"No joy is complete unless it is shared." Amish Proverb
It's Tuesday! Yum!
Last summer we did a read-along, Amish Values for Your Family by Suzanne Woods Fisher. It's a great book and if you haven't read it, I highly recommend it. I've read it twice and will probably read it again. It's one of those books that entertains and teaches, but it takes a few readings to absorb it all. The quote at the beginning is from the book: each chapter starts with an Amish Proverb. It's no surprise that many of them are rephrased Biblical ideas. Some of them are downright funny, in a 'told you so' kind of way. The Amish do not lack a sense of humor. Nor good taste - especially when it comes to food!
Growing up in York County, PA I was exposed to the Mennonite and Amish culture, mostly through their food at Central Market, though it has changed a lot over the last 30 years. It's said that one of the best ways to get to know a culture is through it's food. Their baked goods were, of course, one of my favorites. They made the best pies and breads! Occasionally we had the opportunity to make our own Amish bread. My mom would receive an Amish Friendship Bread starter from a friend - back in the day, it was kind of like a chain letter for adults. It was great the first time, often friends were happy to receive a starter or even asked for one. But eventually it was hard to give away because everyone already had one or two themselves. We didn't know what else to do with it, so we usually just tossed it once we were tired of making Amish Friendship Bread. It was good, but enough is enough.
The idea behind Amish Friendship Bread is the sharing. A sourdough starter takes time and nurturing, though it's not a difficult thing to do. But, when you share the bounty of your kitchen you are also sharing the love and nurturing you've put into that starter. It really is a wonderful gift!
I never knew what to do with any extra starters I had, so there have been times I've had a dozen bags of sourdough sitting in my kitchen! Can you imagine!? I'm not good with math, but each one would eventually divide into 4 - wow! That's a lot of bread! Too much, I'm afraid. I could have opened a road-side stand with all that bread. But I didn't.
Fast forward to the summer of 2014 when my mom brought me an Amish Friendship Bread (AFB) starter. She actually brought a few that were ready to be made into bread, so we spent the day making different flavors - I never knew this could be done! Exciting! But now I have several starters and I'm leaving in a few days for a week in Colorado. The nurturing and baking would fall to my husband, son, and youngest daughter. They did it, though they forgot to adjust the oven temperature and they didn't check for doneness. Once cooled they wrapped them and popped them in the freezer! AFB freezes well. But, when I defrosted them they were raw in the middle. Oh no! We ate the ends and tossed the rest.
At my wits end with all the starters (left over from their baking) I consulted Google! Thank goodness for the Internet and Darien Gee! I found her website, Friendship Bread Kitchen, and I no longer have a love/hate relationship with AFB. It's an adventure! I'm happy to say I have several bags of AFB starters in my freezer. Yes - you can freeze the starter! I never knew this before and I can't tell you how it changed my life. To have a sourdough starter ready and waiting is brilliant! Should I ever run out, she even has a recipe to start it from scratch.
I have tried just a few of the hundreds of recipes on the site; you can make just about any baked good with this stuff! It's amazing!! But my love for chocolate and cherries is met in a most delicious way in Chocolate Chip Cherry AFB ! Click the recipe name to get the recipe! I made one regular sized loaf pan and split the remainder into mini loaf pans. My original thought was so that I could have a little something on hand to pull out of the freezer if I needed it. However, after devouring the regular sized loaf, I realized that the mini loaf is probably a better size. I can eat the whole thing and not feel too guilty! LOL!
Check out Darien's website by clicking the link above or on the "Inspiration" side bar!
If you had 4 bags of Amish Friendship Bread starter, what would you make and with whom would you share it, aka the bounty of your kitchen and the love & nurturing you've put into it?
Click here (if you're reading this in your e-mail) to go to the blog to leave a comment and share your thoughts with us!
Your Partner in Ministry,
Shelly
warrior
"Kind words are like honey - sweet to the soul and healthy for the body." Proverbs 16:24
2 comments:
Unfortunately, the Borrero house is where Amish or any other type of friendship bread starter goes to die. We can't remember which day we're on and many chefs mean that sometimes two people add the stuff needed. I don't think we even know what the bread tastes like.
I used to feel guilty about this. I don't anymore. If someone tries to give me starter, I try to refuse. I am candid with my reason, I hate to waste their resources. But some, I guess suffering from the exponential growth of starter, insist. Ahhh, oh well. I'll give it another whirl. As of this spring, I am still batting .1000. :) we all have gifts. This is not one of mine.
Corine :)
In all of that I heard 'you have many chefs', which makes me a little jealous :) Love your honesty and can totally relate - with those willing to give you a starter knowing it's fate! LOL! Not that I haven't tossed a few myself due to neglect. I usually make notes on the recipe page so I don't forget which day I'm on, but that doesn't always guarantee I'll remember. That's why I love that I can toss it in the freezer! Nothing like putting off til tomorrow what I don't want to do today :)
Next time I bake some bread from a starter, I'll give you a loaf, so you know what it tastes like! :)
I am very thankful for your gifts and am happy to share the baked bounty of my kitchen with you <3
Post a Comment