How to Make Amish Friendship Bread

Make a starter then make a loaf of delicious cinnamon bread. We've detailed everything you need to know to kick off this fun tradition—from a simple starter mix to the first, fresh-from-the-oven slice. Amish friendship bread is a quick bread made with a sweet, sourdough starter. It’s a ten-day process, but it’s so easy (lots of squishing, waiting, mixing in ingredients and more waiting). On the 10th day, bake two delicious loaves of cinnamon-scented bread for you and a new friend, and share the leftover starter with other friends! 

Check out the recipe for instructions on how to get started. Begin by mixing the ingredients together to make a smooth batter.

Spray two large loaf pans with nonstick baking spray (the kind with flour in the mix). If you can't find baking spray, generously butter and flour the pan instead. The more the merrier when it comes to greasing a pan so that the bread won't stick!

This is where the bread takes a turn for the delicious! Traditional Amish Friendship bread is a loaf of cinnamoney goodness. But we amped things up with an extra cinnamon swirl. (It’s so beautiful to slice into!) To give your loaves a final flair, scoop about 1/3 of the batter into a medium bowl, add cinnamon (lots and lots of cinnamon), then whisk until the batter changes to a deep, brown color.

Now place little dollops of the cinnamon batter into the bowl with the remaining batter and use a fork or knife to gently swirl together, but just a little!

You want to keep those nice, big swirls intact by not overmixing.

Now pour the batter into your two, prepared loaf pans…

And get ready to bake in a hot oven. The loaves will need about an hour to bake—the perfect amount of time to clean the kitchen.

Once your loaves are out of the oven and cooled, wrap them up with a note and share with a new friend.

They'll be so glad you did, and you will too!

Don't forget to give your bread with a bag of friendship bread starter to keep the fun going for everyone, all year long. (Be sure to give it a good sniff before using again— it should have a pleasant sour smell and be bubbly. Discard it if it smells bad, turns reddish or orange in color, or grows mold.)