This recipe belonged to my great Aunt Mary Biedermann. It makes a nice savory bread, some type of hybrid with both yeast and baking soda. There is only one proving. The cheese (I substituted cream cheese for cottage cheese) doesn’t add a distinctive cheesiness, but the loaf is soft and a knife slides through it almost like a cake.

When I made this, I didn’t get much rise out of the dough at all, though it’s possible that my yeast was too old (it had been in the fridge for a while). It still made a passable bread, albeit a bit short. The ends were perfect, though the middle would make Paul Hollywood frown while squishing his finger in the center and calling it “stodgy.” Even so, those pieces can be toasted and go well with butter or cream cheese and salmon.

1 package dry yeast (or 2 1/4 tsp. from a jar)
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup cottage cheese or cream cheese
1 tbsp. butter, melted
2 tbsps. sugar
2 tsps. instant onion flakes, raw onion, or onion powder
2 tsps. dill seed
1/4 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
1 egg (plus another if you want an egg wash at the end)
2 1/2 cups flour

The cheese needs to be slightly warm, so bring it up to room temperature and give it a few seconds in the microwave with the butter to help it along.

Dissolve the yeast into the water and mix into the cheese and melted butter. Add the sugar, onion, dill seed, soda, salt, 1 egg, and half of the flour. Beat well. Add the rest of the flour and cover. (I had to knead it a bit with my fingers to get everything fully incorporated; just be sure not to over-knead it.)

Let it rise until it doubles. Stir it down (I’m not sure what she meant by stirring, though if it’s risen you can punch it down to deflate it a bit).

Place in a greased loaf pan or (round) baking dish. (Optional: whisk an egg and brush it over the top to get a shiny finish.)

Bake at 350F for 40-50 minutes.