Today is break making day! Every 10 days, I bake bread. I've been doing the Amish Friendship Bread ritual for the past few months. I don't really know the origins of this ritual and if it actually came from the Amish community - you can google it if you really want to know. Either way, the bread tastes yummy. It starts off with a small batch of "goo" that someone passes along to you (mine came from my mom as she has done this off and on for years). You then have a 10-day cycle of stirring and adding ingredients (it's really quite easy). Then on the 10th day, you divide your batter and have another goo starter for yourself and you're supposed to be able to pass along 3 goo starters to friends and then still have enough goo to make some bread for yourself that day.
I don't really like the idea of having to find 3 new friends every 10 days that want to take some goo off my hands. So, I've tweaked the recipe a bit so that I have a starter for myself to begin the cycle again, but then I make a double batch of bread (4 loaves) and I don't have to hand out any goo to anyone! (Although if you're local and would like some goo, along with the recipe, I'm happy to pass some along to you on my next bread making day). The bread freezes really well and I always try to pass at least 1 loaf onto someone each cycle. I figure people would much rather have some baked bread than some goo.
Like I've said before, I like to experiment in the kitchen. I've done several different variations. My favorites are pumpkin, banana, and the regular variations. Plus, I've tweaked the recipe in attempts to make it a little healthier. I don't add nearly as much sugar and I substitute unsweetened applesauce for 1/2 of the vegetable oil. I feel the batter is pretty forgiving for the msot part. I like that it makes me have some baked goods available on hand in case I need something quickly.
Mmmm....if only I could share a smell with you over the internet.
