Herman Sourdough

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Herman or Friendship Bread sourdough starter and recipes

Herman Sourdough - Herman’s Chocolate Cake

Tuesday, August 4th, 2009

Remember my mother’s sourdough starter, Herman?

It’s been a while since I’ve posted any recipes for him.

Go here to see his starter recipes and some history.

Herman’s Chocolate Cake

1/3 C Crisco
1 C sugar
1 egg, unbeaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 C Herman
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 Tbl cocoa
1 C warm water

Method:

Mix Herman, water, and baking soda in a bowl. In another bowl, cream Crisco and sugar. Add egg and beat until creamy. Add vanilla. Pour in Herman mixture. Beat until smooth. Pour in a floured and greased 9×13″ pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until center springs back when touched. When cool, frost with Soft Chocolate Frosting, below.

Soft Chocolate Frosting

1 C sugar
3 Tbl cocoa
4 Tbl
3 Tbl cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
1 C boiling water
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbl butter
Shredded coconut

Method:

Sift sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, and salt into saucepan. Gradually stir in boiling water. Stir over high heat, stirring all the time, until icing thickens. Remove from heat, add vanilla and butter and stir well. When still slightly warm, spread on cake. Cover with shredded coconut if desired.

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Herman’s Helpmates: A Herman History lesson and Recipe

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

Herman sourdough starter and recipes

It’s Tuesday again! Know what that mean? It’s time for another installment of my mother’s charming booklet called Herman’s Helpmates! Read on for a history lesson, a recipe for “Overnight Herman” (a quicker growing starter than the one in my previous post), and a recipe for
Spice Herman Cake.

Click here to see past posts on the wonderful sourdough starter and recipes called Herman!

In my mother’s words:

As I searched out recipes suited to Herman, I came across bits and pieces from his past. Sourdough starter (hereby known as Herman) was originally a pioneer method of leavening bread. After commercial yeast was invened, Herman began to disappear in the mainland states. Miners, headed for the gold fields in Alaska, however, kept Herman alive because he worked so well for them while they were isolated on their claims. They ate so many baked products leavened with Herman that the prospector, himself, was called a Sourdough. One old Sourdough warns: If Herman turns orange, he is not spoiled; but if he turns green, he must be discarded. While there are many variations of sourdough starter, there is only one Herman. He is a slightly sweeter version of some of the others I’ve come across.

Overnight Herman:

This is just one of the many variations I mentioned and I use it when I “just can’t wait” the 5-10 days it takes Herman to grow. He is Herman’s poor relation. (He’s not as rich as Herman because he has no sugar and he’s fed water instead of milk.) He can be interchanged with Herman in any of the recipes as long as you remember to adjust the sugar.

To START Overnight Herman: This step is only done once.

Mix: 2 C flour, 1 pkg yeast, and 2 C warm water. Place in a warm place overnight.
In the morning put 1/2 C in a scalded pint jar with a tight cover and refrigerate for future use. The rest is to use in your favorite recipe.

To USE Overnight Herman:

Always “set the sponge” for Overnight Herman the night before by placing 1/2 C Overnight Herman starter in a medium size bowl.
Add 2 C flour and 2 C warm water. Beat well and set in a warm place to develop overnight.
In the morning, Overnight Herman will have gained half again his blulk and be covered with air bubbles. He will have a pleasant yeasty odor.
Don’t forget to put away 1/2 C for next time, if desired.

Spice Cake Herman:

1/2 C lard
1 C sugar
2 C Herman
1/2 C chopped nuts
1/2 C chopped raisins
2 C flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Method:

Cream lard, add sugar and cream well together. Add Herman and sifted dry ingredients. Add nuts and/or raisins.
Pour into greased cake pan and sprinkle with sugar.
Bake at 350 for 35 minutes or until done.

Tell me how your Herman baked goods are! I’d love to hear from you!

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All about Herman Part 2 - and a Recipe

Tuesday, June 16th, 2009

Welcome to my weekly post on Herman - a fun and delicious sourdough starter my mother used to keep when I was a child.

Here, I introduced Herman; and here, I posted an excerpt from my mother’s booklet and gave his starter recipe.

Here is a quote from “Herman’s Helpmates” regarding storing Herman.

Herman can be frozen if you tire of him and don’t want to kill him off. Just remeber to remove him from the freezer and let him rest for 24 hours before feeding him. (After all, being frozen is quite a traumatic experience.) You can also “dry Herman out” to keep him inactive. (Do you suppose this would work with kids?) Simply add enought flour to shape him into a ball, then place him into a bag of flour. He will go into a spore stage which will keep him intert for a long time. (Tell me, now, just how active would you be all rolle up in a bag of flour?) Water and warmth will bring Herman back to life. (Don’t we all need a little warmth in our lives?) With a little care and love, Herman will be with you for a long time.

Herman’s Original Recipe (Coffee Cake)

2 eggs
1 C sugar
2/3 C oil
2 C Herman
2 C flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
Optional: 1 C chopped raisins and/ or 1 C chopped nuts

Topping: Mix together and sprinkle over un-cooked coffee cake.

2/3 C flour
4 Tbl butter
1/2 C brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

The cake:

Cream together eggs and sugar.
Add rest of ingredients.
Pour into greased 9×13″ pan (or 2 round cake pans).
Sprinkle with topping and bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.

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Herman’s Helpmates: All About Herman - The Starter Recipe

Tuesday, June 9th, 2009

The following is an excerpt taken from my mother’s “Herman’s Helpmates.” Enjoy!

Meet my friend Herman. Herman is a sourdough starter given to me by a friend. When he first arrived at my house, he had only 1 recipe with him. Herman soon became bored…he craved variety. So…we worked together, Herman and I, testing and re-testing recipes from cookbooks, magazines, and newspapers. Slowly, we added to Herman’s list of “companions”; and we’re always on the lookout for more. (Herman just can’t seem to get enough companions. Do you suppose he has an ego problem?) Together we’ve managed to put together “HERMAN’S HELPMATES.” I hope you enjoy them.

A word of caution, though. Herman is very prolific… he just grows and grows and grows. Watch him carefully or he’ll overflow and take over your refrigerator. He prefers a glass or pottery container; but he’s really just as happy in plastic. Metal, though, is a definite no-no.

To start Herman (in my mother’s words):

4 C flour
3 Tbl sugar
2 tsp salt
1 Tbl vinegar
About 4 C warm water

Method:

Combine flour, sugar, salt, and vinegar. Add enough warm water to make a light, syrupy batter. The type of flour you use will vary the amount of water you’ll need. I used Gold Medal All Purpose flour and it took exactly 4 cups.
Cover your container loosely with a clean cloth (it needs to attract yeast spores) and keep it in a warm place. Herman will be ready in 3-10 days, depending on the temperature. Mine took exactly 5 days and the heat wasn’t on all day.
If a lot of clear yellow liquid forms on top (and it probably will) pour it off and add 1/4 C flour and 1/2 C warm water. The second time the yellowish liquid formed, I mixed it into the culture and… HERMAN BEGAN TO GROW!!! Herman is ready to use when he gives off a pleasant sour smell (that’s why he’s called sourdough) and he increases in size. (A “skinny” Herman is a sick Herman.)
After Herman becomes active, store him in the refrigerator until you are ready to use him. Then, remove as much as you need and allow him to reach room temperature for best results. (Not necessary, but it helps.) Feed Herman and let him rest for a day. If he is not used within 5 days or a week, feed him again or he’ll die. (Who wouldn’t after 5 days without food?)
Herman likes to be fed: 1 C flour, 1C milk, 1/2 C sugar.
Feed him on the 1st (the day you use him) and 5th day. Stir him down every day. No metal!
Since Herman is slightly sweet, you might want to adjust the sugar in some of these recipes. I have tested all of them with a check mark and this is the amount my family likes. To convert your recipes for Herman, just remember: you have added about 2 cups of ingredients (or however much Herman you’ve used) not called for in the original recipe. Adjust the flour, liquid, and sugar accordingly.

TIME FOR A COMMERCIAL…….As I said before, I’m always looking for more ways to use Herman. (Remember? He gets bored easily.) So, if you come across any new recipes, I’d love to have a copy.

Happy cooking…. Happy creating….Happy eating….

MainelyMom here: I will post a recipe for using Herman sourdough starter, as well as excerpts from my mother’s “Herman’s Helpmates” each Tuesday. Let me know how you enjoy him! I have such fond childhood memories of him!

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Introducing Herman’s Helpmates - Sourdough Starter and Recipes

Tuesday, June 9th, 2009

When I was a kid, my mother always had a batch of Herman in the fridge. For those of you who aren’t children of the 80s, Herman is a sourdough starter, similar to the Amish Friendship Bread making its rounds today.

Hermon lives in the refrigerator (or sometimes on the counter), and you feed him milk or water, flour, and sugar at regular intervals. You then bake with him and can share him and his recipes with your friends. Baked goods from Herman can’t be beat! The taste is fabulous, and he’s pretty frugal, too!

Back in the 80s, my mother received a Herman starter from a friend, but was quickly disappointed by the lack of recipes he came with. She experimented with traditional baking recipes, as well as researched various sourdough recipes. This was before the internet was mainstream in homes! She did her research the old fashioned way - by pouring through old cookbooks and testing the results on her willing and eager family.

Her friends and family loved the results so much that she put together “Herman’s Helpmates” - the collection of recipes she uncovered through research and perfected through trial and error. She created the little drawing of Herman, and typed up her recipes on individual note cards and bound them together for family and friends. “Herman’s Helpmates,” along with a jar of starter Herman, became favorite Christmas gifts one year!

I forgot all about Herman, but I did remember this wonderful pumpkin roll my mother used to make. We could not duplicate it, nor could we find the recipe. One day, my mother discovered an old binder, soot covered and obviously salvaged from the house fire 12 years ago. It was her master copy of “Herman’s Helpmates!” We were so excited! We immediately photocopied all the pages and made packets for myself, my 2 brothers and sister. Mom has made the pumpkin roll and it was exactly as I remember it - yummy, smooth, creamy, and absolutely perfect.

I am going to start a weekly column in Mainely Mom devoted to Herman and his wonderful recipes. In my next post, I will give you the recipe to make your own Herman starter, and the directions to care for him. (Notice how Herman takes on a personality all of his own!) I will also share some of my mother’s words regarding Herman. They are a joy and truely add to the wonderful experience of caring for your own Herman.

Please share your comments with me! My mother is thrilled to know that I am sharing Herman with all of you!

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Herman Sourdough

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