Pumpkin Amish Friendship Bread

Pumpkin Friendship Bread

A Mother's Day gift of Amish Friendship Bread starter batter began my fascination with a century-old tradition. I was given a 1 gallon Ziploc bag containing a cup of the batter along with written instructions for multiplying it four fold so it could be shared among friends. Using that bag of batter and nursing it over 10 days produced four 1 gallon bags of starter batter. 

The first 3 or 4 times of making this yeasty batter, I was able to find enough friends and neighbours willing to try it, but later I just froze the bags and used them up one at a time to make different flavours of friendship bread. The starter batter freezes indefinitely, so it's easy to make these sweet breads at a moment's notice.

There's always a can of pumpkin puree in the pantry after Thanksgiving. Following the recipe for Banana Walnut Friendship Bread and using a can of pumpkin puree in place of mashed bananas, produces a lovely bread without using a store-bought pumpkin bread mix.

Enjoy this bread for breakfast the day after Thanksgiving.

Banana Walnut Friendship Bread

Banana Walnut Friendship Bread

This is a nostalgic bread/cake that goes back to the days when we first arrived in Toronto, Canada in the late 1970s. My then-brother-in-law worked at Proctor & Gamble (P&G) and brought home a recipe book featuring Crisco Oil. This Banana Nut Loaf recipe, modified by me many times over, originated from that P&G recipe book. 

Some of the changes I made were to replace granulated sugar with dark brown sugar to improve the colour of the bread, to add sour cream to improve the moistness of the bread and most recently, to add Amish Friendship Bread Starter to the batter to give a yeasty aroma and taste to this banana nut loaf. The Amish Friendship Bread Starter can be omitted for a denser, cake-like banana nut loaf. Using the starter gave it a more bread-like texture.

Use the darkest brown sugar you can find, the darker the better. I had only light brown sugar on hand, which accounts for the lightness in the center of the bread. And if you skimp on the Crisco oil, your bread will be dry and horrible. I'm sure substituting another vegetable oil for Crisco will work just fine but, some forty years later, I continue to use Crisco oil.

Apple Amish Friendship Bread

Apple Sheet Cake

It disappears quickly!

This is a great bread to make when there are lots of delicious, crisp Fuji apples and it will feed a crowd! This recipe makes 2 loaves, but I decided to make a sheet cake instead and baked it in a 9" x 13" glass pan.

Orange Cranberry Amish Friendship Bread

Orange Cranberry Bread

Each cup of starter batter makes 2 loaves of friendship bread. One loaf is wrapped and ready for presenting to the family across the street and the other loaf was shared with friends who dropped by for coffee & dessert this evening.

Vanilla Amish Friendship Bread

Loaf on left is packaged and ready to be gifted

The other loaf is for us

This is the 3rd batch of starter batter for Amish Friendship Bread (AFB) that I have taken care of, through the 10 Day Regimen.  We were going to an American folk songs of the 60’s concert by Gemini last Friday with friends who invited us to dinner before the concert so I took one of these loaves for them to freeze.  For dinner she prepared a salad and Moussaka and for dessert we had some of the bread I made from the second batch of starter batter, Carrot Amish Friendship Bread and Chocolate Amish Friendship Bread.  That dinner and the concert afterwards made for a very enjoyable evening!

You can make your own starter batter or save a whole lot of time if you get it from a friend. However, if you wish to give your friends some of your starter batter, you will have to nurse it through the 10 Day Regimen.

To make 2 loaves of this bread, you will need 1 cup of starter batter.

Ingredients:

Wet -

1 cup AFB starter batter

3 eggs, beaten
1 cup Canola oil

½ cup milk

1 cup sugar

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla

Dry -                      

2 cups flour

1 large (5.9 oz.) pkg. instant Vanilla pudding

1½ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. cinnamon

½ tsp. salt

For Dusting -

¼ cup sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon powder

Optional -

1 cup raisins

1 cup chopped nuts

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 325°F.

2. Mix Dusting ingredients together.  

3. Grease or butter 2 large loaf pans and dust with half the cinnamon/sugar mixture.

4. Beat Wet ingredients together until sugar dissolves.

5. Sift Dry ingredients and work into batter until well combined.

6. Stir in the Optional ingredients, if using.

7. Pour batter into pans and sprinkle top with remaining cinnamon/sugar mixture.

8. Bake for 50–60 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

9. Cool on a wire rack until bread loosens from sides of pan before slicing.

Note: This bread freezes well if packaged in a 1 gallon Ziploc bag.

10 Day Regimen for Amish Friendship Bread Starter

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This is the Amish Friendship Bread Starter batter that you will need to make Amish Friendship Bread.  Adding a cup of starter batter, after it has maturedfor ten days, to any sweet bread recipe makes it yeasty and delicious. The texture of the resulting bread is unbelievable!

At the end of 10 days you will have 5 cups of starter batter, enough for 4 friends, along with a cup of extra batter for making 2 loaves of sweet bread for yourself. If you keep a bag of starter batter for yourself (and give the other 3 away), you will be making 2 loaves of sweet bread every 10 days. What a treat! 

Here are a few pointers to keep in mind when handling the Amish Friendship Bread Starter (AFBS) batter:

1.  Make sure the Ziploc bag of starter batter is dated. This is Day 1 of 10 of the fermentation process. You may find it helpful to mark this date on your calendar as AFBS Day 1, along with AFBS Day 5 with a note to add ingredients to the bag, and AFBS Day 10 with a note to make bread.

2.  Avoid using metal utensils or containers. It is very important to use plastic or wooden utensils and plastic or glass containers when handling the starter batter.

3.  Do not refrigerate the starter batter at any time during the ten days of fermentation. Leave it at room temperature so that it can mature.

4.  It is natural for the starter batter to rise and bubble as it matures.  Work the air away from the batter towards the lip of the Ziploc bag and unzip it to remove any built-up air in the bag. Make sure to zip up the bag to prevent the batter from leaking out.

5.  When the Ziploc bag is opened to release the air, the batter should smell sweet and yeasty. If it is at all malodorous and/or the batter is at all discolored at any time during the ten days, throw the bag and its contents in the garbage.  Start the process over by making your own starter batter and don’t, under any circumstances, try to salvage the spoiled batter.

6.  Prior to Day 10, read through all the ingredients for making the bread of your choice and make sure you have all the necessary ingredients. It’s most annoying to have to go shopping on Day 10 because it’s going to be a busy day!

7.  Make sure you have enough 1 gallon Ziploc bags on hand for dividing your starter batter. Even though there isn’t a lot of batter in there on Day 1, by Day 10 the 5 cups of starter batter pretty much fills up a 1 gallon Ziploc bag.

8.  It is possible to freeze the starter batter.  When you’re ready to start the 10 Day Regimen, mark the date and day (1 or 2 or 3…) on the bag and make sure to mark the new dates for Day 1, Day 5 and Day 10 on your calendar.       

The 10 Day Regimen

Day 1:   Squash and mix the bag of starter batter.

Day 2:    Squash and mix the bag of starter batter.

Day 3:    Squash and mix the bag of starter batter.

Day 4:    Squash and mix the bag of starter batter.

Day 5:   

Add 1 cup white sugar, 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1 cup milk to the bag.
Release all the air from the bag and make sure to zip up the bag.

Squash and mix the bag of starter batter until sugar dissolves.

Day 6:    Squash and mix the bag of starter batter.

Day 7:    Squash and mix the bag of starter batter.

Day 8:    Squash and mix the bag of starter batter.

Day 9:    Squash and mix the bag of starter batter.

Day 10:

Add 1 cup white sugar, 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1 cup milk to the bag.

Squash and mix the bag of starter batter.

Pour entire contents of bag into a large glass or plastic bowl.

Measure 1 cup into each of 4 (1 gallon) Ziploc bags.

Set aside the remaining cup of batter in bowl to make 2 loaves of Amish Friendship Bread for yourself.

Keep one bag for yourself and give the other 3 to friends.

Make sure to date each bag and to include a copy of this 10 Day Regimen, along with the recipes for Vanilla Amish Friendship Bread and its variations. 

Amish Friendship Bread Starter

This is the Amish Friendship Bread Starter recipe that you will need to make Amish Friendship Bread.  It is ideal if you receive the starter batter from a friend because it will save you a lot of time – 10 days, to be exact! That is, if you are going to use it to bake your 2 loaves right away.  If you want to share your starter batter with friends, then you will have to go through the 10 Day Regimen yourself. Adding a cup of starter batter after it has matured for ten days, to any sweet bread recipe makes it yeasty and delicious. The texture of the resulting bread is unbelievable! 

After making this Starter batter, follow the instructions in the 10 Day Regimen.  At the end of 10 days you will have enough starter batter for 4 friends, along with extra batter for making 2 loaves of sweet bread for yourself. If you keep a bag of starter batter for yourself (and give the other 3 away), you will be making 2 loaves of sweet bread every 10 days. What a treat!

Here are a few pointers to keep in mind when handling the starter batter:

1. Avoid using metal utensils and containers. It is very important to use plastic or wooden utensils and plastic or glass containers.

2. Do not refrigerate the starter batter at any time during the ten days. Leave it at room temperature so that it can mature.

3. It is natural for the batter to bubble and rise as it matures.  Work the air away from the batter towards the lip of the Ziploc bag and unzip it to remove the build-up of air in the bag.

4. When the Ziploc bag is opened to release the air, the batter should smell sweet and yeasty. If it is at all malodorous or if the batter is at all discolored at any time during the ten days, throw the bag and its contents in the garbage.  Start the process over and don’t try to salvage the spoiled batter.

Ingredients:

1 (¼ oz.) pkg. Fleishmann’s active dry yeast
¼ cup warm water (110°F)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1 cup warm milk (110°F)

Directions:

1.    In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water for 10 minutes and stir.

2.    Sift flour and sugar into a 2-quart glass or plastic container.

3.    Slowly stir in the warm milk and dissolved yeast mixture.

4.    Loosely cover the mixture with a lid or plastic wrap until bubbly.

Consider this Day 1 of the 10-day cycle. For the next 10 days, handle starter batter following the 10 Day Regimen.

Amish Friendship Bread

My two loaves of Amish Friendship Bread

The dark spots are cookies
and white spots are cream
from the Oreo Cookies 'n Creme pudding mix

This is definitely one of the yummiest breads I've ever baked and the most interesting process ever. Okay, let's see if I can describe how this goes. It's called a friendship bread because the batter is shared with friends. 

I received a baked bread and a batch of starter batter from a friend on Mother's Day. It's one of the best gifts (after the cartoon caricature my son drew of me on his MD card) I've received because it will be remembered for many years to come!

Along with the starter batter, I received a set of instructions on how to care for it and a recipe for the two loaves it yields at the end of ten days. I'd like to add that even though it seems like a lot of work, it really wasn't and, strangely enough, I actually enjoyed 'babying' the bag of starter batter!

The starter batter came in a Ziploc bag with the date of the day it was placed in the bag. This date is Day 1. 

Day 1-4: Massage batter from the outside of the bag. Mush it and mash it.

Day 5: Add 1 cup each of flour, sugar and milk; mush it and mash it.

Day 6-9: Mush it and mash it.

Day 10: This is baking day! Add a cup each of flour, sugar and milk; mush it and mash it.  Put 1 cup in each of four (1 gallon) Ziploc bags. The batter that is left is combined with the ingredients in the basic recipe to make 2 loaves of Amish Friendship Bread. 

Keep one Ziploc bag for yourself and share the others with friends, or share all four with friends. If you keep one bag for yourself, you'll be baking every 10 days. 

Today was day 10 for me and I am very happy with the results. The basic recipe calls for a package of Jello Instant Pudding and I used Oreo Cookies 'n Creme pudding mix.

The process is very well explained on a blog I found on the Internet, so rather than reproduce it here, on my blog, I will point you to the source.

Amish Friendship Bread Starter

Amish Friendship Bread (Basic Recipe)

Here are some variations to the basic recipe.

Apple Cinnamon Friendship Bread

Banana Nut Amish Friendship Bread

Carrot Cake Amish Friendship Bread

Cherry Amish Friendship Bread

Pumpkin Spice Amish Friendship Bread

The following variations came from the same source as above. The only reason for reproducing them here is to caution you to NOT add 1/2 cup of milk with the pudding mix because the Basic Recipe includes a package of vanilla pudding mix and 1/2 a cup of milk!

Banana-Chocolate Chip Friendship Bread
In the basic recipe, reduce oil to 1/3 cup.
Replace vanilla pudding with 1 large package of instant banana pudding.
Stir in 1 cup very ripe mashed bananas and 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate minichips.


Butterscotch Amish Friendship Bread
Omit cinnamon from the basic recipe.
Replace vanilla pudding with  1 large  box of instant butterscotch pudding.
Add 1 cup butterscotch chips.

Caramel Apple Friendship Bread
Omit cinnamon from the basic recipe.
Replace vanilla pudding with  1 large  box of instant caramel pudding.
Add 2 cups diced apples.

Chocolate Amish Friendship Bread
Omit cinnamon from the basic recipe.
Replace vanilla pudding with  1 large  box of instant chocolate pudding.
Add 3 tsp. cocoa and 3/4 cup chocolate chips.


Chocolate-Cherry Friendship Bread
Omit cinnamon from the basic recipe.
Replace vanilla extract with almond extract.
Replace vanilla pudding with  1 (5.1 oz)  box of instant chocolate pudding.
Add 3 tsp. cocoa and 1 cup dried cherries.


Cookies 'n Cream Amish Friendship Bread
Omit cinnamon from the basic recipe.
Replace vanilla pudding with  1 large box of instant cookies 'n creme pudding.

Cranberry-Orange Friendship Bread
Replace milk in the basic recipe with orange juice.
Stir in 1 Tbsp. orange zest and 1 cup dried cranberries.


Lemon Amish Friendship Bread
Replace cinnamon and nuts with 1/4 cup poppy seeds.
Replace vanilla extract with lemon extract.
Replace vanilla pudding with  1 large  box of instant lemon pudding.

Mounds Bar Amish Frienship Bread
Omit cinnamon from the basic recipe.
Replace vanilla pudding with  1 large  box of instant chocolate pudding.
Add chocolate chips and sweet shredded coconut.

Strawberry Amish Friendship Bread
Omit cinnamon from the basic recipe.
Replace vanilla pudding and 1/2 cup milk with 1 small box of strawberry jello.
Add 1 cup thawed strawberries.

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