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For the soup:
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Preheat oven to 400 F.
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Place the squash and pears cut side up, in a roasting pan or cookie sheet. Cut a few slices in the top of the squash and rub it and the pears with some olive oil. Give the slices a good sprinkling of salt and pepper. Roast for 40-60 minutes until a fork is able to go through both squash and pears without any resistance. The pears might be done sooner than the squash so check them after about 40 minutes.
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Remove squash and pears from the oven and let them cool for a few minutes. While cooling, throw the diced onion in a large soup pot with a few glugs of olive oil. Turn the heat to medium and let the onions sweat until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
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Throw the pears into the soup pot. Carefully scoop out the squash flesh and toss it into the pot. Add the cider, vanilla bean and water and bring to a boil. Lower heat and let it simmer for another 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the ricotta and cayenne pepper and mix to combine. Then puree it with an immersion blender or in a stand blender until creamy and smooth.
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Ladle into bowls and top with whatever you please.
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For the bread:
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(Recipe courtesy of Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois of Artisan Bread in 5.)
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In a very large mixing bowl, add the water, yeast and salt. Let it sit for about 5 minutes, it'll just be starting to get frothy.
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Dump in all of the flour (don't be shy) and use a sturdy wooden (or otherwise) spoon to mix it until no flour streaks remain. I didn't mix mine enough and had a rough clump in one of the loaves, so don't be shy about the mixing.
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Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest in a warm spot for 2 1/2-3 hours or until it has risen and started to deflate.
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If you're ready to bake the bread right away, flour your hands and tear off a chunk about the size of a grapefruit. Round the loaf out by pulling some pieces from the sides of the dough, rotating as you go, and tucking them underneath the loaf. It doesn't have to be perfect, this is a rustic loaf. It shouldn't take you more than 1 minute to tuck the sides under.
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Place the small loaves on a countertop or board dusted with cornmeal and let them rise for another 40 minutes, no need to cover.
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At 20 minutes before cooking time, preheat oven to 450 F. While preheating, place a skillet or pizza stone in the middle rack and a cookie sheet (use a rimmed one) in the lower rack.
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When the dough is done with it's final rise, give it a quick drizzle of olive oil (optional) and place it on the preheated pizza stone. Immediately pour 1 cup of water in the cookie sheet that's in the lower rack of the oven. Close the door quickly to trap that steam in. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until crust is golden brown.
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If you have more will power than I, you'll let it cool for 15 minutes after baking. But not much longer than that as you have to have a slice of it warm with butter. I insist! (And when I insist, you must listen.)
