Amish Friendship Bread - Plain Old Sourdough Bread

This is another variation on the Amish Friendship Bread, using one cup of the starter.

This recipe calls for bread flour, which has a higher protein content than all-purpose flour. You can use AP, but your bread won't be quite as good.

Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 cup starter
6 cups bread flour

Recipe
Mix all ingredients thoroughly. Oil bottom and sides of a large bowl and put dough in. Let stand overnight at room temperature.

In the morning, punch dough down 4-5 times and divide into 3 equal balls. Knead each ball 8-10 times; use additional flour to keep dough from sticking. Place dough into 3 greased and floured loaf pans. Brush tops with oil and cover loosely with oiled foil. Let rise at room temperature for 4 - 8 hours.

If dough has not risen sufficiently, put a small pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven, heat oven to 200 degrees, then turn off the oven. Put dough on the top rack for 1-2 hours or until dough has risen.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. While it is baking, and after the top has lightly browned, you may cover the bread with foil to slow further browning.