INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the yeast and warm water in a large bowl and stir with a fork to
dissolve the yeast. Allow to stand for about 3 minutes.  Add the honey,
pumpkin puree, milk, egg yolks, cornmeal, and 1 2/3  cups (8 ounces) of
the high-gluten flour to the yeast mixture. Stir  briskly with a whisk
until the ingredients are well combined. Let  this sponge stand for at
least 15 minutes but not longer than 30  minutes.  In a medium bowl,
whisk the remaining 2 1/3 cups (11 3/4 ounces)  high-gluten flour,
cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt together to mix  well. Add to the
sponge and stir with your fingers to incorporat e  the flour, scraping
the sides of the bowl and folding the dough over  itself until it
gathers into a shaggy mass. Knead the dough in the  bowl until it
becomes smooth and somewhat elastic, about 5 minutes.  Gradually add
the melted butter, kneading it in gently until well  incorporated.
Move the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead until it  is
very smooth, silky, and elastic, about 5 minutes. The dough will  be
sticky, so keep the work surface and your hands lightly floured,  but
don't overdo it. The dough should be soft, supple, and springy.  Shape
the dough into a loose ball, cover it with plastic wrap, and  let it
rest for 20 minutes. (This rest period is the autolyse.)  Flatten the
dough and stretch it gently with your fingers to form a  rectangle
about an inch thick. Spread the toasted pecans evenly over  the
rectangle. Fold the whole mass into an envelope and knead it  gently
until the nuts are well distributed, about 2 to 3 minutes. If  the
dough resists, let it rest for 5 minutes and then continue  kneading
it. Some of the pecans may pop out of the dough, but they  can easily
be incorporated again after the first rise, when the dough  has
softened.  Shape the dough into a loose ball and place it in a lightly
oiled  bowl, along with any loose pecans. Turn to coat the dough with
oil,  then cover the bowl tightly with oiled plastic wrap. Let the
dough  rise at room temperature (75 degrees to 77 degrees F) until it
has  doubled in volume, about 2 hours.  While the bread is rising, make
a cornstarch wash: Put the cold water  in a small saucepan and whisk in
the cornstarch. Bring to a boil,  stirring frequently until it
thickens. Remove from the heat and cover  to keep a skin from forming.
Set aside to cool.  When the dough has doubled, gently pour it out of
the bowl onto the  floured work surface, pressing in any loose nuts.
Flour your hands  lightly and gently divide the dough into 2 equal
pieces (each  weighing about 24 ounces). Shape each piece into a knot.
Generously dust a peel or the bottom of a baking sheet with flour or
coarse cornmeal. Carefully place the shaped loaves on the peel or
sheet, leaving several inches between them so they won't grow into
each other as they rise. Cover the dough with oiled plastic wrap and
allow it to rise at room temperature until it has just doubled in
volume, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  Thirty minutes before baking, preheat
the oven to 425 degrees F.  Place a baking stone in the oven to preheat
and place an empty water  pan directly below the stone.  When the
loaves have doubled, use a pastry brush to paint each loaf  continued
in part 2

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Nutrition (calculated from recipe ingredients)
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Calories: 4623
Calories From Fat: 1698
Total Fat: 196.7g
Cholesterol: 622.9mg
Sodium: 8175.1mg
Potassium: 2674.1mg
Carbohydrates: 638.5g
Fiber: 43.5g
Sugar: 205.1g
Protein: 111g