Dilly bread is a classic soft yeast bread made with cottage cheese and flavored with dill. The cottage cheese helps to give the bread its moist, light texture.
Dilly bread is a cottage cheese yeast bread that’s flavored with dilly seed. It has a lovely soft texture that it gets from the cottage cheese and was one of my favorite recipes that my mom would make when I was growing up. Cottage cheese may sound unusual in bread, but it blends right into the dough as it bakes, creating a loaf that’s incredibly moist, light, and tender.
The bread is gently flavored with dill and onion, giving it a subtle savory note that pairs beautifully with everything from butter to beef stew. It’s the kind of homemade loaf that feels old-fashioned in the best way because it’s simple, reliable, and made with pantry staples.
If you’re looking for a yeast bread that’s a little different but still easy and approachable, this dilly bread is a great one to try.
Ingredient notes and substitutions
- Yeast: An equal amount of instant yeast will work.
- Cottage cheese: I like to use whole milk cottage cheese, but 2% cottage cheese also works well. I’ve used small curd cottage cheese and regular cottage cheese and either type will work.
- Onion: This is the dried minced onion flakes sold in the spice section.
- Dill seed: It’s important to use dill seed, not dill weed, in this recipe.
How to make dilly bread
Here you’ll find instructions and step-by-step photos showing how to make this recipe. The full recipe, including ingredients, is given below.
Step 1: Stir together the yeast and warm water in a small bowl. Let it sit for 5 minutes or until foamy.
Step 2: Combine cottage cheese, sugar, onion, butter, dill seed, salt, baking soda and egg in a large mixing bowl.
Step 3: Add the yeast mixture, and stir in to combine.
Step 4: Add flour to form the dough.
Step 5: Cover, and let rise until double in size, about 1 hour in a warm, draft-free spot.
Step 6: Stir dough down. Pour the dough into a greased 9×5-inch loaf pan.
Step 7: Cover, and let rise for 30 minutes in a warm, draft-free spot.
Step 8: Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.
Step 9: Bake for about 35-45 minutes, or until golden brown and baked through.
Step 10: Brush top with butter.
Recipe Tips!
- Warming the cottage cheese: I recommend warming the cottage cheese. The older versions of this recipe didn’t call for that, but warming the cottage helps helps to reduce the rising time. Otherwise, the bread has a longer rising time.
- Warm, draft-free spot for rising: To make a warm spot for the bread to rise, turn your oven to 350F for exactly 60 seconds and then turn the oven off. Place the bread in the slightly warmed oven to rise.
Storage
Store any leftover bread in an airtight container at room temperature. The bread will keep for about 3 days when properly stored.
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Dilly Bread (Cottage Cheese Bread)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
- ¼ cup warm water about 100F
- 1 cup whole milk cottage cheese warmed to about 80F
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons dried minced onion
- 1 tablespoon salted butter at room temperature
- 1 ½ teaspoons dill seed not dill weed
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon salted butter melted
Instructions
- Stir together the yeast and warm water in a small bowl. Let it sit for 5 minutes or until foamy.2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast, ¼ cup warm water
- Combine cottage cheese, sugar, onion, butter, dill seed, salt, baking soda and egg in a large mixing bowl.1 cup whole milk cottage cheese, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons dried minced onion, 1 tablespoon salted butter, 1 ½ teaspoons dill seed, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, 1 large egg
- Add the yeast mixture, and stir in to combine.
- Add flour to form the dough.2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- Cover, and let rise until double in size, about 1 hour.
- Stir dough down.
- Pour the dough into a greased 9×5-inch loaf pan.
- Let rise for 30 minutes.
- Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Bake for about 35-45 minutes, or until golden brown and baked through.
- Brush top with butter.1 tablespoon salted butter
Notes
- Yeast: An equal amount of instant yeast will work.
- Cottage cheese: I like to use whole milk cottage cheese, but 2% cottage cheese also works well. I’ve used small curd cottage cheese and regular cottage cheese and either type will work.
- Onion: This is the dried minced onion flakes sold in the spice section.
- Dill seed: It’s important to use dill seed, not dill weed, in this recipe.
- Nutrition values are estimates.
Nutrition
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