Pumpkin Cranberry Amish Friendship Bread

After a summer of not making any friendship bread, I was ready to pull a starter out of the freezer and start the process again. I wanted to try something different with it, so I experimented with some items I had on hand; pumpkin, cranberry, and walnuts. The bonus to this recipe is that it uses half the oil of the original cinnamon bread recipe. It is still moist and delicious.



Friendship bread can be a bit overwhelming if you follow the directions and make it every 10 days. I've been managing the starter by only feeding it half, and I don't exactly follow the five and ten day feeding schedule. I feed it when I think of it really. At the second feeding I take out one cup of starter for the freezer, and make a huge batch of bread.

This recipe is for a normal starter size, but when I made it, I made a triple batch. I made loaves, mini loaves and muffins. I kept out one loaf and the muffins. Everything else was frozen for later use. Handling the starter this way keeps the amounts manageable, and lets me enjoy the bread instead of feeling overwhelmed by it.

Another variation: Chocolate Banana Amish Friendship Bread