WineLovers Discussion Group

Anyone remember the old PBS series Victory Garden? It was hosted by a wonderfully plump, pleasant and down to earth woman named Marian Morash--put a ruffled bonnet on her head, and you have the Mother Hubbard you always imagined in children's books. Lovely woman. Well, this is one of her recipes. You've had (and loved) zuccini bread and carrot cake, why not Parsnip Pecan Cake? Haven't tried it myself, but I love the thought, and if I had three more eggs on hand there'd be one in the oven right now.

The recipe is for one 10" tube or bundt pan, though I'm sure a loaf would work fine:


PARSNIP-PECAN CAKE

* 1 1/4 cups cooking oil, such as safflower or 'light' olive
* 1 1/4 cups sugar
* 2 cups flour
* 1 Tb baking powder
* 1 Tb baking soda
* 2 tsp cinnamon
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 4 eggs
* 3 cups grated raw parsnips
* 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Thoroughly combine oil and sugar. Sift together dry ingredients and add to oil and sugar, alternating with eggs. Beat well after each addition. Mix in parsnips and then pecans. Pour into buttered tube pan. Bake in a preheated 325 degrees F oven for 1 hour and 10 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing.

Recipe report: I made this yesterday, though half a recipe and I baked it in a small glass loaf pan. I made no other modification than to add a good pinch of ground cloves just in case with nothing but cinnamon and the parsnip itself for seasoning, the final result would seem simplistic. The result was delicious, but quite heavy. In fact, it reminded me (especially will all those delicious pecans) of a typical American fruit cake. A couple of glaceed cherries and citron, and we'd have been right there. I served it as a sweet bread with BBQ ribs and a cilantro-and-red onion based cabbage salad. Within the confines of a southern meal, the pairing worked well and I look forward to a piece of the leftovers today. That said, it was interesting to make once and I feel no urge to make it again. It's a bit on the fat side with all that oil, and I think I'd like it better a bit leaner.