Amish Friendship Bread Starter Recipe & Printable (2024)

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Amish Friendship Bread recipe is perfect to share with friends. Now you can make your own with this Friendship bread starter recipe & free printable for giving as a gift!

Amish Friendship Bread Starter Recipe & Printable (1)

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The other day I was looking through my past emails when I came across an email I had sent my stepmother with anAmish Friendship Bread recipe as well as a Friendship Bread starter recipe. I realized I hadn’t made any in years and years!

What is Amish friendship bread?

If you aren’t familiar, Amish Friendship Bread is a sweet bread that you make off a sourdough starter.

The starter is “fed” and kept for ten days, then divided into four portions, three of which you can gift to friends and one you use to bake the most heavenly cinnamon sugared bread! Then your friends can pass along the Amish Friendship Bread recipe to their friends and so on and so on indefinitely.

When I was newly married I would receive a starter a couple of times a year from friends and neighbors and always enjoyed it. Sometimes, though, you want to make this delicious bread and you need to create your own starter if no one you know has some on hand.

I decided to share the starter recipe with you all along with printable instructions and the Amish Friendship Bread recipe gifting sheet you can use to pass it along to friends and family.

Amish Friendship Bread Starter Recipe & Printable (2)

Starter ingredients

  • dry yeast
  • warm water
  • all-purposeflour
  • sugar
  • milk

Step by step starter

  1. Dissolve yeast int warm water and let it sit 10 minutes.
  2. Combine flour and sugar and mix well.
  3. Add milk, then yeast mixture and allow to sit until bubbly.
  4. Add starter to a plastic gallon bag.
  5. Follow the instructions on the printable. You can also use a permanent marker to write the instructions on the bag for easy reference. You will squeeze the bag daily days 2-4, feed it day 5, squeeze again days 6-9.
  6. On day 10 feed it, divide it, and make your delicious bread!

Tips for best results

  • Always use nonmetal bowls and utensils for the sourdough starter, it is acidic and can breakdown the metal
  • You can freeze Amish Friendship Bread by wrapping it tightly in plastic wrap or foil and placing in a heavy-duty freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight at room temperature.

When I gifted this set of starter I rolled the plastic bags and put them in standard sized mason jars (with these cute red tops!) It’s important your starter doesn’t touch metal because of the chemical reaction it will cause so don’t gift in the jar without using the plastic bag!

Amish Friendship Bread Starter Recipe & Printable (3)

Printable card for gifting

I print mine on 80lb cardstock for durability but you can easily print on standard paper as well. You could also laminate it too!

Variations

  • add chocolate chips, chopped nuts, dried cranberries, butterscotch chips, raisins, etc
  • bake as muffins by reducing the baking time to 25-35 minutes
  • omit pudding mix for a slightly different flavor

Have you tried an Amish Friendship Bread recipe, there are actually quite a few variations out there. If yours is different than mine I’d love for youto share it in the comments so we can all try it!

You might also like these delicious bread recipes:

  • Apple Cinnamon Bread
  • Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
  • Cream CheesePumpkin Bread

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Amish Friendship Bread Starter Recipe & Printable (5)

Amish Friendship Bread and Starter Recipe

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5 from 7 reviews

  • Author: Melissa
  • Total Time: 10 minutes
  • Yield: 6 1x
Print Recipe

Description

Amish Friendship Bread is the perfect recipe to share with friends. Now you can make your own with this starter recipe along with a free printable for gifting starter to others!

Ingredients

Units Scale

Starter

  • 1 packet active dry yeast
  • 1/4 cup warm water
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup milk

For Feeding the Starter (2 feedings total)

  • 2.5 cups sugar, divided
  • 2.5 cups all-purpose flour, divided
  • 2.5 cups milk, divided

Friendship Bread

  • 1 cup starter
  • 1/2 cup sugar + 1.5teaspoons ground cinnamon for dusting the pan
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 large box instant vanilla pudding
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

For the Starter

  1. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in water and allow to sit ten minutes (mixture will turn frothy.)
  2. In another nonmetal bowl combine flour and sugar and mix well. Slowly stir in milk, then yeast mixture.
  3. Allow to sit until bubbly then add to a gallon plastic bag and follow the instructions on the printable, squeezing the bag once a day to stir days 2-4, feeding one cup each of sugar, flour, and milk.
  4. Squeeze again once per day days 6-9.
  5. On day 10 add 1.5 cups each sugar, flour, and milk and stir.
  6. Reserve one cup for your baking and divide the remaining starter into 3 gallon plastic bags: one to continue feeding and 2 for gifting.

For the Bread

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit
  2. Grease two large bread pans.
  3. Mix 1/2 cup sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon and dust greased pans with the mixture, tapping out excess into a bowl for later.
  4. Mix remaining ingredients in a large nonmetal bowl until smooth.
  5. Pour evenly in the two pans and top with remaining cinnamon sugar.
  6. Bake 50-60 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
  7. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

Notes

  • starter can be frozen to save for later, once thawed that is the new day 1
  • nutritional information is for final baked bread
  • Prep Time: 10 min
  • Category: dessert
  • Method: baking
  • Cuisine: American

Nutrition

  • Serving Size:
  • Calories: 408
  • Sugar: 32.3 g
  • Sodium: 511.6 mg
  • Fat: 16.9 g
  • Carbohydrates: 58.2 g
  • Protein: 7.1 g
  • Cholesterol: 87.9 mg

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Melissa Riker

Melissa Riker is a recipe developer and online content creator who has been sharing kitchen-tested recipes since 2011. Her passion (other than wine and cheese!) is creating reliable, no-fail recipes for home cooks.

Amish Friendship Bread Starter Recipe & Printable (2024)

FAQs

Is Amish friendship bread starter the same as sourdough starter? ›

Since it involves sugar and milk, Amish friendship starter has a sweeter taste than standard sourdough starter, and it does require commercial yeast to take off, but its principle is still the same — share what you have with others.

Can I freeze Amish Friendship Bread starter? ›

Can You Freeze Amish Friendship Bread? You can freeze both the starter and the baked the bread. If you freeze the starter, it will last for years in the freezer. Stick it in the freezer and write the date on the bag.

What's the recipe for friendship bread? ›

In a large bowl, combine the Amish bread starter with oil, eggs, 2 cups flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix well. Pour into prepared loaf pans. Bake in preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes.

Is a stiff starter better than a liquid starter? ›

Liquid starters have higher enzymatic activity than stiff ones, which means they can confer greater extensibility to a dough. This makes them the better choice for breads that require extensive manipulation during shaping, like baguettes, bagels, or pizza. Liquid starters are quicker to ferment than stiff ones.

How long is Amish Friendship Bread starter good for? ›

Indefinitely unless it gets contaminated, gets too cold (so goes dormant), or isn't properly fed. As long as you keep your starter healthy, you'll never run out! Once you get a healthy starter going, consider putting some aside in the freezer (1 cup in a Ziploc bag) as a backup.

Does Amish Friendship Bread need to be refrigerated after baking? ›

Does Amish friendship bread need to be refrigerated? No. After the bread has cooled completely, you can store it like any other baked good in an airtight container at room temperature for several days, or wrap it tightly and freeze it for later.

Why is my Amish Friendship Bread dry? ›

If too much moisture escapes, the bread could dry out. Check expiration dates and use fresh ingredients. For Amish Friendship Bread in particular, you'll want to make sure your yeast (if starting a starter from scratch), baking soda, and baking powder are fresh.

How long can bread starter stay in fridge? ›

Keep the starter in a jar (properly closed and sealed with the lid on) in the fridge for a maximum of 2 weeks. At the end of the 2 weeks you have to give your starter some food and water before it runs out of food and dies! So take your sourdough out from your fridge and let it come to room temperature.

Why does my Amish Friendship Bread sink in the middle? ›

First of all, one of the most common reasons quick breads (and layer cakes as well) sink is that the pan is overfilled. If the batter reaches the top of the pan and still needs to rise, it will collapse.

Why is it called Amish Friendship Bread? ›

When you've made your bread, you can give your friends a sample and the starter that made it! Then your friends can make their own and pass it along to their friends. This is why the bread is called "friendship bread".

How do you store Amish Friendship Bread after baking? ›

Most of our Amish Friendship Bread recipes behave like quick breads. The loaves freeze well when wrapped in freezer wrap, foil, or freezer bags. For coffee cakes, I recommend baking and freezing them in disposable pans that can be wrapped and can go right into the freezer.

Should my Amish Friendship Bread starter smell like alcohol? ›

As fermentation gasses build up in the container , let it out or the bag will go BOOM! It is normal for the batter to rise, bubble, ferment and smell like good beer or alcohol. Smelling like nasty feet is bad and means that your starter died and you need to toss it an start again.

Why can't you use metal with Amish Friendship Bread? ›

why can't you use metal when making amish friendship bread? They say use wooden or non metal, as the Amish always used wooden spoons. It's also said by using metal in the batter it could spoil the fermenting process of the batter as well. Some say it will even change the color, change the taste as well.

Why does my friendship bread starter smell like alcohol? ›

A layer of grey liquid on top of sourdough starter usually occurs after the yeasts and bacteria have consumed the food in a starter. A few hours at room temperature may be enough time for the starter to consume the food fed to it and to show a layer of hooch (alcohol).

What is another name for sourdough starter? ›

Starter. The preparation of sourdough begins with a pre-ferment (the "starter" or "leaven", also known as the "chief", "chef", "head", "mother" or "sponge"), a fermented mixture of flour and water, containing a colony of microorganisms including wild yeast and lactobacilli.

What is a good substitute for sourdough starter? ›

But what if you're craving that distinctive tang and don't have a sourdough starter on hand? Enter yogurt — the unexpected substitute that can give your bread that familiar zing while creating a unique twist on the classic.

What is sourdough starter also known as? ›

Ultimately, what you call your sourdough starter, mother dough, chef, levain, etc., is up to you. Much of this is cultural, and each culture seems to have its terminology, but it's also a preference. They're all preferments, and they all help bring flavor, aroma, and keeping qualities to your bread.

What's the difference between sourdough and starter? ›

The starter is a mixture of flour and water that captures wild yeast and bacteria over time, creating a leavening agent for bread. On the other hand, sourdough discard refers to the portion of the starter that is removed and discarded before feeding the remaining starter during regular maintenance.

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