Herman the German Friendship Cake

My friend Heiko gave me the following recipe plus a portion of the starter and asked if I wanted to make this cake, which I had previously never heard about.

Herman the German Friendship Cake

Hello, my name is Herman.

I am a sourdough cake. I'm supposed to sit on your worktop for 10 days without a lid.

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

Day 1: Put me in a large 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: 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 forth portion.

Day10: Now you are ready to make the cake. Stir well and add the following.

1 cup sugar (220g)

2 cups plain flour (300g)

½ tsp. salt

160 ml vegetable oil

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla essence

2 cooking apples cut into chunks

1 cup raisins (200g)

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp baking powder

Mix everything together and put into a large greased baking tin. Sprinkle with a quarter cup brown sugar and a quarter cup melted butter. Bake for 45 minutes at 170- 180ºC. Test the middle with a clean knife; you may need to cover in tin foil and bake for a further 20 minutes to make sure Herman is cooked properly in the middle.

When baked, Herman can be frozen.

Following is the Herman the German Friendship Cake I completed and the rewrite of the recipe.

Hello, my name is Herman. I am a sourdough cake.

My starter is supposed to sit on your worktop at room temperature (18-20ºC) for 10 days without a lid.

Day 1: Place the starter in a large bowl and cover loosely with a tea towel.

Day 2: Stir well

Day 3: Stir well

Day 4: The starter is hungry. Add 1 cup each of plain flour (150g), sugar (220g) and milk (250ml). Stir well.

Day 5: Stir well

Day 6: Stir well

Day 7: Stir well

Day 8: Stir well

Day 9: Add the same ingredients as day 4 and stir well. Divide into 4 equal portions and give friends 1 portion with a copy of these instructions. Keep at least 1 portions for your self.

Day10: The starter is ready to make the cake.

Ingredients make 20 slices

1 portion starter

160 ml vegetable oil

2 eggs (100g)

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup sugar (220g)

½ tsp. salt

2 cups plain flour (300g)

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 cored and finely chopped apples (200g)

1 cup sultanas (200g)

Method

Preheat the oven to 170º C normal bake (150º C fan forced). Line a 25 x 35 x 3 cm cake tin with baking paper. Place the starter, oil, eggs, vanilla, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl and whisk until combined. Add flour, baking powder and cinnamon, blend until evenly mixed. Add apple and sultanas to the mixture and mix until combined. Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared tin. Spread ¼ cup brown sugar (55g) and ¼ cup melted butter (55g) on top of the batter. Bake in the oven for approx. 35 minutes and allow cooling before cutting. Serve warm with ice cream or cooled with a cup of tea.

Note: I kept 1 portion of the starter to make other versions of this cake.