Amish Friendship Bread Recipe

Ok... CONFESSION: The first time I got one of these starters and read the instruction sheet, I pronounced it "A"mish and I didn't make the connection until I passed it on and was embarrassingly corrected. Silly me...
Anyway- I love the taste (likely has something to do with all the sugar), but I do have two beefs with the recipe. So do the Ahhhmish :) have plastic Ziploc bags handy in addition to their packages of store-bought Instant Vanilla Pudding? Hmmmm.... interesting. There must be some kind of variation going on they never told us about. :) Anyway, it's good stuff so I won't complain. Also- I would really like to know why you can't use a metal spoon or anything metal. I just think that is rude. Is it so you feel Amish as you break your wrist hand-mixing it? :) Perhaps you know? Well, anyway, enjoy the recipe.

I have included the recipe for the starter if you have never recieved one and are feeling a little left out. Now you can be the first to make the mushy goodness and pass it on! :)

Amish Friendship Bread Recipe:

Amish Friendship Bread Starter:
1 tablespoon Active Dry Yeast
2 cups Warm Water — (110 degrees)
1 cup Flour
1 cup Sugar
1 cup Milk

Bread:
1 cup Vegetable Oil
1 cup Sugar
2 cups Flour
3 Eggs
1 small Vanilla Pudding Mix — Instant (You can use chocolate too)
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 cup Milk

Cinnamon Sugar:
1 cup Sugar
2 tablespoons Cinnamon

For Amish Friendship Bread Starter:
Dissolve yeast in 1/2 cup of the warm water in a deep glass container. Stir
in remaining warm water, flour and sugar. Beat until smooth. Cover. A large
glass jar or bowl with a tight fitting lid works best for this. Because your
first batch of starter contains fresh yeast, you can skip the next set of
directions and go directly to the instructions for splitting your start.

Do not refrigerate! Do not stir with a metal spoon! The starter requires 10
days for fermentation.

Day 1- Begin or receive starter, do nothing
Day 2- Mush the bag
Day 3- Mush the bag
Day 4- Mush the bag
Day 5- Add 1 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 cup milk
Day 6- Mush the bag
Day 7- Mush the bag
Day 8- Mush the bag
Day 9- Mush the bag
Day 10- Add 1 cup sugar, 1 cup flour, 1 cup milk

Put 1 cup of starter in each of three Ziploc bags. Give 2 away to friends and
keep one for yourself. This will begin their Day 1. (It might help to mark the bag)

For Amish Friendship Bread:

You will have about 1 cup of batter left besides the 1 cup you have saved for
yourself. To the remaining batter add vegetable oil, sugar, flour, baking
powder, baking soda, eggs, milk, vanilla pudding mix, cinnamon, and salt. Beat
until well blended. Add one cup raisins, chocolate chips or nuts, if desired.

Grease 2 loaf pans well, and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, coating bottom well.
Turn batter into pans, and sprinkle remaining cinnamon sugar onto tops of
loaves. Bake at 325 F degrees for one hour.

If you can’t figure out who to give all your starters to that will actually bake the bread, bake lots of bread and give it away.