I love Amish Bread, especially in the fall! Plus, it's a great way to share with friends--either with a starter or bread or both!
With cinnamon & sugar
With chocolate chips
Amish Friendship Bread Starter
2 1/4 tsp. yeast
1/4 C. warm water
3 C. flour, divided
3 C. sugar, divided
3 C. milk, divided
In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Let stand 10 minutes. In a container (glass, plastic, or ceramic--don't use metal), combine 1 C. flour & 1 C. sugar. Mix thoroughly or flour will lump when milk is added. Slowly stir in 1 C. milk & dissolved yeast mixture. Cover loosely & let stand (it should get bubbly). Consider this day 1 of the 10 day cycle. Leave loosely covered at room temperature.
On days 2 through 4, stir starter with a spoon (don't use metal). Day 5, stir in 1 C. flour, 1 C. sugar, & 1 C. milk (batter will be slightly lumpy). Days 6 through 9, stir only.
Day 10, stir in 1 C. flour, 1 C. sugar, & 1 C. milk. Remove 3 C. of batter to give to 3 friends (or if you want more bread again soon, keep 1 for yourself). I like to put the batter to give to friends in a gallon ziploc bag & write the date on it & make sure you give them the following recipe with the starter. Use the remaining batter (there should be about 1 C. left, give or take) to make a batch of Amish bread.
Amish Friendship Bread
Do not use any type of metal bowl or spoon for mixing. Do not refrigerate. If air gets in the bag, let it out. It is normal for the batter to rise, bubble, & ferment.
Day 1: Do nothing. This is the day you receive the batter. Make sure the bag is dated.
Day 2: Mush the bag.
Day 3: Mush the bag.
Day 4: Mush the bag.
Day 5: Mush the bag.
Day 6: Add to the bag 1 C. flour, 1 C. sugar, 1 C. milk. Mush the bag
Day 7: Mush the bag.
Day 8: Mush the bag.
Day 9: Mush the bag.
Day 10: Pour entire contents of the bag into a non-metal bowl & add 1 1/2 C. flour, 1 1/2 C. sugar, & 1 1/2 C. milk. Mix together.
In 4 ziploc bags labeled "Day 1" measure out 1 C. of mixture and place it in each bag. Date the bag & give it to 4 friends with the recipe.
With the remaining batter add:
3 eggs
1 C. oil (I do 1/2 unsweetened applesauce)
1/2 C. milk
1 C. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 C. flour (I did half whole wheat flour)
1 large box instant vanilla pudding (or whatever flavor you want)
Grease 2 loaf pans. Mix an additional 1/2 C. sugar & 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon in a non-metal bowl. Dust the greased pans with half the mixture. Pour the batter evenly into the 2 pans & sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon & sugar mixture. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into center of bread comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes & then remove bread from the pans. Store in the refrigerator.
Options: Add 1 C. chopped nuts, raisins, or chocolate chips (I did 1 loaf with cinnamon & sugar & 1 loaf with chocolate chips & they were both good! I didn't sprinkle cinnamon & sugar on top of the one with chocolate chips, but I did use it to dust the pan with).
Should the batter not be passed on the 10th day, be sure to date the batter for the recipient--they can use the date lines to keep track of what day they are on. If you keep a starter for yourself, you'll be baking bread every 10 days.
*Starter recipe from Ginny Lee & I don't know who I got the bread recipe from--someone in Rexburg when I received my very first starter :)
