Cheddar N’ Dill Bread

Cheddar N’ Dill Bread…. nice ring to it, right? It has one of those old-timey names that belong to a recipe that’s just an epic classic. This might not be a classic, but it should be because it’s JUST.THAT.DELICIOUS!

Cheddar and Dill Bread. It pretty much goes with everything!

Delicious Cheddar N’ Dill Bread: The meal stretcher

Can you think of any better partner to a soup or stew other than a fresh slice of bread? Yea, me either. I mean, think about restaurants and diners for a sec, sometimes as a starter, they’ll serve the napkin-covered warm serving of bread in a cute little basket with some awesome whipped butter beside it, right?

(Yuuuuuuuuuuummmm! )

This, my dear reader, is not by accident. I mean, hey, it’s cheap to serve, filling, and gives you that .. “aaaah” feeling with your meal. It’s a great and super delicious way to stretch that grocery dollar and yet still make you feel like you’ve had an ample meal.

Store-Bought Bread

When buying bread in stores, freshness has always been the number one factor on our checklist, right? And if you’re feeling fancy, sometimes you might want to even opt for the slightly pricier, artisan-y type loaves.

But do we really know how fresh they are? Or if they are actually made with simple ingredients? (And also, do they EVER have beer in them?? lol)

Making your own is the best bet if you want the freshest bread possible and the …”I DO know what went into this loaf” version of bread.

“But Joanne”, you say, ” What about all the kneading and the waiting and kneading and the waiting???”

No worries girlywhirl (or..guyeewhirl…not the same ring to that, but ok) – I have you covered.

Let’s Talk Bread Varieties

While there are a bazillion types of bread out there that I could list (and we both know we don’t have time for that), I’ll only talk about two of the major ones. Yeast Bread and Quick Bread.

Yeast bread, which is the common bread sold in stores, is not so much difficult to make but you have to have patience (which I have very little of), and the physique like Arnold because it takes strength and effort to knead the dough. ….. A couple of times…. Ok, a lot of times.

For a traditional yeast bread dough, you need to knead (haha, see what I did there??) the dough to develop the gluten so there is a structure in place for when the yeast gives off gas (co2), it will trap the gas and make the bread rise!

I will say though – if you have time on your hands and want a fantastic NO KNEAD, yeast bread recipe, take a peek at my No-Knead Dutch Oven Bread! You need yeast for this one, and it will take longer than this Cheddar and Dill Bread recipe below, but it’s delicious as well!

Quick bread, on the other hand, use chemical reactions for leavening agents using things like eggs, baking powder, or baking soda instead of yeast. These leavening agents will save you from the waiting game because you won’t have to wait for the dough to rise before you cook them.

So guess what?? I have a quick bread recipe that requires no yeast (of course) and that’s easy to make! And a bonus – this quick bread is no slouch in the taste department – This cheddar and dill bread is a kicker! <– that means REALLY good! lol

Beer In A Quick Bread?? Really?

So this dill bread uses a handy dandy can o’beer as the leavening agent to make the bread rise. Crazy, right?? And if you don’t like the alcohol content, don’t worry because the alcohol itself evaporates as the loaf bakes. It’s the reaction between the baking powder and the beer that creates the rise in the bread.

That being said, if you really don’t want to use a can of beer, an alternative is to use 12 ounces of soda water will work just as well!

So how do you make this yummy cheddar n’ dill bread?

Easy peasy lemon squeezy! Start by combining the flour, seasonings, and cheddar cheese in a bowl.

Then add the beer and stir. Once all of the ingredients are mixed, pour it into the preheated greased pan, drizzle some melted butter over the top, then bake it in the oven until it turns golden brown. After less than an hour of cooking, it’s ready to serve!

See how crazy easy it is??

Switching up the Dill Bread

Don’t be afraid of experimenting with this dish. Well, of course, wait until you’ve made MY version a few times… THEN go ahead and start switching it up!

You can switch up other ingredients if you’re feeling adventurous! Take the dill, for example, this can be substituted with other herbs like thyme, rosemary, or oregano.

You can also try mixing up different kinds of cheeses that you prefer. Practically all cheeses work with this recipe. You can use any cheese – be it mild cheese like white cheddar or strong cheese like provolone or parmesan.

But when it comes to mixing flours, here’s my tip: too much whole wheat will weigh down the mixture, so instead you can replace up to a ½ cup of whole wheat, rye, or practically any other flour.

However, keep in mind that almond, coconut, and a few other flours cannot be used with this recipe the way it’s stated. You need gluten and these don’t contain it, so you might not get the height in the loaf that you want.

With all that said, feel free to tweak the recipe.

Can I Make This Cheddar Beer Bread In My Bread Maker?

Yep! You can also make this recipe in a bread maker if you would rather. As long as your bread maker has a setting for quick bread loaves, you can usually just grease the bread pan so that it won’t stick in the maker, pour in the mixture, and you’re good to go.

How Do I Store This Quick Bread?

When it comes to storing your fabulously homemade cheddar n dill bread, wrap them tight in plastic wrap or an old bread bag. Alternatively, if you have a beeswax wrap, choose the largest you have and give that pretty loaf a waxy blanket! I would keep it in the fridge for up to 10 days or so but of course, use your judgment. If it looks green and fuzzy or smells funky, toss it.

Can I Freeze This Bread?

Absolutely! It freezes really nice, actually! The way I do it is to wrap it in plastic wrap really tight, then in foil OR in a freezer-friendly plastic bag. Remember, oxygen is your enemy in this case. You can store them for up to 3 months or so as long as they are wrapped up tight as a drum. lol

How Should I Serve This Cheddar and Dill Bread?

Ohhhhh my favorite question! Here are some fantastic ways to serve this quick bread:

• Toasted with butter
• Toasted with cottage cheese, diced tomato, salt and pepper (omgoodness yummmm! Dill, cottage cheese and tomato are best friends!)
• Use this bread for a tuna melt- it would be PERFECT!
• Plain with some butter as a side for soups, stews, like this delicious (and easy to make!) 5 Ingredient Carrot Soup!
• A toasted side with garlic butter for your favorite steak dinner!
• Make a kick-butt veggie sandwich with this AMAZING Lemon Dill Yogurt Cheese or this amazingly delicious White Bean Mediterranean Hummus that I made – Heck yeah!
• Cut them into cubes, toast them in the oven and make some epic croutons for your salads!!
• Incidentally, here is a sweet little bundle of other open faced sandwich ideas you could use this bread for!

Do I Have To Add The Butter Over The Top?

No.. you don’t have to. If you didn’t want to add the butter, then I’d put a milk wash or something over the top just to help the crust from not becoming too hard.

But seriously… no butter?? *sniff* Use the butter! YOLO haha!

Okie dokie my lovelies.. I hope this helps in coming up with a bready (and extremely delicious) side for your future meals……. or snacks! When you try this dish, please let me know how you served it by commenting below or tag me on Instagram @thesaltypot!

**Don’t Forget To Pin This Cheddar N’ Dill Bread Recipe To Your Favorite Pinterest Board For Later!**