Lucky, lucky me! My snack for this evening, perfect with a cuppa – Apple and Cinnamon German friendship cake
I have been pleasantly surprised at how much interest I have had on my blog today. I am not sure if it is because people have extra time as it is a long weekend; that they don’t want to go outside as the weather has turned rather cold or that my readers are genuinely interested in Herman the German friendship cake.
I am hoping that the reason why I have had so many hits is that Herman is a topic of much interest as I am going to post about him again today. I was so excited when I received Herman that I decided to keep my starter going rather than baking a cake with one cut of the mix and giving the other three parts away when I reached day 10 of looking after him. This is because I love experimenting with baking and what a perfect opportunity to try new things than with a live starter. I am aware that not all of you will have access to a starter that is already bubbling so thought I’d do a bit of wandering round the internet to find out how to make a starter from scratch. There were a number of different methods and not having tried any of them myself I do feel reluctant to post a recipe but the following from www.hermanthegermanfriendshipcake.com seems quite easy:
The Herman Starter Mix
If you have never been given a starter mix for a friendship cake, it is very easy to make. This way you can start your own Herman and get sharing right away. Here’s how:
Ingredients:
- 5oz plain flour
- 8oz castor sugar
- 1 packet of active dry yeast
- Half a pint of warm milk
- 2 fl oz lukewarm water
What to do:
- Dissolve the yeast in warm water for 10 minutes and stir.
- Add the flour and sugar then mix thoroughly.
- Slowly stir in the warm milk.
- Cover the bowl with a clean cloth.
- Leave in a cool dry place for 24 hours
- Now proceed from day one of the 10 day cycle.
I hope this helps some of you if you are desperate to try a Herman friendship cake but don’t have access to a starter. Like I have said before I am very happy if there are any of you locally that want a cut of my Herman.
Really hope that you have had a super day. We have had a lovely day, although it was quite cold here we decided to go for a walk. We just walked out from our house and kept going to see where we would end up. We found a field with a horse and two donkeys in which the kids were absolutely thrilled about.
Isabella and the donkeys
William feeding the baby donkey
Happy Easter and happy baking.
For now,
Catherine
For Bella and Will 
Hi, can you tell me what is 1 packet of active yeast equal to?
Thank you, I look forward to hear from you.
Herlis
Hi Herlis, one packet of active yeast is 7g, you can buy it from most supermarkets. It is the sort that doesn’t need to be dissolved in water but can be added straight to the dry ingredients.
I hope you manage to find some 🙂
Hi I am about to make my first Herman. He is in the oven and smells delicious. Thanks to whoever invented it. I will let you know how mine comes out. Elaine
Hi Elaine,
How did your cake turn out? Hope it is super tasty, what flavour did you make?
Will you keep a portion to make some more?
Catherine
Hi Catherine my cake was absolutely gorgeous. Yes I have kept a portion to make another one. I made a fruit one, dont know how to make any others flavours yet, may have a go though Elaine
So glad to hear that you liked your Herman cake, also very exciting that you have kept a portion to keep trying other flavours. Have a look at my idea for a Half-Herman or Mini-Herman if you are thinking of keeping some as this will mean that you have less mixture at the end to pass on to friends https://bellaandwill.wordpress.com/2012/05/28/half-herman-or-mini-herman/