A delicious Amish Friendship Bread recipe covered in a cinnamon sugar mix. The starter recipe is included so you can share with friends!
We love breakfast breads! Our Sour Cream Banana Bread recipe gets amazing reviews. It’s so moist and flavorful. Or try this Copycat Starbucks Lemon Loaf for a burst of citrus flavor!
What is Amish Friendship Bread
Have you ever shared a bread starter with a friend?
This Amish Bread recipe is based on a tradition of passing a bread starter (a living yeast mix that provides the leavening) from person to person.
That’s how it gets the name “Friendship Bread“. You make a batch of delicious Amish bread then pass the starter along to the next one in line.
I’ve been baking versions of this Friendship Bread for as long as I can remember. It very well may have been the first homemade bread I ever baked!
Eaten fresh from the oven or toasted and slathered with butter, a slice of Friendship Bread tastes like love.
I didn’t even tell you about my favorite part of Amish Friendship Bread yet: the cinnamon crust.
The crust is a thick, crunchy cinnamon sugar coating, especially if you generously coat it before baking like I do.
If you’re intimidated about making your own bread starter, don’t be: it’s super easy! With this bread, you can mix up the starter batter and use it in the bread right away or set it aside for later.
FAVORITE BREADS: Snickerdoodle Banana Bread | Zucchini Bread
How to Make Friendship Bread Starter
To do this, mix yeast with 1/2 cup hot water until yeast is dissolved. Add 1 1/2 cup hot water, 1 cup milk, 1 cup flour and 1 cup sugar. Mix until blended. Use whisk if needed.
You now have enough batter for 4 portions.
Transfer 1 cup sized portions of the batter to THREE individual gallon size freezer bags and set aside.
With the fourth remaining starter batch, prepare the Amish bread.
PRO TIP: Don’t want to give away the starters? Each of the 1 cup portions can be used immediately, and the result will be 8 loaves of bread total (perfect for freezing).
Ingredients Needed
Add these ingredients to the bowl with your starter for bread and mix to combine:
- Eggs
- Milk
- Oil
- Flour
- Baking soda and baking powder
- Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
You’ll have a thick and lumpy batter.
Bake the Friendship Bread
Combine sugar and cinnamon to make the topping.
Grease two loaf pans generously, After greasing the pan, sprinkle with a cinnamon-sugar mix.
Divide batter between two pans then generously top each battered pan with remaining cinnamon sugar mix.
This is what provides a nice crunchy cinnamon layer on the bread so be generous here!
Bake in a 325 degree oven for about one hour. Cool about ten minutes in pan, then remove to cooling racks. Delicious served hot or cold (with butter of course)! Enjoy.
How to Use Starter for Bread
You know those three ziplog baggies full of good starter for bread you have leftover? You’re going to use them indefinitely to keep making more and more bread!
Follow these directions yourself OR write the directions on a note card to deliver with the bag of starter you give to a friend.
Aimee’s Tip
Be sure to write these directions ON the ziploc bag.
- DAY 1: This is the day you make starter or receive bag! Do nothing.
- DAY 2- Day 5: Mush the bag with your hands to keep the yeast moving.
- DAY 6: Add more flour, sugar and milk to the bag.
- DAY 7- DAY 9: Mush bag daily again!
- DAY 10: Bread baking day!
Pour contents of bag in large bowl, add 1 1/2 cup each of flour, sugar and milk. Measure out 1 cup into 3 ziploc bags like you did the first time you made the starter; the cycle keeps repeating.
With remaining batter follow instructions above for making bread. ENJOY!
Storage
This is one of my favorite loafs of bread to freeze! I’ll often make multiple loaves at once so we always have some stocked in the freezer.
When eaten fresh, this bread is best within a day or two. Leftovers are also amazing toasted (in the oven or toaster) or used in Berry French Toast Casserole.
More Breakfast Recipes
- Beer Bread
- Apple Banana Carrot Bread
- Apple Cider Donuts
- Apple Cinnamon Bread
- Cranberry Orange Bread
- Orange Bread
Favorite Bread Recipes
See all Breads recipes
Amish Friendship Bread
Ingredients
For the Starter:
- 1 envelope active dry yeast
- 2 cups warm water
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup whole milk
For the Bread:
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- ⅔ cup whole milk
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 large or two small instant vanilla pudding boxes (not sugar free)
For the topping
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons cinnamon
Instructions
For the Starter:
- To prepare the starter batch, mix yeast with 1/2 cup hot water until yeast is dissolved. Add 1 1/2 cup hot water, 1 cup milk, 1 cup flour and 1 cup sugar. Mix until blended. Use whisk if needed. You now have enough batter for 4 portions.
- In three ziploc gallon sized freezer bags, add 1 cup of batter to each bag. These can be given away or used immediately.
- In your bowl will be a remaining one cup of batter. You can use this immediately following the directions below.
For the Bread:
- Okay, with your 1 cup of batter, add remaining ingredients (except the topping ingredients). Mix. Will be slightly lumpy, that’s okay.
- In two loaf pans, grease generously. I like to grease my pans, lay parchment paper on just the bottom of the pan, then grease again!
- After greasing the pan, sprinkle with a cinnamon-sugar mix. Divide batter between two pans then generously top each battered pan with remaining cinnamon sugar mix. This is what provides a nice crunchy cinnamon layer on the bread, very important!
- Bake in a 325 degree oven for about one hour. Cool about ten minutes in pan, then remove to cooling racks. Delicious served hot or cold (with butter of course)! Enjoy.
- For the remaining 3 bags of batter, follow the instructions in the notes below: (I usually write these on the bag with sharpie)
Notes
Nutrition
Whether you share your bread starter with friends or keep it all to yourself, this Amish Bread recipe is so much fun.
I am curious about this and want to make it, but I have never baked using starters. Do the bags of starter stay in or out of the refrigerator. Thanks, this looks good and I want to make it.
Denise
You can leave the bags of starter on your counter! Enjoy!
Thank you. I am definitely going to try this! Denise
It’s very delicious! ENJOY!
You can also make the starter in a bowl. Keep it covered loosely and on the counter, stirring in place of mushing.
Made this bread today and like MrsSmith posted…my bread fell in the middle where the cinnamon sugar was…..only to sink to the inside and it didnt cook all the way through. Which I didnt know until I cut into the bread. But the outter part yummy. Any thoughts?
Not sure why it would sink. Unless measurements were somehow mistaken or your oven temperature may be off? Sorry!
Sound to me like u may have used a different sized pan without adjusting the time and temp for baking
The altitude DOES make a difference. I live at 6240 AMSL and add about 1 T. flour and reduce the liquid for every cup of flour. Perhaps this is why the bread fell in the middle. Bread pan size can make a difference as well, but you can adjust for that.
Yum love this bread, but am from New Zealand and our yeast doesnt come in envelope size? what would the quantity of one of the be please?
thanks =]
We always measure about 2 1/4 tsp. to 2 1/2 tsp. per envelope. Hope this helps.
I love making these. I actually make them in small individual size loaf pans and mix them up. Some get white chocolate chips, some milk chocolate, some rasins, some a crazy mixture of everything. They freeze really well to, and make a great item to add to a packed lunch.
So this is basically a recipe from an Amish Friendship Bread Starter. (Which is not really Amish at all) It is really a good one. One that I have not had in a long time. Thank you for the reminder!!
My bread completely fell in the middle (and I mean like the Grand Canyon). We live in Colorado, so the altitude does affect some baked goods, but I’ve never had anything fall this badly. I was wondering if maybe putting all of the 1 c. sugar and 2 T. cinnamon split between the top of the two loaves was too heavy and made them fall, because quite a bit of the topping did not sink in and was just sitting on top of the crust after baking. Any ideas? When you say “generously top” them, do you split the entire 1 c. and 2 T. between the loaves, or do you have some left in the bowl afterwards?
(It was still very tasty, even if it wasn’t very pretty!)
The topping does create a crust around the entire bread. I’m not sure why it sank in though…I always use the entire amount on both loaves. I do use some of the topping to coat the inside of the greased pans as well. Glad it tasted good, sorry I can’t be of more help!
I make this all the time, but for the starter I just put 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup milk. Also, I put crushed pecans on top with the cinnamon and sugar and it is delicious!
@anonymous- YES! It is supposed to be very runny. You’re doing just fine…
My starter seems very runny…is it supposed to be? Please say it is 🙂
@linzy…exactly!!!
So technically if you werent going to give any away couldn’t you make loaves with all of the other “starter” bags on the day you made them? You don’t have to feed that last 1 cup that is left you can just make the bread right away??
Hi! Just stopping by to let you know that your recipe was #2 on Sweet Indulgences Sunday last week. Hope you’ll stop by and share another recipe this week.
Looks yummy, especially with the vanilla pudding thrown in. Thanks for sharing on Sweet Indulgences Sunday.
This is a really interesting recipe. I’ve never seen anything like it. I love the color of the bread, and cinnamon with apples – you can’t go wrong with that!
I was just talking to my family about this bread starter last month. Now I have a recipe to share with them! Thanks!!
I love this bread! We always called it Amish Friendship bread, as you make friends when you give it away… err, I guess when you keep the other starters for yourself and give the recipe away?? Either way, thanks!
I am soooo excited to find this recipe for the starter!!! This is one of my favorite kinds of bread and I was just craving it something mad- now I have you to thank. 🙂
Found you over at Sweet Peas and Bumblebees link up and so glad I did! Newest follower.
-Robyn from http://tipsfromtheheart.blogspot.com
yum! this reminds me of going to the amish market when i was little!
I’ve had Amish bread but never with a cinnamon/sugar crust. I can’t wait to try this…thanks 🙂 Don’t worry, I keep my starters too!
You are pure evil you know? 🙂 This is one of our favorite breads in our house. (I never give the starters away either…gotta love the freezer option:-) But I have never googled the actual start method because this bread is so addicting!!! And then you go and post how to make a start! Curse you!!!
You know I still love ya right? 🙂