Dill Bread is one of my favorite things to bake! I know, that might sound strange, but I have good reasons.

1. This is my husband’s, grandma’s recipe. It reminds me of her. She used to make it to go with soup and we would eat it after a long day of driving to visit her for the holidays. 2. It is a vintage recipe that makes me feel in touch with history and my grandmothers. 3. It smells SO good while baking! 4. It tastes heavenly with whatever you have made for dinner! Or by itself!

My kids literally squeal when they come home from school to the smell of this bread! This bread is such a favorite that it has become our standard bread/rolls we make for Thanksgiving dinner. It pairs well with Turkey and all the fixings and is great for leftover sandwiches.

So grateful for this cookbook my mother-in-law made for all of us for Christmas one year. BEST Christmas gift ever!

I almost always double this recipe. Two loaves is better than one. However, in this post we are making just one. Begin by softening the yeast in the warm water. You should start to see little bubbles on top which is a sign that the yeast is activating.

Now this next part is kind of different. This part is the real “VINTAGE” part of the recipe. I love this idea of adding creamed cottage cheese to a bread dough. It expands the texture and moisture, makes the flavor deeper and adds a lot of protein for better nutrition. This is something they did during the Great Depression to add more nutritional value. I LOVE this method! It is brilliant!

You may cream the cottage cheese in a blender, Nutri-bullet or use a hand blender like me. Warm the creamed cottage cheese in the microwave for 60 seconds, then stir. Heat for another 30 seconds at a time, as needed, until the cottage cheese is a little warmer than room temperature. When it is warm, it may be added to the activated yeast. If it is too hot or too cold it could kill the yeast.
Next, add the rest of the ingredients. Lastly, add the dill. You may use fresh chopped dill, and/or dried dill weed and seed. I’ve done many combinations of all of those. Just like in The Great Depression, I use whatever I have available.
 Add all the flour, then mix with a dough hook on a stand mixer, or with a large wooden spoon, or with your hands in a mixing bowl. When the dough is soft, but not sticky, then it is good to go. Add 1/2 cup of flour at a time till it gets to this point. Mix well between each addition.

This dough is too sticky. Add another 1/2 cup of flour at a time, mixing completely between each addition, until the dough is soft, but not too sticky.

Knead the dough with a little flour till it is smooth, soft and not sticky. Now, lightly grease a large bowl. I do this by lightly spraying it with olive oil. Roll the dough into a giant smooth ball and place into the bowl. Cover with a tea towel, or plastic wrap.

Let it rest for about 45 minutes, or until it doubles in size. While it is rising, prep a bread loaf pan by greasing it. I spray or wipe it with olive oil. Punch the dough down, and then smooth and roll it into a loaf that will fit the length of your bread pan. Place it in the bread pan. Cover and let it rest for about 30 minutes.

While the loaf is rising, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. When the dough has risen, place the pan in the hot oven and bake for 30 minutes.

Let it cool for about 10 minutes. Go around the sides with a butter knife to loosen it, then dump it out onto a cooling rack. Slice and serve it while it’s warm or let it cool for later. The cooler it is, the better it slices. Spread a slice with butter and enjoy!

Other bread recipes we love!

  1. Anadama Bread
  2. Applesauce Bread
  3. Cranberry Orange Bread
  4. Zucchini Bread
  5. Irish Soda Bread

 

Dill Bread

This vintage bread recipe is total comfort and always makes me think of grandma. You can use fresh or dried dill. This bread is great in the spring and summer with a good salad or in the fall and winter with soup or a casserole.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Proving Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Course Bread
Cuisine American
Servings 1 Loaf

Equipment

  • 1 Bread Loaf Pan
  • 1 Stand mixer with dough hook optional

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup cottage cheese, creamed **cream in blender or use magic bullet. Leave some chunks.
  • ¼ cup very warm water
  • 1 pkg dry yeast **1 Tbsp
  • 1 egg
  • 2 Tbsp sugar
  • 2 tsp dill seed
  • 1 Tbsp minced dried onion
  • 1 Tbsp oil
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp dried dill weed or 1-2 TBSP FRESH dill
  • ¼ tsp baking soda
  • 2¼-2½ cups flour

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • Soften the yeast in water by placing the yeast in the warm water till it is soft and you will see bubbles rising to the top.
  • Heat cottage cheese in a microwave until warm, in a microwave safe bowl. Start with 1 minute, stir then 30 seconds more at a time until nice and warm so it doesn't kill the yeast.
  • Place the warm cottage cheese in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, stir in yeast and all remaining ingredients.
  • Beat and knead for 10 minutes adding flour as needed so that dough is not sticky.
  • Spray a clean bowl with cooking spray. Place dough in bowl and cover. Allow to rise til double, about 45 minutes.
  • Punch down and form into a loaf. Place in greased bread pan.
  • Cover and let rise 30 - 40 minutes.
  • Bake 30 minutes. Let bread sit for 5 minutes before removing from pan to cool.
Keyword baking, bread, dill bread, vintage recipe