Amish Friendship Bread Starter Recipe
This Amish friendship bread starter recipe is the perfect way to get started. It’s simple, easy, and a lot of fun. Once you have the starter, you can use it to make Amish Friendship Bread and other sweet baked goods.
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast or 1 packet
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour divided
- 3 1/2 cups granulated sugar divided
- 3 1/2 cups whole milk divided
Instructions
Day 1:
- In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup warm water with 2 1/4 teaspoons of active dry yeast. Set the bowl aside for 5-10 minutes to allow the yeast to bloom.
- Meanwhile, whisk 1 cup of flour and 1 cup of sugar in a large bowl with at least 2-quart capacity.
- When the flour and sugar are completely combined, mix in 1 cup of milk.
- Once the yeast has been fully activated and is bubbly, pour the yeast mixture into the flour mixture and stir until fully combined.
- Cover it with a clean kitchen cloth, a kitchen dedicated shower cap, or plastic wrap and store it at room temperature.
- It may help to write yourself a post-it note with the dates of each day of the 10 day cycle.
Days 2 - 4:
- Uncover the bowl and stir the mixture thoroughly.
- Re-cover and set aside.
Day 5:
- Uncover the bowl and prepare to feed the starter. Add 1 cup milk, and stir until completely combined before moving on.
- Add 1 cup of granulated sugar and stir until completely combined.
- Add 1 cup flour and mix until mostly smooth, a few flour lumps remaining is ok. Re-cover the bowl and set aside until Day 6.
Days 6 - 9:
- Uncover the bowl and stir the mixture thoroughly, scraping the sides as required.
- Re-cover and set aside.
Day 10:
- Uncover the bowl and prepare to feed the starter. Add 1 1/2 cup of milk, stir until completely combined.
- Stir 1 1/2 cup of granulated sugar into the starter.
- Add 1 1/2 cups of flour and stir until completely combined and smooth.
- Divide your starter into 1 cup portions. Reserve 1 cup starter to keep the starter going. Divide the remaining starter into additional 1 cup portions to share or freeze. Your total yield may vary depending on how actively your starter ferments.
- After feeding and dividing, the reserved 1 cup for the starter becomes Day 1 of the new cycle.
Notes
- Give it room to breathe. A two quart glass, plastic, or ceramic container is my go-to for this starter. These non-reactive containers give you plenty of room for the starter to grow and make stirring a whole lot easier.
- Don’t stress about the spoon. You’ll often hear that fermented foods and metal don’t mix, but that advice is a carry over from many years ago when cooks had more reactive metalware, like aluminum and copper, in their kitchens. You don’t need to go out and buy a wooden spoon for your starter – if you don’t have one or a rubber spatula, a stainless steel spoon from your drawer will work just fine!
- Bag it or bowl it. A gallon sized zip-top bag is the traditional choice for Amish Friendship Bread starter, and it works perfectly well. I prefer a glass bowl because I find it easier to stir everything thoroughly without trying to vigorously squish starter without popping the bag open. I cover my bowl with a kitchen shower cap and leave it on the counter. If the bag works better for you, rock the bag!
- Mark your calendar. This starter isn’t fed every day like a traditional sourdough starter, you’ll stir it most days and feed it on specific days of the 10 day cycle. Keeping track of which day you’re on make the process much easier!
- No friend? No problem. Amish Friendship Bread is meant to be shared, but someone has to make the first starter! This recipe uses commercial yeast to get the fermentation party starter, so you don’t have to wait for someone to share a cup of established starter.
