New Recipe Week 10

I have just finished 30 days on the Whole 30 program and am taking a couple of days off before I begin it again. It is a very good way for me to eat, plus it keeps me on my toes trying new and different ways of preparing our foods. I find myself looking through an enormous collection of recipes. Generally while I am wandering through the jungles of paleo land some totally random and inappropriate recipe will find its way through the search maze of meats and vegetables. The one I tried this past week is one such recipe. Why in the world Sweet Alabama Pecan Bread would pop up in a paleo search is beyond me, but I did put it in my new bookmark category, "When Whole 30 is Over".

Last night I decided to bake something and looked at the new category. I saw this recipe bookmarked, immediately clicked on it (here) and decided this was easy, quick and would suit my criteria; something sweet, quick, using what I had in the pantry and the fewest utensils possible.

1 c sugar
1 c brown sugar
4 eggs beaten
1 c oil
1 1/2 c self-rising flour
1 tsp vanilla
2 c pecans, finely chopped

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the pan (Use Pam, vegetable oil or melted butter. I save all my butter wrappers in a baggie in the freezer and use them to grease pans, tossing them after I use them)

There is a cute little tutorial on the recipe page and everything is measured into little bowls and tossed in the mixing bowl at the appropriate time. At the end of the recipe you will have used 7 bowls, a wooden spoon, baking pan, spatula, and knife, plus your measuring utensils. Trust me when I tell you, that is way more than necessary. I made this recipe using one mixing bowl, 1 wooden spoon, baking pan, 1 cup measuring cup and 1/2 cup measuring cup. I am writing the instructions as I made it, not as the recipe said. I definitely believe in the K.I.S.S. method of cooking (Keep it stupid simple or keep it simple, stupid)
Measure the sugars using the 1 cup measuring cup and toss in the mixing bowl. I always start with the white sugar because it has no dampness to it at all, followed by the brown sugar. Next measure the one cup of oil using the same measuring cup. (And no, you do not have to be like my mother was and wash it between each measure. The oil does not care if a few grains of brown sugar remain in the measuring cup and it will not alter the recipe at all)
Stir the sugar and the oil until it is well blended. Add the eggs one at a time to the bowl. They will rest on top of the sugar/oil mix. Using your wooden spoon beat them lightly then incorporate them into the sugar mix. Then add 1 teaspoon vanilla (I eyeball this, but I am pretty good at eyeballing)  and stir everything together.  Use the half cup measure and add the 1 1/2 cups self rising flour. Mix it in, but don't over stir. Add 2 cups chopped pecans. Stir them through then turn the batter into the prepared pan and smooth it using the back of the wooden spoon as your spatula.
Bake for 25 -30 minutes. Let cool and cut into squares.

The verdict? This is a dense sweet bread and it was fine, especially for the ease of cooking, but it was not the best thing I have ever made. I live in pecan country and have access to free and/or relatively cheap pecans so I always have a large store of them in my freezer. I would probably not pay full price for the amount used in this recipe because it was just not spectacular enough to warrant the regular retail price. It would probably be equally good using whatever nut is readily available to wherever you live except for black walnuts. I think their taste might overpower the batter.
I used grapeseed oil which is a neutral tasting oil and I actually thought the batter would benefit from some additional flavor. Maybe 3/4 cup oil to 1/4 cup butter. I would also use half light brown sugar and half dark brown, just to add some additional taste.

We tried it fresh out of the oven and were all underwhelmed, but I had a small piece this morning to see if it improved after sitting and it was much improved. If you make it, make it at least a half a day in advance so it can cool totally. Honestly I will most likely never make this again. It is perfectly fine, but that is all it is__fine.