Friendship Cake

[LilRedWG]

MIL and I were reminiscing about this today.

Does anyone have the recipe for the starter?

Thanks

Come to that - does anyone actually remember friendship cake?

I do! I was also reminiscing about it recently(ish). My mum used to make it but I have never tried. Not sure whether she'd still have the recipe.

yes I remember it but I haven't a clue about a starter recipe! Sorry.
Will watch with interest.

quick googling brings up this

wonders what on earth a friendship cake could be??

My mam used to have one of these, it was called Boris! I'll ask her if she still has the recipe.

Urgh it always gave me the heebeegeebies. It grew too much, and I didn't trust other folks kitchen hygiene

so is it not really cake then?

No it's a living thing that multiplies in the homes of suburban middle aged housewives

What the hell is friendship cake?? Sounds intriguing. do you all add an ingredient and pass the bowl on or something? How does it grow too much?? Mould??

It was called Boris?? I think i have missed out on a whole secret world

It's some fruity, yeasty concoction, which always tasted like shit, and you grew it in a bowl, then gave half of it to someone you probably didn't like very much, which makes a mockery of the whole friendship thing.

You then baked the rest, and ended up throwing it out for the birds.

was it that thing that hugh fernly whitinsomething did on one of his shows

A neighbour brought one round the other day called "Herman", it looked like slime and despite my best efforts didn't do much so I had to bin it! I can remember them from school though, seemed to be moe successful then!

It's probably the same one that's been doing the rounds since 1983. Bin it.

It must have been the one from school, that was circa 1983!

Oh god I do have some fluffy hazy recall of something like this. MMmmmmm. Sounds yummy

this is why i have no clue i was 1 in 1983, it all means nothing to me

A friendship cake that has a starter? I am lost.

It does sound a terrible idea.

I'm a child of the 70s so remember doing a few of these. Because there is yeast in the basic mixture it grows so you divide it up and pass it on, click on the link that GiantJenga found and it explains.
From what I can remember they were quite tasty - a bit like carrot cake but no carrots. I think back then people were less bothered about hygiene and bugs. I was never ill from it. Ours never had names though.
Mum used to make yogurt too - again never got ill from it and at my grannie's we used to get unpasteurised milk from the local farm.

stop showing off cookielove

LOL at naming them. I'll be honest, from what I remember it was quite tasty, as Smac said, like carrot cake but with no carrots.

Thanks for the link giantjenga. I found so many on Google and wasn't sure which to use so will go with the one you have found.

I think I'll make some in my unhygienic kitchen and send to to CybilLiberties on a weekly basis. ;)

I had herman the friendly cake about 2 (or maybe 3?) years ago!

Have one in my hygenic kitchen right now... not suburban but probably middle aged. I think its a nice thing.. mine will be ready just in time to take to Glastonbury festival.