DAY ONE
2 c Flour 1 pk Active dry yeast
2 c Warm water
DAY FIVE
1 c Milk 1 c Sugar
1 c Flour
DAY NINE
1 c Milk 1 c Sugar
1 c Flour
DAY ONE: In a glass or ceramic bowl, mix 2 cups flour, warm water and
yeast together thoroughly. Leave on the kitchen counter uncovered;
don’t refrigerate it. (You may have received 1 cup of the starter
from a friend. If so, and you wish to keep the starter going,
continue with the following directions.
DAYS 2, 3 and 4: Stir well with wooden spoon.
DAY FIVE: Stir and add 1 cup milk, 1 cup flour and 1 cup sugar. This
is called “feeding the starter”.
DAYS 6, 7 and 8: Stir well with wooden spoon.
DAY NINE: Stir and add 1 cup milk, 1 cup flour and 1 cup sugar; stir
well.
DAYS 10 and 11: Stir well with wooden spoon.
DAY TWELVE: Ladle 1 cup starter into each of 4 containers and
refrigerate. Use one cup to make one of the Friendship bread or cake
recipes, keep one to use another time, and give two others to your
friends. Don’t forget to include all the recipes (including this one)
when giving the starter to friends.
You are ready to begin baking—at last! If you do not bake on this
day, but want to have the starter handy, add 1 teaspoon granulated
sugar and refrigerate the mixture; the sugar will feed the yeast and
keep it alive. Date the jars and every 10 days remove the starter
from the refrigerator, transfer it to a bowl and feed it the usual
combination of 1 cup each of milk, flour, and sugar. Leave it
outside the refrigerator uncovered for 2 days, then either bake it or
divide it among friends, and always save some for yourself. (The
starter can be discarded, or it can be divided and frozen; thaw
before using.)
Note: if the starter turns pink, throw it out and start over. Also,
use the same kind of flour and milk when adding the ingredients to
the starter.
Yields
4 servings