78 starter recipes

Friendship-starter prune cake spiced with cinnamon and studded with chopped walnuts and stewed prunes. A moist, sourdough-tinged sheet cake from the Amish friendship-bread tradition.

Sourdough chocolate cookies, a discard recipe with rolled oats, unsweetened chocolate, and a splash of rum. Rolled and cut with cookie cutters for shaped cookies that taste like a tangier brownie.

Overnight sourdough cinnamon rolls with brown sugar, cinnamon, and raisins. An overnight starter builds tangy flavor, then you roll, fill, and bake to dark golden with buttery edges.

Moist bran date bread with sourdough starter, buttermilk, and lemon zest baked into a dense, naturally sweet loaf. Spread with cream cheese for something truly special.

Chewy sourdough drop cookies with whole wheat pastry flour, brown sugar, raisins, and nuts. A clever way to use sourdough discard in a quick cookie with warm nutmeg spice.

Friendship fruitcake made with a fermented fruit starter over 30 days, then baked into a rich Bundt cake loaded with peaches, pineapple, cherries, and nuts.

Bread machine whole wheat sourdough with real starter, wheat germ, and a whisper of ginger. Tangy, crusty, and effortless with that old-world flavor baked fresh at home.

Sourdough pumpernickel bread with rye flour, molasses, black coffee, and caraway seeds. Uses an active sourdough starter for deep, complex flavor in every dense, dark slice.

Applesauce friendship cake made with sourdough starter, warm spices, brown sugar, and chopped nuts. A nostalgic Amish-style starter cake that's moist, spiced, and meant to be shared.

Easy pumpkin loaves made with sourdough starter and biscuit mix for a shortcut spiced bread with raisins, walnuts, and a sweet golden glaze.

Chilled minted pea soup with Boston lettuce and fresh mint, pureed silky and served cold. A vegetarian summer starter that takes 15 minutes on the stove.

Frozen mocha mousse pie made with cultured cream, dark chocolate, cocoa powder, and brown sugar whipped to stiff peaks, set in pie crusts. A unique fermented chocolate dessert.

Friendship cake using yellow cake mix, vanilla pudding, brandied starter fruit, raisins, and pecans baked in a Bundt pan. The shortcut version of the gifted-starter holiday cake.

Cold salmon souffle with canned and smoked salmon, cream cheese, horseradish, and gelatine, set in moulds and coated in watercress. An elegant no-bake British starter.

Salt rising bread made with a potato-cornmeal starter fermented overnight. No yeast needed. A heritage Appalachian bread with a unique cheese-like aroma and dense crumb.

Turnip soup simmered in chicken consomme with bright green peas and buttery croutons. A light, elegant French-style starter that highlights an underused root vegetable.