Celery Seed Bread

The first full week in the house. Discoveries: the bathroom faucet drips. The second bedroom closet door doesn't close. The basement floods when it rains. The backyard has a mystery hole that might be a groundhog or might be a portal to another dimension. The house is a project. The house is a hundred projects. I love every broken, creaky, leaky inch of it.

Tom came on Saturday with his toolbox. We spent the day in the kitchen, ripping out old cabinets. The work was physical, dusty, satisfying in the way that destruction is satisfying when it's in service of creation. Tom whistled while he worked — actually whistled, which I have never heard him do — and I realized he was happy. Not just present. Happy. Working on a house with his son is Tom's version of paradise. Give this man a drill and a blueprint and he is complete.

Megan has been unpacking with the organizational fervor of a woman who has been dreaming about closet space for four years. Every box is opened, sorted, and placed with intention. The books are on shelves (organized by genre, finally). The kitchen stuff is in cabinets (organized by "Megan's system," which I will never understand but will always comply with). The teaching supplies have their own room. The hockey gear has the garage. Everything has a place. We are building a home.

Made a big pot of chicken soup because the house is cold and we don't have a fully working kitchen yet and soup can be made in one pot on one burner and it fills the house with warmth. Babcia's recipe. Homemade stock, carrots, celery, dill, egg noodles. The soup that says "someone lives here." The soup that says "this is a home now." It is. It's a home.

That pot of Babcia’s chicken soup filled the house with exactly the kind of warmth we needed — but soup deserves bread, and this celery seed loaf is the one I’ve since made every time that soup comes out. The celery seed echoes the celery in the broth, the crust is sturdy enough to hold up to a long dunk, and baking it on a single oven rack while the house is still half a construction zone just feels right. Tom would approve: one pot, one pan, one loaf, and suddenly the place really does feel like someone lives here.

Prep Time: 20 min + 1 hr 30 min rise | Cook Time: 30 min | Total Time: ~2 hrs 20 min | Servings: 12 slices

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
2 1/4 tsp (1 packet) active dry yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp celery seeds
1 cup warm water (105—110°F)
2 tbsp neutral vegetable oil
1 egg, lightly beaten (for egg wash)
1/2 tsp flaky sea salt, for topping

Instructions

Proof the yeast. Combine warm water and sugar in a large bowl and sprinkle the yeast over the top. Let sit 5—8 minutes until foamy. If it doesn’t foam, your water was too hot or the yeast is old — start over.
Mix the dough. Stir the oil into the yeast mixture. Add 2 1/2 cups of the flour, the salt, and the celery seeds. Mix with a wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms, then turn out onto a lightly floured surface.
Knead. Knead the dough for 8—10 minutes, adding the remaining 1/2 cup flour a little at a time as needed, until the dough is smooth, elastic, and only slightly tacky. It should spring back when you poke it.
First rise. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel, and set in a warm spot for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
Shape. Punch the dough down, shape it into a smooth oval loaf, and place it on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover loosely and let rise 30 minutes more, until noticeably puffed.
Preheat and prep. While the dough finishes its second rise, preheat your oven to 375°F. Brush the loaf gently with the beaten egg wash and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
Bake. Bake 28—32 minutes, until the loaf is deep golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 190°F.
Cool. Transfer to a wire rack and cool at least 15 minutes before slicing. Worth the wait — especially alongside a bowl of chicken soup.

Nutrition (per serving)

Celery Seed Bread — The Loaf That Said We Were Home