WHB: Cottage Cheese-Dill Bread

Believe it or not, there's 1/2 cup of freshly chopped dill in this bread.  It was obviously there while I was kneading the dough. However, it seems to have gone into hiding while the bread baked. Nonetheless, the bread has a wonderful onion-dill fragrance and taste. The house smelled marvelous for hours after the bread came out of the oven.  Why don't they develop an aerosol room deodorant that smells like freshly baked yeast bread?  By the way, that's hummus on the slice of bread.   Besides the wonderful taste from the dill, this bread has a delicous, chewy crust. 

The  bread was baked to celebrate the 81st Weekend Herb Blogging, which is home with it's mom, Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen.  Look how WHB has grown and grown since Kalyn started it. Amazing.  Make sure you check her site for the Roundup on Monday. It will be fabulous.  As mentioned, this bread is full of fresh dill, which is one of my favorite herbs. I don't have much luck growing it, unfortunately. It doesn't like the hot weather here in the Sacramento Valley, but they usually have it at the store.

This was a fairly easy bread recipe. You start out making a nice bubbly sponge of yeast, water, honey and  2 cups flour.  After 45 minutes, it grew into a marvelous yeasty concoction.

Then eggs, fresh dill, cottage cheese, flour, and oil are mixed into the sponge.  After the bread has been kneaded it goes into a bowl to rise.  Then, my favorite moment arrives--punching it down. The sound and smell as your fist plunges into the dough, and a puff of yeasty air rushes out? Fabulous. By the way, notice the dill.  The nice green color disappears as you bake it.

The loaves just out of the oven. I can't believe that I actually let it cool without cutting a slice while it was warm and slathering it with butter.  What's happening to me?

I made sandwiches filled with hummus, avocado slices, cucumbers, watercress, and red onions slices.  Very good!

Cottage Cheese-Dill Bread

(Adapted from The Green's Cookbook, by Deborah Madison)

3-1/2 teaspoons dry active yeast
1-3/4 cup warm water
2 Tablespoons honey or sugar
6 to 7-1/2 cups unbleached white flour
4 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped fine
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
1 Tablespoon salt
1 egg plus 1 Tablespoon milk, beaten for egg wash

Put the warm water in a large bowl and dissolve the yeast. Stir in the honey or sugar and about 2-1/2 cups flour.  Beat vigorously until it forms a thick batter, then set aside in a warm place for about 45 minutes until it doubles.

As the dough rises, cook the onion in 1 Tablespoon of the oil, until soft.  Set aside to cool.  When the dough has doubled, add the onion, dill, eggs, salt, and the remaining 3 Tablespoons of oil and stir until combined. Then add 3 cups of flour 1/2 cup at a time until it has all been combined.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 8 minutes, adding flour if needed.  You can put it in a mix-master, too.  The dough is very soft, so add enough flour just until it no longer feels sticky.  Form the dough into a ball and place it into a bowl with a few Tablespoons of olive oil in it. Turn the oiled side of the bread up in the bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a cloth, and let rise in a warm place.  After it has doubled, punch the dough down and let it rise again.  After it doubles a second time, cut the dough in half and shape into loaves and place in oiled bread pans. Let rise for about 20 minutes until the bread has risen to the top of the pans. Bake in an oven set at 350 degrees F. for 50-60 minutes until golden brown.  Remove from pans and let cool before slicing.

Comments

[Kalyn]

Wow, the bread is beautiful. Also, hummus is one of my absolute favorites, so you already had my interest as soon as you mentioned it. I realized my dill must have died over the winter, and I didn't plant any. It doesn't grow all that well here, compared to a lot of herbs. (And I've already planted way too many things, so maybe next year for the dill.)

[Jenn]

I'm drooling. That looks delish!

[Lydia]

Beautiful loaves! I don't have much luck growing dill, either. I put some in the garden every years, but it either keels over from complete boredom, or bolts before I can get to it. Will have to buy some to try this bread.

[Lannae]

The bread looks lovely, and I lookeed really really close, and I think I saw flecks of the dill. Dill does go a long way, and I bet the bread was awesome.

[Anh]

Sher, this looks absolutely amazing!!! I did plant some dill a few months ago but the possum ate all of it. So now I am back to buying dill :(. Will defenitely give this recipe a try.

[angie]

Sher!!! Your loaves look absolutely wonderful! I made some bread rolls using dill too, with cream cheese and onions too. I agree, the aroma from the dill-onions drove me totally nuts!

[astrid]

mmmmmmh, this looks so yummy :o)
and the bread loaves look perfect!

[sandi @ the whistlestop cafe]

I've got my dill planted, I will be out snipping soon.

[peabody]

I love this bread. I make a similar recipe. This reminds me that I need to make it!

[Lisa]

That bread looks amazing! I've never had a dill bread before, but I know I'd love it!

And that sammich you made with it? All I can say is.. might you have a napkin that I could use to wipe my chin with?

YUM!

xoxo

[Glenna]

Oh man, that looks so yummy! Now I want to make bread today. Really beautiful.

[Susan]

They haven't developed a fresh-baked bread room deodorant because we would never leave the house. I know I wouldn't leave until every last crumb of that was eaten.

[Katie]

You're bread looks and sounds marvelous.... but it reminds me of an old joke from when I was in college (and they're were still 7 words one couldn't say on radio ofr TV) What kind of dough do you use to make dill bread? Dilldough!

[ann]

wooooooooooooo... Since I discovered my inner baker I've been looking for a dilly bread to make. This one definitely gets added to the horse race. Thanks Sher!

[Patricia Scarpin]

OMG, Sher! Look at the size of that dough! I'm in awe!

I'm tagging this recipe right now - it looks so great I can't miss it!

[s'kat]

That must have been amazing! I'll bet it would also make great croutons, or bread to go along with soup.

Not that I'm knocking those sandwiches!

[Diana]

Hi, looks really delicious! What type of flour did you use in this recipe, all purpose or bread flour or? Would love to try it if I can get my hands on some fresh dill, yum :)

[Chantal]

Hi, this looks great but your directions don't include the cottage cheese. It is listed in the ingredients but not in the directions. I just tried another cottage cheese bread recipe because I have a tub of it to use up and it called for 1 cup and a little smaller portion of water and about 1/3 the water. Needless to say, that dough was very stiff. So I tossed it and am in the middle of making this one which sounds great but no cottage cheese in the directions. I'll go with my baking-know-how and add it in with the wet ingredients. But just out of curiosity... where was I supposed to incorporate it? Thanks!!! :)

[Chantal]

Apologies. I was quick to jump to conclusions. I found it underneath the pictures just not in the final summary recipe (perhaps you could add). Well, at least that confirmed my hunch to add it in with the wet... I'll be sure to post final results!

[Sudha]

Where ever you are Sherry...this is an awesome recipe...I came across your blog today, tried making this bread and the results were warm and delicious. I hope you are reading this from heaven...thank you!