Feeding Herman....

No I'm not totally bonkers, Herman is a Sour dough German Friendship cake.  My neighbour gave me the mixture and an instruction sheet to follow for 10 days before finally baking it. The idea is is its like a chain letter but with cake mix! You feed it for 10 days then split the mixture. You bake 1, save 1 and then give two away so that others can follow suit.

this is the instruction sheet:

"Hello, my name is Herman.

I am a sourdough cake. I'm supposed to sit on your worktop for 10 days without a lid on. During which time you should feed me!

You CANNOT put me in the fridge or I will die. If I stop bubbling, I am dead.

Day 1  You get Herman and put him in a large mixing bowl and cover loosely with a tea towel.

Day 2. Stir well

Day 3. Stir well

Day 4. Herman is hungry. Add 1 cup each of plain flour, sugar and milk. Stir well.

Day 5. Stir well

Day 6. Stir well

Day 7. Stir well

Day 8. Stir well

Day 9. Hungry again. Add the same as day 4 and stir well. Divide into 4 equal portions and give away to friends with a copy of these instructions. Keep the 4th one for your next cake and follow the instructions to grow me again.

Day 10. Herman is very hungry. Stir well and add the following:

·         1 cup sugar (200g)

·         half tsp (teaspoon) salt

·         2 cups plain flour (240g)

·         2/3 (two thirds) cup of cooking oil (160ml)l

·         2 eggs

·         2 tsp vanilla essence

·         2 cooking apples cut into chunks

·         1 cup raisins

·         2 heaped tsp cinnamon

·         2 heaped tsp baking powder

You may add optional extras likr cherries, nuts, chocolate chips, coconut.

Mix everything together and put into a large greased baking tin. Sprinkle with a quarter of a cup of brown sugar and a quarter of a cup of melted butter. Bake for 45 minutes at 170-180C. When cold cut into finger pieces. Cake freezes well and is also delicious warm with cream or ice-cream."

I followed the recipe with mine, though I did have a mishap with the baking tin - First off I thought I'd put it in a big-ish tin. Then I thought, oh no that won't be enough mix for that tin. So I put it in a smaller tin and yep you've guessed it that was too small! So I had to faff on with trying to get the mixture out of the tin (had like tripled lined it with baking paper too so it was reeeallly messy!!) eventually got it into the right size pan.  It took a bit longer to bake than the instructions as well so watch out for that. Then I ended up burning it slightly! Note to self - must do better next time!

It tasted really yummy!! and lasted for ages you only need a small piece as it's so stodgy!

If you haven't been given a portion of the mix but want to start one from scratch to give to your friends here is the recipe for that:

Combine the following ingredients in a large mixing bowl:

• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 2 1/4 tsp dry yeast

Next, stir in 2 cups of warm water until you get a smooth paste starting to form. When this happens, cover the mixture in a bowl with a clean cloth or tea towel. Let it sit in a warm place to bubble away for two to three days. Stir your mixture twice every day.

This is the starter mix for a German friendship cake that likes to be called ‘Herman’. It should then be kept in some kind of container or dish and partially covered allowing any gases to escape. When you are all set to use the mix, keep two cups and give one away to someone who will want to give this a try. Don’t forget to copy the instructions to go with your new Herman.