amish friendship bread

have any of you done this? this is my second time, and i'm excited because i remember how good the bread was last time.

amish friendship bread is called such because right before you bake it, you give 3 (?) friends their own starter to make their own, and then you keep one yourself. it takes 10 days to make a loaf, which is a lot more satisfying than buying a store bought loaf in seconds. if you live in la and want a starter, let me know and i'll pass one off to you. it's a sweet bread and delicious right out of the oven, and then for breakfast or whenever. if you look online you can make your own starter as well. i have four more days left till baking day which is perfect timing w/my parents coming into town for a wedding. squish every few days and add some ingredients when needed - easy!

pannettone

Someone dropped a loaf of this bread off at our office. It's Italian christmas bread, sprinkled with powdered sugar. A sweet egg type bread. Delicious. Ours has chestnuts (i picked them out) and raisins, but my favorite is just simple and plain. It's great toasted with a little butter, and amazing as french toast. It usually comes in a big tin and can seem intimidatingly huge, but you won't regret it.