Easy Herbed Quick Bread

This savory quick bread has all the flavors of ranch dressing and is made extra-moist with cottage cheese. It’s great on its own as a snack, alongside a hot bowl of soup, or toasted and buttered for breakfast.

I originally made this because I had a large bunch of dill and I was searching for something to do with it, but you can substitute rosemary, chopped parsley and other herbs from your garden. The dill is VERY complimentary here, so use the dill, even if you only have dried dill on hand.

INGREDIENTS

• Butter, for coating the pan
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder (no salt)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder (no salt)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh dill
• 1/3 cup finely chopped fresh chives
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese, preferably large curd

METHOD

• Place a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 350°F. Generously coat a 9×5-inch loaf pan with butter and set aside. Be careful of using a smaller loaf pan or it could overflow the pan.
• Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, baking soda, and pepper in a large bowl; add dill and chives (or any other fresh chopped herbs you like or may have on hand); set aside.
• Whisk the eggs and buttermilk together, in a medium bowl until combined. Pour this mixture into the flour mixture, add melted butter and cottage cheese; fold with a rubber spatula just until the flour is incorporated, being careful not to over mix.
• Transfer the batter into the prepared loaf pan, push the batter into the corners, and smooth the top.
• Bake until golden-brown and a tester inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean, about 50 to 55 minutes.
• Place the pan on a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. Work a dinner knife around the edges of the pan to make sure it won’t stick. Flip the bread out of the pan onto the rack and let it cool for at least another 15 minutes before serving.

Storage: This is best eaten fresh. You can store it, after completely cooling, by wrapping tightly in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days. It can also be frozen for several months.