Easy Amish Cinnamon Bread (Without a Starter)
This bakery-style Amish cinnamon loaf is easy to make at home in about an hour. It’s like Amish friendship bread without a starter!
This warm and cozy Amish cinnamon bread is tender and and sweet, with the flavor of friendship bread, but you don’t have to use a starter.
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During my childhood, Amish friendship bread was a staple quick bread, making the rounds through our church as ladies shared their plentiful starters with each other.
I remember my mother being gifted loaves of the sweet cinnamon swirl bread along with a gallon zip-top bag of starter from friends at church.
We would feed the starter for days, then make the Amish cinnamon bread and pass some of the starter along to someone else.
And I have to say, Amish cinnamon loaf, also sometimes called snickerdoodle bread, is pretty spectacular. I can see why it was so popular!
It’s moist, tender and perfectly sweet with just a hint of tang. It’s everything a quick bread should be–only the version from my childhood wasn’t very quick, due to all the starter feeding that was required.
You might be surprised to know you can make Amish friendship bread without a starter, and, boy, am I thankful! This recipe leaves behind the days of feeding and mixing a starter in favor of a few pantry ingredients.
The flavor of this Amish cinnamon bread is just as delightful, but without all the work and waiting. It freezes well and makes a lovely gift, too!
More Delicious Quickbreads:
- Best Ever Pear Bread
- Sour Cream Banana Bread
- Grandma’s Amazing Pumpkin Bread
- Cinnamon Sugar Drop Biscuits
- Pineapple Bread
Tips For Making Amish Friendship Bread Without Starter
If you are looking for a no-knead, no-yeast, no-starter cinnamon swirl bread with amazing flavor, you have come to the right place.
It’s similar to the famous cinnamon bread served by Bob Evans restaurants, too, if you’re familiar with that classic sweet treat.
Making this Amish cinnamon loaf is as simple as mixing a few ingredients from your pantry, layering with cinnamon sugar in a loaf pan, and baking until you have a steaming loaf of snickerdoodle bread about an hour later.
Whether you’re enjoying this loaf yourself or baking it for a fall bake sale, it’s sure to be a hit!
How to Make Amish Cinnamon Bread
It’s really easy to make this Amish friendship bread without starter.
Ingredients You’ll Need:
- Butter
- Sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla Extract
- Milk
- Sour Cream
- All-purpose Flour
- Baking Soda
- Ground Cinnamon
How to Make It:
(Full printable recipe is available below)
Combine the wet ingredients. First, you’ll cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
Then add egg and vanilla, mixing until combined. Whisk together milk and sour cream in a separate liquid measuring cup or small bowl and set aside.
Baking with sour cream is a great way to bring tenderness to your quick breads, and gives it a hint of tang similar to sourdough.
Prepare the batter. Next, you’ll alternate adding flour, baking soda, and the milk mixture to the remaining ingredients in a stand mixer until everything is incorporated.
The batter will be fairly thick.
Layer the batter. Then, you’ll pour half the batter into a prepared loaf pan, followed by about 3/4 of the cinnamon sugar mixture.
Add the remaining batter and top with the remaining sugar. Use a knife to gently swirl everything together.
Bake. Last, you’ll bake the loaf for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool before serving.
Notes and Adaptations:
- Feel free to freeze the loaf if desired, or double the recipe and make a second loaf to freeze for later. Allow the loaf to cool completely before wrapping well and freezing. Thaw at room temperature, then enjoy!
- This is a great loaf for holiday breakfasts, bake sales, or sharing with friends and family.
Recommended Equipment:
Amish Cinnamon Bread
Ingredients
For the Batter:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
For the Cinnamon Swirl:
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and grease an 8×4" loaf pan. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a mixing bowl with an electric hand mixer), cream together butter and sugar until fluffy.
- Add egg and vanilla, mixing well until combined.
- In a separate liquid measuring cup or small bowl, whisk together milk and sour cream and set aside.
- With the mixer on low speed, add 1 cup of flour and the baking soda to the butter/sugar/egg mixture, mixing until incorporated.
- Pour the milk and sour cream mixture into the batter, mixing to combine.
- Add the remaining 1 cup of flour to the batter, mixing just until incorporated.
- Transfer half of the batter to the prepared loaf pan. Add about 3/4 of the cinnamon sugar mixture over the batter, then top with the remaining batter and remaining sugar.
- Use a knife to swirl the batter in a back and forth motion, allowing the cinnamon sugar to swirl into the batter.
- Bake for about 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely before serving.
Video
Notes
- Feel free to double the recipe so you can enjoy one loaf now and freeze a loaf for later!
- To freeze, cool the loaf completely, then wrap it well with plastic wrap. Place in freezer. When ready to enjoy, let it thaw at room temperature.
- Leftovers can be covered and stored at room temperature. I like to use this loaf keeper.
Nutrition
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Beyond delicious! Highly recommended.
Thank you so much, Kendra! I’m happy to hear you enjoyed it! 🙂
“Amish” Cinnamon Bread:
1. Pull out *electric* mixer.
I’m sorry, it’s truly delicious but that was my fav part.
Haha yes! I will use my electric appliances every chance I get. 🙂
When did you incorporate the butter sugar egg mixture
Hi Carol! The butter/sugar/egg mixture stays in the main mixing bowl, then some of the dry ingredients get added to the butter/sugar/egg mixture, followed by the milk/sour cream being added to the butter/sugar/egg/flour mixture. Then the remaining dry ingredients are added, which finishes the batter. I’ll try to clarify that in the recipe instructions! 🙂
How about the cream of tarter? snickerdoodles have it. Can I add it?
Hi Theresa! I think that would work fine, and it might give it a bit more of the snickerdoodle “tang” flavor. I’d use 1.5 teaspoons of cream of tartar. Enjoy! 🙂