Week 11 - Day 5

*"He who loves purity of heart, and whose speech is gracious,

will have the king as his friend."  (Proverbs 22:11)

Students, gather your supplies and ingredients to make Amish Friendship Bread Starter.

(If you are not a student of Healthy Home Ec,

but have been given a starter bag to make Amish Friendship Bread,

scroll down to where it reads

"Making Amish Friendship Bread" - Page 156.)

Follow steps 1 and 2 in the procedure of your Healthy Home Ec book on page 155.

Bring the milk up to the desired temperature before adding to the flour mixture.

Once all the ingredients are mixed together, transfer the mixture to the gallon-sized

zippered storage bag.  This is considered "Day 1" of this recipe.

Follow the directions for step 5 on page 155.

Make sure you make a reminder for each day to mix the ingredients in the bag

and for days 5 and 10 when you add ingredients to the bag (see page 156).
{Note:  the yeast will produce a gas that causes the bag to expand.
Each day when you mix the ingredients together,
you can open a small section of the bag to allow the gas to escape.
Re-seal the bag each time.}

On Day 5, add the sugar, flour, and milk as directed.
(See Day 5, page 156 in the Healthy Home Ec book.)

Squish the bag to mix.

If the flour remains lumpy,
mix together in the bag using a whisk
until mixture is smooth and creamy.
Re-seal the bag.

Continue with days 6-10 as directed.

"Making Amish Friendship Bread" - Page 156


If you have been given a starter bag to make Amish Friendship Bread,
welcome to this blog.
The person who gave you the starter bag
is a student of this Healthy Home Ec curriculum
and considers you their friend.

If you are a student of Healthy Home Ec,
continue with page 156.

Once you get to Day 10,
here is what the procedure will look like:

Add the ingredients to the bag
that are listed for Day 10.

Squish the bag to mix the ingredients.
Then transfer the mixture from the bag to a large bowl.

Thoroughly mix again.

Have 3 separate Zip-Lock bags ready.
Measure 1 cup of the mixture into each of the 3 bags.

After removing the 3 cups of batter from the bowl,
combine the mixture that's left in your bowl
with the ingredients listed on your paper
(page 156).

Mix together.

Grease the loaf pans
and sprinkle with sugar.

Pour the batter into 2 prepared loaf pans.

Bake as directed.

The finished product:

Keep one loaf for yourself,
and share the other with a friend.

Let cool for 10 minutes, then turn the bread out onto a serving dish.

Turn right-side-up.

Slice the bread and enjoy!

Give the remaining 3 bags of Amish Friendship Bread Starter
to 3 of your friends,
along with a copy of page 156.

"A friend loves at all times..."
(Proverbs 17:17)

"Greater love has no one than this,
that someone lay down his life for his friends.
You are my friends if you do what I command you.
...I have called you friends,
for all that I have heard from my Father
I have made known to you."  ~Jesus
(John 15:13-15)

How amazing to think that Jesus Christ,
the Son of the Living God and King of the Universe,
loves us unconditionally and wants to be our friend.
He died to pay for our sins, so that instead of receiving what we deserve,
which is eternal death and suffering,
we can have an inheritance which is eternal life and a life of glory.
He has made known to us
all of His plans for us and for this world
in His Word, the Bible.
If we repent of our sins, and turn to Him,
asking Him to make us His child and His friend,
we will have the promise of eternal life and friendship with Him forever.

Consider getting to know Him.

Week 11 - Day 4

*There are hundreds of different types of cheese.

The yellowish color of many cheeses is the result of adding annatto.

What is annatto?

Find out in the Healthy Home Ec book on page 153.

Today's recipe of Creamy Deluxe Baked Macaroni and Cheese

should be used with all natural cheese that is not processed

or does not contain preservatives.

Gather your supplies and ingredients.

 (The organic milk does not have to be whole milk.

In fact, I rarely use whole milk.

That's just what was on sale this week.)

Cook the macaroni according to package directions.

I found a multi-grain product that I wanted to try

that had all the same ingredients as regular macaroni,

but added a grain and legume flour mix containing lentils, chickpeas (or garbanzo beans),

flaxseed, barley, oats, and spelt.

This added to the protein content, as well as increased fiber and omega-3.

Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.

Butter the baking dish to prevent the pasta from sticking.

Add the remaining ingredients to a bowl and mix to combine.

Read the Healthy Home Ec book to know the correct measurements.

Only use "light" products if they don't contain preservatives.

Read the labels!

Shredding your own cheese is a better option.

Pre-shredded bagged cheese contains silicone dioxide 

(to keep cheese shreds from sticking together in the bag)

and also costs more than buying in bulk and shredding it yourself.

You can use a food processor or a manual shredder.

Drain the pasta once cooked, and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.

Allow all the water to drain off.

Add the cheese to the creamed mixture.

Stir to combine thoroughly.

(Go Blue!)  :)

Actually, this would make a great dish to serve at a sports party

as it serves 8-10 people, is easy and quick to make, and is enjoyed by almost everyone.

Who is your favorite team?

Add the pasta and stir to blend.

Add the pasta mixture to the greased baking dish

and baked as directed in the Healthy Home Ec book.

(I topped mine with a little extra freshly ground black pepper and Hungarian Paprika before baking,

but you could also add it after it bakes.)

The finished product: 

Serve hot and bubbly.

"Train yourself in godliness; for while bodily training is of some value,

godliness is of value in every way,

as it holds promise for the present life

and also for the life to come."

(1 Timothy 4:7-8)