Dilly Bread

Delys, Elin, and I have all been watching old seasons of "The Great British Baking Show." Laurel, are you a fan as well? In any case, it has inspired me to share one of my favorite bread recipes. This is a recipe that my mother used to make, and we all loved it. I'm not sure where she got it, but I haven't ever run across it anywhere else. It's unusual, delicious, easy to make, and it goes beautifully with soups, stews, salads, pasta, and, well, just about everything.

Here are the three ingredients that give the bread its unique flavor and texture:

Cottage cheese, dill seed, and dried onion.

The recipe:

1 pkg yeast     

1/4 c warm water

1 c cottage cheese

2 T butter

2 T sugar

1/4 t soda

1 egg, beaten

1 T instant onion

2 t dill seeds

2 1/2 c flour

Dissorlve yeast in warm water. Set aside. In the microwave, heat cottage cheese to lukewarm. Combine all ingredients. Beat. Let dough rise for about 30 minutes until about double in size. Punch down and knead. Grease a 2 qt glass casserole dish. Round dough in dish and let rise again for 30 minutes:

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Bread is done when it sounds hollow when the crust is tapped. Brush the top with butter and a dash of salt. 

(Mine sank a bit during the bake, but it didn't affect the taste or texture.) Let it cool slightly, remove from bowl, and invert it onto a cooling rack:

This bread tastes great cold or hot, but I love it best warm from the oven and topped with butter:

So good!