My sister introduced me to Sharing the Bread by Pat Zietlow Miller a few years ago. It is one of her family’s favorite Thanksgiving books and I loved it at the time but didn’t buy the book until this year, so it is a fairly new addition to tour Thanksgiving book rotation. This book not only celebrates feasting together on Thanksgiving, but really focuses on the act of preparing the feast together. In Sharing the Bread, every family member has a role to play in preparing Thanksgiving dinner. Even the baby has a job, which is to be “Snug and happy in our house.” The lovely illustrations by Jill McElmurry show a family from the turn of the 20th century with interesting historical details and the rich colors of Autumn. Despite the old-fashioned clothing and kitchen, the affection between the family members and feeling of celebration resonates with kids today. My family has always loved to cook together, and this book captures beautifully the feeling of shared accomplishment that comes from working as family to prepare a meal.
Discussion questions for Sharing the Bread:
- What job looks the most fun in this book? Which job would you NOT want to do?
- Can you think of a time that our family, or you and your friends, worked together to accomplish something?
- What is one job that you could do to help on Thanksgiving day, or even making dinner tonight?
Buy the book Sharing the Bread:
With a book called Sharing the Bread, it seemed obvious to make a bread recipe, but there are so many wonderful breads appropriate for Thanksgiving that it was hard to choose. Should I make rolls? A pumpkin bread? Cornbread? Some kind of muffins or quick bread? I decided to share a recipe that uses one of my new favorite ingredients: Persimmons! Persimmon puree makes for a nice change from pumpkin in autumn baking and this Persimmon Pecan Bread is spicy, rich, dense, and utterly delicious. I roasted the persimmons before pureeing them to concentrate their sweet flavor and the roasted puree also lends the final loaf a dense, tender texture. Persimmon Pecan bread would be a lovely addition to a Thanksgiving menu but is also wonderful toasted for a quick breakfast on a cool fall morning.
Persimmon Pecan Bread
Preheat oven to 400ºF. On a large baking sheet, toss the cubed persimmons with the tablespoon of brown sugar until they are well-coated. Roast the persimmons in the preheated oven until they are tender and beginning to brown, about 15 minutes. Remove the persimmons from the oven and turn the temperature down to 350ºF. Using a food processor, blender, or stick blender, puree the persimmons until they form a thick puree. Add a tablespoon or two of water, as needed, to make a smooth puree without a lot of chunks in it. There should be about 1 cup of persimmon puree when you are done.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the sugar, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, and buttermilk. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and use a rubber spatula to fold them together, just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Add the pecans and fold them in gently using the same spatula.
Butter a 9 X 5 inch loaf pan, line it with a piece of parchment and then butter the parchment also. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing it on the top with a spatula. Bake in the preheated oven for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the loaf in the pan for about 10 minutes before lifting it from the pan with the edges of the parchment and finish cooling on a cooling rack.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat oven to 400ºF. On a large baking sheet, toss the cubed persimmons with the tablespoon of brown sugar until they are well-coated. Roast the persimmons in the preheated oven until they are tender and beginning to brown, about 15 minutes. Remove the persimmons from the oven and turn the temperature down to 350ºF. Using a food processor, blender, or stick blender, puree the persimmons until they form a thick puree. Add a tablespoon or two of water, as needed, to make a smooth puree without a lot of chunks in it. There should be about 1 cup of persimmon puree when you are done.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the sugar, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, and buttermilk. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and use a rubber spatula to fold them together, just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Add the pecans and fold them in gently using the same spatula.
Butter a 9 X 5 inch loaf pan, line it with a piece of parchment and then butter the parchment also. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing it on the top with a spatula. Bake in the preheated oven for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the loaf in the pan for about 10 minutes before lifting it from the pan with the edges of the parchment and finish cooling on a cooling rack.
