Friendship Bread

According to Wikipedia, Amish Friendship Bread is a cake-like sweet bread made from sourdough starter, a portion of which is often shared with friends in a manner similar to a chain letter. The starter is a substitute for baking yeast and is shared with friends and a portion saved out to start another cycle. 

There is nothing backing up the connection of the sweet stirred-bread to the Amish people, although the name has been taken from them. True Amish Friendship Bread is "just sourdough bread that is passed around to the sick and the needy", according to Elizabeth Coblenz, author of the syndicated column, "The Amish Cook", and member of the Old Order Amish.

Apparently the recipe first appeared on the internet around 1990, but the actual recipe is several decades old.

Farberware Bakeware 9-by-5-Inch Loaf Pan

A common recipe using the starter, also known as the Mother Bread,  suggests using one cup (240 ml) of it to start a new cycle, giving the remaining batter to friends, typically in airtight plastic bags with instructions for feeding the dough and the recipe for baking the bread on the 10th day of the cycle. 

A typical cycle involves adding or "feeding" the starter with 1 cup each (240 ml) of sugar, flour and milk every 5 days. The 10 day cycle produces approximately 5 cups of starter which must be either given away, baked (each 1 cup of starter makes 2 loaves of bread) or used to start a new cycle. Given the obvious multiplication facts, unless you want to bake ALOT of cinnamon bread, on day 10, it is best to pass it along to friends, with the option of saving one cup for yourself to start again.

The Amish Cook's Baking Book

Despite some instructions which say otherwise, according to the article in Wikipedia, the starter can be frozen for later use or if a few days delay is desired, refrigerated, which slows the fermentation process to about half. I may try this just to see how it works.

The end result is a very sweet and moist cinnamon bread. You may vary the bread slightly by adding nuts and or raisins to the batter before baking.

The bread pictured was made from a starter given to me at a workshop, and goes nicely with coffee !  Be warned: once you cut into the first loaf (it makes 2) you better freeze the second loaf or it will all be gone in a day or two depending on how many in your household or how much you can't resist. It's delicious ! 



I'd love to hear from you if you've tried the Friendship Bread. 

making your life a little sweeter,

Liz
The Party Hostess Diva on Facebook
Elizabeth Corbett on Pinterest

http://youtu.be/pC2nePyCcl4

Happy Baking !!

My Faithful Companion of 20+ years

The longer a companion is faithful to you through thick and thin, the more you cherish them. MY diehard faithful companion of over 20+ years is my dear KitchenAid stand mixer, affectionately known as Betty. (yes, inspired by none other than Betty Crocker) We've been through alot together. As we measure years and events and occasions for human companions, I look back with fondness and appreciation for the confections this workhorse of a mixer has helped me create. She's not the biggest of the available models, but strong like an ox, just the same. Pictured, is the exact model I own.

I started adding up just the cakes I've made that I could remember (many of which are documented by cherished photos) over the last 20+ years and here's what I came up with:

10 wedding cakes (3 tiers each ) 4 large Anniversary cakes, 5 Graduation cakes, at least 20 Holiday cakes and a minimum of 65 custom Birthday cakes. Now add in how many recipes of rich Buttercream icing it takes to cover that many cakes...approximately 165 individual icing recipes in case you're wondering. (NOTHING whips up that icing like my girl) Not to mention MANY other cakes for bake sales, school events, Girl Scout events, and don't even get me started on cookie dough!

Check out Betty's sister; bigger and stronger, from Amazon (aff) 

KitchenAid KP26M1PSL Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer, Silver

Another way my Betty has been faithful to me is in the making of bread dough. The dough hook

is fantastic for this..no messy hands, or strained arms. And how about a clean hands version of meatloaf? I mean, who likes to handle raw ground beef? ick, not me! I toss in the ground beef and ingredients and the mixing paddle takes care of the rest, dump into a pan and shape with a spatula, and tadah! you're done! What to do with the whisk attachment? Quiche, whipped cream and meringue, to name a few.

Now you may wonder if I'm getting a commission from KitchenAid for sharing all this, but I'm not. (THAT would be nice, if any KitchenAid people are reading) I just think that when you have experience with a fantastic product you want to share with others and steer them in the right direction if they are considering what to get. How many inferior stand mixers have you been through? How many hand held mixers are rattling around in the bottom of kitchen drawers? My Betty girl has been on my counter top at the ready, since day one. It's just so easy to have her right there and ready to go.

As we gals get on a little in years we learn alot of things. One of those things is that QUALITY matters. So for me....I prefer; MY man, true girlfriends, gold, sterling silver, diamonds, top shelf drinks and good coffee to name a few and of course, my partner in the kitchen, Betty.


Making your life a little sweeter,

Liz
The Party Hostess Diva on Facebook
Elizabeth Corbett on Pinterest

http://youtu.be/pC2nePyCcl4