No metal with friendship bread?

[Angie]

Just curious, why can you NOT use metal with friendship bread or the starter? Everything says NO metal bowls or utensils. This drives me nuts because I end up with flour chunks in my bread!

[Michael in FtW]

Originally Posted by Angie

Just curious, why can you NOT use metal with friendship bread or the starter? Everything says NO metal bowls or utensils. This drives me nuts because I end up with flour chunks in my bread!

Not sure, Angie - but every recipe for a sourdough starter (which is what you are making) I have ever seen says to use glass, crockery or plastic and stir with a wooden or plastic spoon. Probably has something to do with the fermentation going on ... but I'm not sure why - and apparently is mainly a factor once the wet and dry components come together. Look at your recipe for the starter - it says to "sift" the dry ingredients, it also tells you how to mix the wet and dry to prevent the flour lumping on you.

To make your bread you might try this (this is one of the best sites I have found for reference for Amish Friendship bread and variations to the basic recipe):

Mix your starter and the other wet ingredients in one bowl, and sift and mix your dry ingredients in another bowl. Add the the dry ingredients to the wet a little at a time (in 4-5 installments) mixing well to incorporate after each addition. This should help get rid of your lumps problem.

[Angie]

Thank you! I'll try that next time around. The last time, I just strained my starter through a *gulp* metal strainer and then made the bread. It was nice and lumpless!

[desertland]

I think the metal kills the yeast somehow... (but don't have a source on that or any confirmation; that's just what I've heard) :-)

[Gretchen]

It has to do with acid. YOu can use the strainer. You can also use a whisk to get lumps out.

[Aurora]

Any bread dough that is acidic (sourdough, buttermilk, etc.) can react with metal utensils and metal mixing bowls. This is not a problem for mixing or sifting the ingredients, but when you leave the dough in the bowl for hours to rise you can get pitting of metal bowls or utensils and occasionally a metallic taste can be imparted to the bread dough. This no metal rule applies especially to the sourdough starter which is left for days in the container.

[Angie]

Thanks everyone for all your info!

[JMediger]

I've stored my starter in zippie bags but I do use my stand mixer when mixing to bake - never had any adverse reactions or bad tastes. However, I'm not leaving for any longer than just mixing then it goes into the pans. Now that I'm thinking about it though, I do bake them in the disposable tin (aluminum?) pans. I give it for gifts alot - part to just be rid of it and part because people like it - so the disposable pans work well for that reason.
Hmmm ... Do others bake theirs in glass pans?

[Angie]

Originally Posted by JMediger

I've stored my starter in zippie bags but I do use my stand mixer when mixing to bake - never had any adverse reactions or bad tastes. However, I'm not leaving for any longer than just mixing then it goes into the pans. Now that I'm thinking about it though, I do bake them in the disposable tin (aluminum?) pans. I give it for gifts alot - part to just be rid of it and part because people like it - so the disposable pans work well for that reason.
Hmmm ... Do others bake theirs in glass pans?

I've always used glass pans.

[JMediger]

Huh ... very interesting. Next time I get some starter I'll have to use glass and see if there is a difference.

[Angie]

I'm just a freak about it. I figured, I went to so much work to make this dang bread (I made the starter as well), I don't want to chance it.

I am thinking about trying it with butterscotch pudding instead of vanilla...I have to make some today..

[Gretchen]

You can mix, bake the cake in SS bowls and pans. You can't STORE the starter in metal.

[Angie]

Originally Posted by Gretchen

You can mix, bake the cake in SS bowls and pans. You can't STORE the starter in metal.

Perfect. I am storing mine in a Tupperware container.

[JMediger]

Originally Posted by Angie

... I am thinking about trying it with butterscotch pudding instead of vanilla...

Angie, my sister and I had a ton of fun with this over the span of about 4 months (yes, we were overflowing with bread!). We tried every possible pudding there was, adding other mix-in's as we went. We came up with some killer bread! I think the 2 fav's were using chocolate pudding with chocolate chips / walnuts (stay with vanilla extract) and using coconut cream pudding with shredded coconut and crushed pineapple (use coconut extract). Others we tried were lemon with poppy seed (lemon extract OR almond extract), orange with dried cranberries (orange extract), pistacio with chopped pistacio nuts - also very good (vanilla extract) and banana with walnuts (vanilla extract). We tried a ton that didn't work but it was fun experimenting!

I would love to try making the starter - care to share your recipe?
Thanks!

[Angie]

Did you put the cinnamon in with the chocolate?

Sounds FUN!

Here's the starter!
Amish Friendship Bread Starter

Ingredients:
1 pkg. active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (110°F)
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups white sugar
3 cups warm milk (110°F)
Directions:
Before beginning, please remember: Do not use metal utensils. Do not refrigerate. The starter takes 10 days to ferment.

Day 1:
In a small bowl, soften yeast in warm water for about 10 minutes. Stir well. In a 2 quart glass or ceramic container, combine 1 cup sifted flour and 1 cup sugar. Mix thoroughly or flour will lump when milk is added. Slowly stir in warm milk and dissolved yeast mixture. Cover tightly with lid or plastic wrap. The mixture will get bubbly. Consider this Day 1 of the cycle.

Day 2:
Stir with wooden or plastic spoon

Day 3:
Stir with wooden or plastic spoon

Day 4:
Stir with wooden or plastic spoon

Day 5:
Stir with wooden or plastic spoon. Add 1 cup sifted flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup warm milk; stir.

Day 6:
Stir with wooden or plastic spoon

Day 7:
Stir with wooden or plastic spoon

Day 8:
Stir with wooden or plastic spoon

Day 9:
Stir with wooden or plastic spoon

Day 10:
Stir with wooden or plastic spoon. Add 1 cup sifted flour, 1 cup sugar and 1 cup warm milk and stir. Remove 1 cup to make your first loaf of bread. Give 1 cup to a friend with this recipe and your favorite Friendship Bread recipe. Use the remaining cup to begin the 10 day process over again. You can freeze the remaining cup for later use. Frozen starter takes at least 3 hours at room temperature to thaw before use. Do not thaw starter in microwave.

[JMediger]

Angie,
Thanks for the recipe! The only difference in the days is that I store mine in a ziploc baggie so I don't need to stir - just squish it and let air out of the bag. I didn't know you could freeze it! That's awesome!
With the non-traditional breads, I leave the cinnamon out as well as the sugar for on top. The ones we made were more like dessert breads but were really good and typically gone in no time! We decided the only limitation was our imaginations (and flavors of puddings!). If you do the chocolate one, add about a cup of chips. We discovered you can actually have too much chocolate in this one! The center didn't set well in our first batch but when we realized that a whole bag of chips was the problem, we reduced it to one cup and it worked really well. They taste almost like brownies! Again - yum yum.
Let me know what combo's you come up with!
Enjoy (and thanks again!)

[Angie]

I'm drooling here.

I bought today (for pudding):

Butterscotch
Chocolate
French Vanilla
Lemon (and poppy seeds)
Oreo

Almost got banana creme but then thought...why? I have frozen bananas ready to mash and add!

Friday is bread day. I'll let you know. Thanks for the tip on the choc chips!

Oh, we might have to try the white chocolate as well....

[Heliosept1104]

I just baked Amish bread for the first time today, using a starter a friend gave me about 10 days ago. Instead of using a full cup of oil, I used 1/2 a cup of oil and 1/2 a cup of apple sauce. I used Vanilla pudding with 1 c. chopped Walnuts. It came out wonderfully!! I'm going to try the Oreo next time, so I'll let you know in about 10 days! A question on whether using a metal pan is ok or not for the oven portion. Would a glass container be better recommended? I used a metal pan this time around, and it came out ok, but I'm wondering now if it was just a lucky bake and I should use something else?

[suziquzie]

I've found the lumps kinda go away because they sit in liquid so long, they work themselves out on the 4 stirring days.
I always bake mine in glass, but I haven't tried metal so I can't tell you anything there.
I've never seen oreos... do you do that w/ chocolate pudding then? Sometimes I do chocolate pudding and mini choc chips.

[Heliosept1104]

The oreo is a pudding packet that I found at the market. It comes in the big box (4.2 oz.). Just 5 more days till I try it out. Thankfully I am actually finding people to give the extra starters to. I was going to be concerned that I would have to make a LOT of bread in the future!! lol.