Description
Traditional Amish friendship bread is a soft, dessert-like quick bread featuring a distinctive cinnamon sugar crust. Unlike standard yeast loaves that require kneading or traditional quick breads made strictly with baking powder, this recipe uses a sweet fermented starter culture. The starter contains flour, sugar, milk, and natural wild yeasts that ferment together over several days.
Ingredients
For the Bread
- 1 cup Amish Friendship Bread starter
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup whole milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 box (3.4 oz) instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
For the Cinnamon Sugar Topping
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven:
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease two 9×5-inch loaf pans. - Prepare the batter:
In a large bowl, whisk together the starter, eggs, sugar, vegetable oil, milk, and vanilla until smooth. - Combine the dry ingredients:
In another bowl, whisk together the flour, pudding mix, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. - Mix:
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Stir just until everything is combined. Avoid overmixing. - Prepare the cinnamon mixture:
Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. - Fill the pans:
Sprinkle a little cinnamon sugar into the greased loaf pans. Divide the batter evenly between the pans, then sprinkle the remaining cinnamon sugar over the tops. Drizzle with melted butter. - Bake:
Bake for 50–60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. - Cool:
Allow the loaves to cool in the pans for about 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
For the classic Amish Friendship Bread tradition, use an active, fermented starter rather than a freshly mixed batter. The starter is typically maintained over several days before baking. You can also add chopped walnuts, pecans, raisins, or chocolate chips for extra flavor.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Category: Bread / Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 285 kcal
Keywords: traditional amish bread, friendship bread starter recipe, cinnamon amish quick bread, sweet amish bread