Now, I know this is HoneyRed's recipe, and I probably shouldn't be putting my notes into it, but I've gotta tell you why I chose "Old Friends," instead of "Long Day's Journey into Night" for this one.... Someone gave my mom a start of this batter, and she loved making the batter, but wasn't too crazy about the resulting bread. So she ended up giving baggies of batter to total strangers! She'd carry copies of the recipe, and baggies of batter, and wherever she went, she left a little trail.... Getting this recipe from HoneyRed made me worry, for just a split second, that I might start carrying baggies of batter around with me! I have a copy of the recipe she was given, but it doesn't say how to start a batch. Now I know....
Day 1 This is the day you receive the batter. Do nothing.
Day 2 Squeeze the bag.
Day 3 Squeeze the bag.
Day 4 Squeeze the bag.
Day 5 Squeeze the bag.
Day 6 Add 1 cup of plain flour, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 cup of milk.
Day 7 Squeeze the bag.
Day 8 Squeeze the bag.
Day 9 Squeeze the bag.
Day 10 Combine in a large bowl, the batter, 1 cup of plain flour, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 cup of milk. Mix with a wooden spoon or spatula. Put four (4) 1-cup starters in ziplock bags. Keep one starter for yourself. Give the other 3 starters to your friends along with these instructions.
To the remaining batter in the bowl add:
| 1 cup of oil | 2 cups of plain flour | |
| 1 cup of sugar | 1/2 cup milk | |
| 1 tsp. of vanilla | 1/2 tsp. baking soda | |
| 3 large eggs | 1 large box of vanilla instant pudding | |
| 1/2 tsp. of salt | 2 tsp. of cinnamon | |
| 1-1/2 tsp. of baking powder |
Pour in 2 large well greased and sugared (mix cinnamon and sugar) loaf pans. Sprinkle extra cinnamon and sugar on top, if desired. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour. Optional: Add 2 cups of chopped pecans and/or 1/2 cup of raisins.
Remember: Do not refrigerate. If air gets into the bag, let it out. It is normal for batter to thicken, bubble, and ferment. Do not use metal spoon or bowl for mixing.
Personal Observations:
I am using zipper gallon bags this time as quarts weren't big enough and couldn't find 1/2 gal. bags with the zippers. It will get air in it and I had to let it out at least twice a day when using the quart bags, and one day the bag reached explosion point and a small hole developed where some batter seeped out. When making the bread, I only had 4 cups of batter, so had to use my bag I was to save for the batter for my bread.
For those without Amish friends to give them a bag of batter, start with 1 cup milk, 1 cup flour, and 1 cup sugar.
As always, if you have a recipe you want to share, Email me!