Free Amish Recipes

r and e sales adams indiana

Looking for Amish recipes? Check our directory of PA Dutch & Amish recipes for over 300 dishes…

…or read on to learn about one Amish business’s clever recipe giveaways (plus Amish takes on Tomato Gravy, KFC Cole Slaw, and Grape Nuts).

This summer I visited R and E sales, a large bulk food store in the Amish community at Adams County, Indiana.

R and E is using a clever way to market their business.  Near the cash register they have stacks of free recipes printed out on multicolored paper.  At the bottom of each page they include their name, address and business hours.

I grabbed a bunch of them and thought I’d share a recipe or two while giving R and E a little plug here.  When I eat at KFC, the cole slaw is about the best thing going, so how about this one:

KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN COLE SLAW

1 head shredded cabbage

2 shredded carrots

-Dressing-

2/3 cup sugar             1/2 cup Salad dressing

1/8 tsp. pepper          1/4 cup buttermilk

1/2 tsp. salt                1 1/2 T. White vinegar

1/4 cup milk              2 1/2 T. Lemon juice

Mix together and store in fridge at least 2 hours before serving.

amish recipe sheets

How about one more?  For breakfast with Amish friends, I often have home-made Grape Nuts.  Here’s the recipe for the R and E version:

GRAPE NUTS

4 2/3 cups graham flour, 1 1/3 cups sugar, 1 1/3 t. soda, 2 2/3 cups milk

Mix together + bake at 350 degrees in cake pan.  Slice thin while hot + spread with butter or eat like a cake.

And this one was so unusual, I had to share it:

TOMATO GRAVY

Melt stick butter and 3/4 c. flour.  Then heat 1 pt. Tomatoe juice + 1 pt. water with it.  Season with salt, pepper + a little sugar.  Use with Pancakes instead of syrup.

“Use with Pancakes…”?!  Wow, not what I’d have expected.  If anyone tries it, let us know what you think.

amish bulk food indiana

The Adams County community is the fifth largest of all Amish settlements.  Adams County is a much plainer settlement than the Elkhart/Lagrange group or even the nearby related Allen County community.

berne indiana clock towerThe town of Berne is at the heart of the settlement. It seems to be a pretty place, and plays up its Swiss heritage.  They’ve got a nice new clock tower in the center of town.

Despite its population of over 7,000 Amish, Adams County is not really a big tourist destination.  There is a campground-type resort just outside of Berne called Amishville, but as far as I could tell the main connection they have with the Amish is their proximity.

If you’re in the area, though, there are a number of Amish dry goods and food stores.  If you’d like to drop in at R and E, here’s the address:

R and E sales

825 E 200 S

Monroe, IN 46772

Hope you enjoy the recipes.  And here’s an idea–if anyone has other favorite, or unusual, Amish/PA Dutch recipes, feel free to share in the comments. Maybe someone will find a new favorite?

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    44 Comments

    1. Amishville

      We stayed at that Amishville campground four years ago. Proximity is right. On Sunday night horse hooves on pavement kept my wife, Myra, awake from about midnight to 3 a.m. Young Amish people were getting the most out of their weekend. (I heard it get started, but slept anyway.)

      Myra learned about some interesting cultural conflicts between these Amish people and those in the more liberal Amish communities in Elkhart and LaGrange counties. Marriages do sometimes occur across such a cultural divide, but neighbors can make them difficult.

      1. Adams Co. Amish in Elkhart/Lagrange Counties

        Sounds fun Spokesrider. When I sold books in the Elkhart/Lagrange community, I did find a few Adams Co. families in that settlement, but not many.

        There is actually something of a language barrier between the two groups–the Elkhart folks speaking the Pennsylvania German dialect, like most Amish, and the Adams Co. people the “Swiss” version. The differences can be great–Amish have told me that they sometimes even speak English when conversing with someone from the “other side”.

    2. Sharon R

      Marketing idea

      Recipes and marketing — good combination! I recently read about this method, in one of my Beverly Lewis books — the girl in the book, who ran her bakery, did the same thing! Whatever works, I say. AND everyone loves recipes!
      SharonR

    3. Amish recipes

      I cook a lot from Amish and Mennonite recipes, and write about it as I go. My blog is over at http://inaplainkitchen.blogspot.com. One of the problems with the old Dutch recipes is that they are not always easily understood by a modern cook, even ones written and published back in the 1960s and 1970s. The other problem is that they are so often high in fat and sugar, which is all fine when one is farming and burns off those calories! So I try the recipes, interpret them, and usually reduce the amount of saturated fat and sugar, hopign to still turn out something worth eating. I like the Amish and Mennonite cooking because it utilizes fresh food, emphasizes simple vegetables, fruit and meat, and the baked goods are homestyle and satisfying. I will be adding some new recipes soon to the blog, which doesn’t have a great range yet, as I began just this summer.

      1. Need recipe

        I am looking for the recipe for what I have been told is called “Traffic Jam”. Was told it was made by Amish.

        1. Amish Traffic Jam Recipe

          Hi Bill, I don’t think we have a recipe here on the site, but it looks like you can find something on Youtube – a how-to video, with the written recipe in the description section.

          I can’t vouch for it, but have a look and maybe it will do the trick. This recipe looks like it uses only rasperries, strawberries, and cherries – I don’t know if there is an “official” ingredient list for the jam (I have heard peaches and cranberries can go in there too), but for what it’s worth:

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRbn91dWqRs

    4. Mary Miller

      Tomato Gravy

      Tomato Gravy MUST be eaten on fried mush! 🙂 Ask any of my four sons! This is a different method of making it than I was taught by my mother, but I just might give it a try!

      1. Elva Bontrager

        YES- Fried Mush!

        We sometimes used tomato gravy on POTATO pancakes but ALWAYS with fried mush. I suspect that I’ve lost my taste for it but I used to like it.

        Never learned to like SWEET tomato gravy though, but one of my sisters did, and does to this day.

    5. Charlotte

      We always had tomato gravy over biscuits, so it might work over pancakes.

    6. Loretta

      Tomato Gravy

      Mom usually made whatever I wanted for breakfast when I was growing up. And it was usually grits and tomato gravy. Now it’s my go-to comfort food.

      Tomato Gravy

      Fry some fat-back (makes the best), bacon, or streak-o-lean.

      Make gravy as usual, then add 1 can of petite diced tomatos.

      May not need salt, taste to see. I add pepper and scant salt while doing the gravy. Margarine can be used if you have no grease, but the taste will NOT be the same.

      When it snows, I must make this simple dish. I have it over grits with fresh bread and iced tea. Have you figured out that I’m in the south, yet? I’m a grits girl.

      G-girls
      R-raised
      I-in
      T-the
      S-south

      1. Loretta, great add-on to the recipe (start talking fat-back, and you’re speaking my language 😉 ) and great acronym! Grits fan here.

    7. Shawn

      Wow! Thanks!

      Wow, thanks for these recipes! You really cheered me up! And thanks for the info too! Very thoughtful! 🙂

    8. Tonya

      Tomato Gravy

      Tomato gravy is delicious! Being PA German myself I grew up with it and when I made it for my husband he wasn’t sure about it until he tasted it! Now he’s hooked! It’s great on anything, mashed potatoes, toast biscuits, pancakes…

    9. Eugenia

      Tomato Gravy

      We are from the Deep South and eat tomato gravy this way: add sliced hot dogs to the tomato gravy, cook a little bit, then serve over rice!

    10. Rita

      We do the Tomato Gravy over bread-mmmmm! Last week, a couple friends and I were discussing favorite comfort foods. I was surprised that none of these friends except one had ever heard of Molasses bread – King Syrup and margarine on sliced bread (instead of jelly). I thought everyone around here ate it!

      1. Folks, this tomato gravy is fascinating for me, I can see it on hot dogs or bread or potatoes, but on pancakes? Seems like that would transform a light and sweet breakfast food into an icky mess. I’m guessing it must be pretty good though, or at least better than it sounds 🙂

    11. Slightly-handled-Order-man

      mmm food

      Though not Amish we do Open Faced Roast Beef Sandwiches for dinner as a leftover, very good, usually canned corn or French Fries go well. As far as comfort food, for me, a chunk of kielbasa is comfort food for me, and potato pancakes, as said earlier. I will never forget the goodness of the pretzel an Amish woman served me once.

      1. Shom I’ve never thought of kielbasa as comfort food, but that is a really subjective thing. For me it is hiking food–it’s usually the protein I take along when trekking through the Polish/Slovakian mountains.

        1. Elva Bontrager

          Hot Milk and Toast

          When I find myself heating milk and making toast I know that I’m not feeling well. When I’m sick is the only time hot milk and toast and with a fried soft egg on top occurs to me. Served with fresh ground black pepper it is MY comfort food.

    12. Jon G.

      Tomato Gravy

      When I was a kid in the 40s and 50s, my mom made this and I’ve always loved it!

      She made meatballs in an “American” tomato sauce or gravy. We ate the gravy over the meatballs, mashed potatoes and bread.

      It’s one of my favorite feel good comfort meals. MM MM MM

    13. Jon G.

      Introduction

      I live in central Indiana and have always had a fascination of the Amish folks.

      I’ve had several vacations in the Pennsylvania and Ohio Amish areas as well as more day trips to Indiana Amish areas than I could count since I was a kid.

      I’ve just recently been studying The Amish on the Internet and visiting this great site.

      Many thanks Erik….and all the folks that comment!

      1. Sharon R

        Amish recipes and lifestyles

        It’s amazing how many people enjoy learning about the Amish culture and lifestyles! My husband and I toured PA, OHIO, INDIANA, NEW YORK, last year, during the Fall season, and it is beautiful country, with the large Amish/Mennonite farms, at every turn in the road. I have since acquired 2 Amish cookbooks, and have tried their recipes, which are really very good food; reminds me of our “plain” country foods, that “mom” made! She was not Amish/Mennonite but learned her cooking skills, from her TENN upbringing. I do remember her mentioning “tomato gravy”, too, but was never brave enough to try it — couldn’t figure out what to put it on! (I am a Florida native–that might be why!)

        We have very good friends in Mitchell, IN, and there is Amish groups there, as well. We saw several Amish horse and buggies, clip-clopping down the roads, at every turn, and our friend’s Antique store, often has Amish customers, come in to browse, to see if they have something they can use — since their shop is “Primitives”, there is usually things, they might need! Our friends enjoy meeting them, and say they are fine people to live amongst and to deal with.

        Recipes — My next recipe to try, is Whoopie Pies! I hear they are very sweet, but am anxious to try them!

        Thanks everyone, plus ERIK, in making this website a most interesting one!! Enjoy all the photos and stories you are finding!!
        SharonR

        1. My pleasure Sharon and Jon–it’s your comments that make this a lot of fun.

      2. Brenda

        Jon more links

        Hi Jon, since you enjoy browsing the internet for information on Amish, I thought you’d also like this link to testimonies from those who used to be Amish http://www.mapministry.org/news/former-amish-testimonies

        Tomato grave just doesn’t roll my socks up and down but, I’ve a great tomato bread recipe.

        Today 3 former Amish came over, Moses, Uria, Josh, to play games. I surprised them with homemade apple cider donuts. Believe it or not they never had ’em before!

        1. Jon G.

          Thanks Brenda!

          Many thanks Brenda but I think that I’ve already read nearly everything on the MAP site including the forum regularly. Lots of interesting stuff there for sure!

          I’ve never heard of tomato bread before but I’d probably like it because I like bread made with so much other stuff in it.

          Those apple cider donuts sure do sound good! 🙂

        2. Rebekka

          apple cider donuts

          I would love to have the recipe for the apple cider donuts. My family loves donuts but I can’t find a recipe for them. I would also like one for pumpkin donuts.

    14. Mona G.

      Love Grits too Erik,either way 🙂 do you like them fried ? Maybe I’ll have some for breakfast tomorrow 🙂
      I haven’t tried the WHOOPIE PIES tho…..that’s on my list when I go to the Amish store again…..I did buy one of the BLACK WALNUT PIE…..it was delicious……have you tried that ????
      Keep the recipe coming……nope haven’t had the tomato gravy yet…but did make the tomato pie and it was also delicious……

    15. Esther

      Tomato Gravy

      When I was growing up, my mother made tomato gravy with milk and she also made it sweet. We put buttered bread on our plate and put the gravy on top. My husband’s mother served tomato gravy with homemade fried hominy.

    16. Annmarie

      Eric,
      I have just added the town of Berne on my list of places to someday visit. Having been to Switzerland as soon as I read the name Berne, I wondered if it was related and then you mentioned it was. I have a nice pic of similiar clock I took when I was in Switzerland. Thanks for the info..I never would have known that had I not read it here:)

      1. Glad to hear it Annmarie. I enjoy the little pockets of culture all around the country. This one is kind of off-the-beaten path, but worth a visit.

    17. Lindsay

      Whoopie Pies

      I’m making pumpkin whoopies today…not like I need them!

      Got a question…did Amish Friendship Bread actually originate with the Amish, or is this a myth? It was pretty common where I was from…is it popular in other parts of North America?

    18. Katrina

      Tomato Gravy

      I’m wondering how the tomato gravy would taste on scrambled eggs-I’m one of those who adds a small amount of ketchup to the top of the cooked eggs. Has anyone tried this yet? if not, I will.

      1. Jon G.

        Katrina, I’d think I’d like tomato gravy on scrambled eggs.

        Like you,I also put ketchup on eggs….and nearly everything else.:-)

        Oh, I’d think it would also be really good on omelets. MM MM MM

        Now, if I could just figure how to make it in my microwave.

    19. Matthew

      So, where'd you eat?

      All those recipes sure look tasty. We’re having a chicken roll recipe with mushroom sauce for dinner tonight that we found in an Amish cookbook.

      So where did you eat when you went to Berne? Its been some years since we were there, but at the time there was a good luncheonette on the main street. The food at the Amish House tourist place was wonderful. But my favorite stop was the bakery with all of the canned foods.

      I also fondly remember the Amish variety store… I really need to get back up there again one of these days… if and when gas prices drop.

      1. Matthew, I hate to say it, but I ate at…Subway. I needed quickness. It did have a nice view of the new clock tower, though.

    20. Mona G.

      Thanks Erik,Just received the Magazine I won on here “THE CONNECTION” …..was a neat magazine with a lot of different things in it…..very interesting……

      1. Mona, I’m glad to hear your issue arrived. We should be hearing more from the Connection crew soon. It’s a neat magazine, I was just looking through an issue myself.

    21. Loretta

      Grits

      Sooo–Erik, being that you live in NC–you DO eat grits, don’t you?
      (I think it’s a law that if you live in the south, you must eat grits) 🙂

      And, Katrina, I’m sure tomato gravy would be good on eggs or whatever one wants to have with it. I, of course, put it
      on grits, because that’s what I grew up with, and I like having the one bland food/tasty food.

      1. Loretta, if grits are in the same room as me, it’s like a tractor beam switches on in my mouth, directed at the plate of grits.

        There’s no escape, grits.

    22. Loretta

      Grits

      Erik, cute little way of saying it!

      You’ll have to try my tomato gravy with
      your grits one day, along with bread and tea.

    23. Debbie Welsh

      Erik, please don’t tell me you are like all those people who go to Lancaster, PA, amidst all those delicious Amish restaurants, only to eat at the likes of Applebee’s, The Olive Garden, or Subway ??? I will forgive you if it was indeed only because of a time crunch …..

      I use Amish recipes all the time and just made this one the other night for a big family get-together and everyone said I absolutely had to make it again for Thanksgiving – it was that good!

      Pumpkin Yummy Cake:

      32 oz canned pumpkin 1 cup brown sugar 2 tsp cinnamon

      1/2 tsp ginger 1/4 tsp nutmeg 3 eggs

      1 13 oz can evaporated milk 1 box yellow cake mix

      3/4 cup butter or margarine

      Combine pumpkin, sugar, and spices. Beat in eggs and milk until smooth. Pour into 13x9x2″ greased baking pan. Sprikle dry cake mix over pumpkin mixture. Drizzle melted butter over cake mix ( can add nuts before baking ). Bake at 350 for 55-60 mins. Enjoy!

      1. Hi Debbie, no, I am not one to pass up good local spots often…Since it was time crunch, I guess you can forgive me here. Actually, in, say Lancaster, I rarely pay for a meal, since I am usually begging my bread from my Amish hosts…but I pay them back in taxi rides and cheap labor, so I guess it comes out even 🙂

        Thanks for this great-sounding recipe. Perfect time of year for it. Only one question–can I put tomato gravy on it?? 😉

    24. Susan

      Berne area- where to go?

      I think I may have finally found a thread about the Berne area. We are planning to go to the Auburn, Berne, Grabill areas on Dec. 5th and were wondering where to visit, eat, and stay. Does anyone know much about these Amish communities there? Would very much appreciate information. I live near Arthur and Arcola, so perhaps we can swap information.

      1. Jodi

        Berne info

        Susan, I live in Berne. There is a lovely bed & breakfast in town, ran by the former mayor, and a nice hotel on the edge of town. There are a few diners on the main street (you must do lunch at the diner/bakery inside the antique store) and 2 fast-food reataurants. I have created a map of all the Amish businesses in the Berne area that I would be happy to share with you when you come. Send me an email at jodi.click@yahoo.com and we can exchange info.