A couple of weeks ago I posted about my
first experiment with Amish Friendship Bread. I was having a hard time deciding whether I wanted to make the classic recipe, use a recipe online, or come up with something new on my own. I ended up going with the last two options (partly because I thought my friends were making the "classic" and I would get a chance to try it, but turns out someone killed her bread through starvation and someone else didn't even get her starter kit, so I have yet to make or try the cinnamon sugar recipe which sounds really good).
The night I made the bread I decided to make
Orange Cranberry Bread which was a recipe I found online at the Friendship Bread Kitchen and Maple Pecan Biscotti which was something I came up with since I love maple and really wanted to try making biscotti.
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| Orange "Craisin" Friendship Bread |
I mostly followed their recipe at the Friendship Bread Kitchen, but I used a 6oz bag of Craisins since they were the only "cranberries" I found in the supermarket. That's a bad idea because they're sweetened with sugar and aren't tart. I love orange cranberry muffins and the orange bread/cake that I make, but this wasn't as good as those and I blame the Craisins. No one at work actually said that they enjoyed this, so I wouldn't call it quite a success. I think my birds & squirrels enjoyed the leftovers though!
Next I made my Maple Pecan Biscotti.
Recipe
- 1 Cup Amish Friendship Starter
- 3 Cups of Flour
- 1 Teaspoon of Baking Powder
- 1 Dash of Salt (perhaps 1/2 teaspoon)
- 1 Cup Pecans (finely chopped)
- 3/4 Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 1/2 Cup Butter (1 stick, salted)
- 1 Egg (large)
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 Teaspoon Maple Extract
- Cream the starter mix, sugar, and melted butter in a bowl. Mix in the egg and extracts.
- Combine the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl (except for the pecans).
- Mix small amounts of the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet mixture until all of it is in there.
- Fold in 3/4 cup of the pecans.
- Split the dough in half, creating two balls of dough.
- Roll each ball into a log about 10 inches long and flatten until it is about 3 inches wide.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
- Cool for 10 to 15 minutes and create 1/2" slices.
- Bake cut side down for another 15-20 minutes.
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| Step 5 |
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| Step 6 |
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| Final Product |
I topped the biscotti with a maple glaze and sprinkled them with the remaining pecans. The topping is maple glaze that I throw together for other goodies like donuts & muffins. I don't typically measure the ingredients, but it would be about 3 tablespoons of butter melted in a pan with 1-2 tablespoons of water, 1 cup of confectioners sugar, about a teaspoon of maple extract, and a generous splash of pure maple syrup all melted together, slightly cooled, and spooned on to the cooled biscotti.
I thought the biscotti was delicious and it received many compliments from my coworkers so I think this one is a success :) Now that I've made biscotti I need to come up with a recipe that doesn't include the Amish start mix (for simplicity & ease of making it whenever I feel it).
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| Just needs a cup of tea :-) |
