Pumpkin Pull-Apart Bread

In a small saucepan, brown butter: Melt butter over medium heat until it begins to foam and sputter, swirling the pan occasionally. Continue to heat and swirl until it begins to smell nutty, its color darkens, and small gold bits form on the bottom of the saucepan. Remove from heat immediately and set aside to cool slightly.

In a bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a large mixing bowl, combine 1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, whole wheat pastry flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, yeast, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cardamom. With a small whisk, stir the browned butter to scrape up any brown bits, then pour into the dry ingredients. Add the warm milk, pumpkin, egg, and vanilla. Mix on medium speed (or by hand with a wooden spoon) just until the dough comes together.

If using a standing mixer: Switch to a dough hook and mix for 5 minutes on low, stopping periodically to scrape down the bowl. If mixing by hand: Turn dough out onto a well-floured surface and knead for about 7 minutes. The dough will be wet and sticky. By hand or by machine, knead in an additional 1/3 to 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, just until the dough is moderately less sticky (it will still feel quite tacky.) Lightly spray a large mixing bowl with cooking spray. Place dough in bowl, turn the dough once to coat it lightly with oil, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap or drape a kitchen towel over the top. Let rise in a warm, draft free place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until doubled in size. To determine if the dough has risen sufficiently: Press it lightly with two fingers. If the indentation remains, the dough is ready to use. {Alternatively, at this step you can place the dough in the refrigerator and let rise overnight. When you are ready to continue, let dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes, then proceed with the recipe as directed.}

Meanwhile, make the filling: In a small saucepan, brown the 4 tablespoons butter, following the procedure above for browning butter. (If your pan is still dirty from browning the butter, wipe it out first so that you do not burn any butter bits that are clinging to the bottom of the pan.) In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Grease a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan.

Turn the risen dough out onto a well-floured surface and sprinkle a bit of additional flour on top. With a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 12-inch by 20-inch rectangle so that the long side is nearest to you (take care to measure.) With a pastry brush, spread the browned butter over the dough, all the way up to the edge. Sprinkle with the cinnamon-sugar mixture (it will seem like a lot, but use all of it.)

Slice the dough vertically (slice away from yourself), into five strips of equal width. Carefully stack the strips on top of one another (a long spatula is helpful) so that you have a single stack of five strips. Slice the stack into five equal slices again, so that you are left with five stacks of five squares. Line up each stack of dough squares in the pan so that the cinnamon sides are facing the narrow end of the pan. The slices will be longer on one side—stand them on their shorter end so that each slice is taller than it is wide. Place a kitchen towel over the loaf pan and allow it to rest in a warm, draft-free place for 30 to 45 minutes, until almost doubled in size.

When the dough has almost completed its rising, place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Bake loaf for 25 minutes, then tent with foil and bake an additional 20-25 minutes, until the top is a deep golden brown and the internal temperature of the dough slices registers 190°F. (If the top is only lightly brown, the dough may not be done in the center.)

Remove loaf from the oven and allow it to rest in the pan for 20 to 30 minutes on a wire rack. Run a butter knife around the edges of the pan to loosen the bread and invert it onto a cutting board. Place a cake stand or serving plate on top of the upside down loaf, and carefully invert it again, so that the loaf is right side up. Enjoy warm with coffee or tea.