Herman Brood (Friendship Bread)

During this weird time, I, amongst many others, started baking and discovered how easy it is to make a 'levain', or sourdough starter. It reminded me of when i was a child and received 'herman' from a friend. and a couple of years after me, my brothers also both received herman from a friend. i remember how much fun we had taking care of him, feeding him, stirring him and eventually, eating him! plus sharing him with friends. and i thought to myself, what a wonderful time to bring this joyful experience to my friends!

Herman A KIND OF BREAD/CAKE BASED ON A SOURDOUGH STARTER THAT IS BEING PASSED ON TO FRIENDS like a CHAIN LETTER. AFTER YOU GET IT FROM A FRIEND IT TAKES 10 DAYS BEFORE YOU BAKE IT, AND ON DAY 9 YOU PASS PARTS OF THE DOUGH ON TO 3 OF YOUR FRIENDS.

in english it's known as 'amish friendship bread', although it's not clear how it got this name, because it doesn't seem to have any connection to the amish culture. what we do know is that the recipe is at least decades old. in europe it was especially popular during the eighties and nineties. 

below you'll find the full recipe. at the bottom i'll describe how you can start herman yourself, if it's not yet circulating amongst your friends. plus you'll find a link to a pdf version of this recipe (in english and dutch), so it's easy to print and hand-out to you're friends once you share herman with them.

TOOLS BIG BOWL DISHCLOTH WOODEN SPOON WHISK (AND KITCHEN AID) LOAF PAN OR DUTCH TULBAND INGREDIENTS 1 CUP MILK 1 CUP FLOUR 1 CUP BROWN SUGAR   1 CUP MILK 1 CUP FLOUR 3/4 CUP SUGAR 1 TBSP OLIVE OIL 3 EGGS 2 CUPS FLOUR 1/2 CUP SUGAR 2 TSP BAKING POWDER PINCH OF SALT BUTTER TO GREASE THE PAN + CHOICE OF: 2 TSP GROUND CINNAMON 1 CUP SOAKED RAISINS 1 CUP CHOPPED WALNUTS OR HAZELNUTS 2 APPLES IN SMALL SQUARES (OR ANY OTHER SEASONAL FRUIT YOU LIKE) INGREDIENTS 1 1/2 CUP FLOUR 1/2 CUP SUGAR 1 CUP WARM WATER 2 TSP INSTANT DRY YEAST

‘HERMAN’ BREAD (DUTCH: BROOD)           CONGRATULATIONS ON RECEIVING HERMAN! ‘HERMAN BROOD’ IS NOT ONLY A FAMOUS DUTCH ROCK’N’ROLL ARTIST (CHECK OUT HIS MOST FAMOUS SONG ‘SATURDAY NIGHT!), IT’S ALSO THE DUTCH NAME FOR AMISH FRIENDSHIP BREAD. IT’S A KIND OF BREAD/CAKE BASED ON A SOURDOUGH STARTER THAT IS BEING PASSED ON TO FRIENDS AS A KIND OF CHAIN LETTER. AFTER YOU GET IT FROM A FRIEND IT TAKES 10 DAYS BEFORE YOU BAKE IT, AND ON DAY 9 YOU PASS PARTS OF THE DOUGH ON TO 3 OF YOUR FRIENDS. DAY 1 TODAY YOU GOT ‘HERMAN’. PUT HIM IN A BOWL AND COVER WITH A DISHCLOTH. HE’LL GROW, SO USE A BOWL THAT’S BIG ENOUGH. PUT HIM ON A SPOT WHERE IT’S WARM, BUT NOT TOO HOT. AND THAT’S IT FOR TODAY, GIVE HIM SOME TIME TO GET USED TO THIS NEW SITUATION! DAY 2 & 3 STIR HERMAN WELL A FEW TIMES A DAY WITH A WOODEN SPOON. DAY 4 HERMAN IS HUNGRY! FEED HIM ALL THE INGREDIENTS ON THE LEFT, STARTING WITH SLOWLY ADDING THE MILK WHILE WHISKING. ONCE THE MILK IS INCORPORATED, SLOWLY START ADDING THE FLOUR AND BROWN SUGAR, ALL WHILE WHISKING, SO YOU DON’T GET ANY LUMPS. DAY 5 - 8 STIR HERMAN WELL A FEW TIMES A DAY WITH A WOODEN SPOON. DAY 9 HERMAN IS HUNGRY AGAIN! FEED HIM THE SAME WAY AS YOU DID ON DAY 4, EXCEPT NOW WITH 3/4 CUP OF SUGAR. AFTER YOU FED HIM, DEVIDE HIM INTO 4 EQUAL PORTIONS, ONE OF WHICH YOU GET TO KEEP FOR YOURSELF. THE OTHER THREE YOU GIVE AWAY TO A FRIEND, TOGETHER WITH THIS RECIPE. PUT HIM IN A CONTAINER THAT’S BIG ENOUGH, BECAUSE HE GROWS QUICKLY. DAY 10 HERMAN IS READY FOR BAKING. PREHEAT THE OVEN TO 300°F. FEED HIM ONE LAST TIME WITH THE INGREDIENTS ON THE LEFT, STARTING WITH SLOWLY WHICKING IN THE ‘FLUIDS’ (OLIVE OIL AND EGGS), AND THEN SLOWLY ADD THE REST. THIS TIME, YOU CAN USE A KITCHEN AID, BUT BE SURE TO USE THE FLAT MIXER. AS AN EXTRA YOU CAN ADD ANY OF THE ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS, OR ALL OF THEM. APPLE IS ALMOST ALWAYS IN SEASON IN THE NETHERLANDS, SO THAT WOULD BE MY CHOICE, ALWAYS, ALONG WITH NUTS AND RAISINS J POUR HERMAN INTO YOUR GREASED PAN, THIS CAN BE A LOAF PAN, OR A TRADITIONAL DUTCH TULBAND (ROUND WITH A HOLE IN THE MIDDLE), AND PUT HIM IN THE OVEN FOR AT LEAST 1,5 HOUR ON 300°F. ENJOY YOUR HERMAN AND DON’T FORGET TO PASS HIM ON! ONCE BAKED YOU CAN KEEP HERMAN OUTSIDE THE FRIDGE FOR A COUPLE DAYS, COVERED IN A DISHCLOTH OR PAPER BAG, OR YOU CAN PUT HIM IN THE FREEZER IN SMALLER PIECES AND TAKE HIM OUT WHEN YOU GET VISITORS FOR BREAKFAST, LUNCH, TEATIME, ANYTIME! ALTERNATIVE DAY 1 IF YOU KNOW THAT HERMAN ISN’T CIRCULATING NEAR YOU AND YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE IT AMONG YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY, HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN DO: METHOD -               DISSOLVE THE SUGAR IN HALF OF THE WATER (1/2 CUP WARM WATER) -               ADD THE YEAST AND LEAVE IT FOR ABOUT 10 MINUTES -               WHISK IN THE REST OF THE WATER (1/2 CUP WARM WATER) -               SLOWLY WHISK IN THE FLOUR, SO THERE ARE NO LUMPS -               COVER WITH TABLECLOTH UNTIL THE NEXT DAY THE NEXT DAY WOULD BE DAY 2 IN THE RECIPE ABOVE.

MEET HERMAN, DAY 1

USING THE FLAT MIXER, DAY 10

HERMAN IS DONE!

Download for English version HERE.

Download for Dutch version HIER.