Though it's not a Christmas-only treat, one of my favorite things to make during the holidays is Amish Friendship Bread! I was reminded just the other day how much I loved it when a friend gave me a bag of
starter mix (hence the name).
Let me explain...
Making Amish Friendship Bread is a 10 day process. But DON'T WORRY! It's not difficult. You start by receiving a bag of starter batter from a friend. However, if you do not know of anyone with Amish bread batter, you can start your own with
this recipe here.
For the first four days, you merely stir (if in a bowl) or shmush the baggie of starter once a day. On the fifth day, you add some ingredients to make it larger and then the next 5 days shmush the bag. On the 10th day you remove the amount of batter you need for your bread and divi up the rest for your friends, who then start the process all over again and so you spread Amish Friendship Bread to all your friends, to all their friends and so on and so on.
All of this is
SOOOO worth it because on that 10
th day, when you make the bread with
this recipe, the bread comes out of the oven all warm, yummy & sugary. There is the basic recipe, but you can also add any single item or combination of chocolate chips, raisins, chopped apples, crushed pineapple, candied fruit, coconut, chopped dates, or nuts to your liking. I love my Amish bread with chocolate chips.
If the stress of the holidays prevent you from keeping track of your Amish starter batter, I do hope that someday you try this because it is one of my very favorites!
