AMISH FRIENDSHIP BREAD Part One Starter: 1 cup flour 1 cup sugar 1 cup milk This is a 10 day process. Mix the above ingredients in a large glass or ceramic bowl or jar. Cover loosely with cheesecloth or plastic wrap. Leave on counter for five days, stirring daily. On Day 5 add another cup each of flour, sugar, and milk. Stir well. On Day 10 add another cup each of sugar, flour and milk. Stir well. Now the starter is ready to use or share, but always keep 1 cup back to maintain (feed it every five days with a cup each of sugar, flour and milk). Store the starter at room temperature. Do not refrigerate or freeze. Part Two Recipe For First Batch From Original Starter 1 cup of starter 2/3 cup oil 1/2 cup milk 3 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 cups flour 1 cup sugar 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 to 1 cup chopped nuts Combine all ingredients. Pour into two well-greased and sugared loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees 40 to 50 minutes. Cool for ten minutes. Remove from pans. Part Three Daily Steps For Maintaining Starter: Date: ________ Day 1: Do Nothing ________ Day 2: Stir with a wooden spoon ________ Day 3: Stir with a wooden spoon ________ Day 4: Stir with a wooden spoon ________ Day 5: Stir with a wooden spoon ________ Day 6: *Add 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup milk ________ Day 7: Stir with a wooden spoon ________ Day 8: Stir with a wooden spoon ________ Day 9: Stir with a wooden spoon ________ Day 10: Step One: *Add 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup milk Step Two: Stir and pour into 3 separate one cup containers. Give two away and leave one for yourself unless you follow the directions using 2/3 cup of each ingredient. You will only remove 1 cup of the starter and put it to the side for yourself. In a large bowl use what is left of the starter and add: 1 cup oil 1/2 cup milk 3 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla In a separate bowl, mix: 2 cups flour 1 cup sugar 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 cup chopped nuts (optional) 1 large box vanilla instant pudding (sugar free is fine) Add the dry ingredients to the liquid and mix thoroughly. Pour into 3 well greased loaf pans. Sprinkle with extra sugar-cinnamon on top. Bake at 325 for 50 minutes to one hour. Cool ten minutes. Remove from pans. *If you wish to have only enough starter for one person, add only 2/3 cup of the flour, sugar and milk. If you follow the directions using 1 cup of each you will get enough starter for 3 people. You CAN alternate this on each cycle if you like) Part Four Notes and Variations On The Traditional Recipe: Instead of using vanilla pudding, cinnamon and nuts, the following are good variations: Chocolate pudding, chocolate chips and nuts Lemon pudding, lemon rind, raisins, nuts Butterscotch pudding, nuts, toffee bits, or chocolate chips Coconut cream pudding, coconut, chocolate chips, vanilla or chocolate flavoring Banana cream pudding, bananas, nuts Experiment with other flavors! Notes: Do not refrigerate or freeze the starter. Do not use metal bowls or spoons. Use only glass, wood or plastic. Finished loaves freeze well. Day One begins the first day after baking. Personal Note: On occasion, the baking day arrived on a day that was inconvenient for me to be in the kitchen. As long as you pull the new starters on day 10 you CAN put off the baking for one additional day without killing the starter. Source: unknown Andrea Post script on Amish Cinnamon Bread: Drea, thanks so much for posting this...especially the starter recipe. Now I can go on vacation and not worry about losing this great bread. My family is crazy about it. The recipe I have been using varies slightly from yours. Minor things, but when the starter is sitting, instead of stirring it with the wooden spoon, my recipe says to squeeze the bag---it is in 1 gallon ziplock bags. Also, my recipe specifies the oil be canola oil and the flour be self-rising. Don't know if this makes any difference or not. When ready to make the bread, what I add is: 1 cup canola oil 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 3 large eggs 2 cups flour 1/2 cup milk 1 large box instant vanilla pudding 2 teaspoons cinnamon In separate bowl, mix 1 tablespoon cinnamon and 3 tablespoons sugar. Then sprinkle into two 11x6 loaf pans that have been sprayed with Bakers Joy. Then pour batter into pans, bake for one hour at 325. Nuts, raisins, chocolate chips or anything else can be added, but I have been making it plain at this point. I am saturating the neighborhood with starter. I will run out of friends and neighbors with the way this stuff keeps multiplying! Happy eating, Antoinette