salt, anise seed, and yeast in a small mixing bowl. Heat the milk, water, and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until the butter is just melted; do not allow it to boil. Add the milk mixture to the dry mixture and beat well with a wire whisk.
2. Stir in the eggs and 1 1/2 cups of the flour and beat well. Add the remaining flour, little by little, stirring well with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together.
3. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured wooden board and knead it until it’s smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky, about 9 to 10 minutes. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel, and allow the dough to rise in a warm area until it has doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.
4. Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Punch down the dough and divide it into 2 pieces. Cut 3 small (about 1-ounce) balls from each half and mold them into skull-and-bones shapes. Shape the large pieces of dough into round loafs and place the skull-and-bones on top. Place the breads on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and let them rise another hour.
5. Brush the loaves with the egg yolk mixture and bake. Halfway through baking, about 20 minutes, remove the loaves from the oven and brush again with the egg wash and sprinkle lightly with granulated sugar. Return to the oven and bake until the loaves are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped, about another 20 minutes.