Maple Pecan Cake

Photo by Shawn Eliav

Don't get me wrong, I love fancy, decadent, 20-layer frosted cakes as much as the next person, but you can only have so many pieces before it becomes too much. This is one of those cakes where I could eat the entire pan in one sitting and still regret not making two. It's simple, subtle and above all else, the easiest cake of all time to make. The combination of maple, pecans and cinnamon is delicious and the moist cake makes this the perfect pairing to a morning's cup of coffee (or a night's cup of tea).

Though my aunt shared this recipe with me, I found it in a cookbook as well, so I think this is one cake everyone should definitely have in their repertoire.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 35-45 minutes
Total Time: About 40-50 minutes

Servings: 16

Ingredients:

3 eggs
1 cup of sugar
3/4 cup of sour cream
1 1/4 cups of flour
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 cup of oil
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/2 cup of chopped raw pecans
Cinnamon
Maple syrup

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour an 8″x8″ pan (don't underestimate the difference flouring can make!).

Photo by Shawn Eliav

Photo by Shawn Eliav

2. Whisk eggs and sugar in a large bowl.

Photo by Shawn Eliav

Photo by Shawn Eliav

3. Add sour cream and mix until smooth.

Photo by Shawn Eliav

Photo by Shawn Eliav

4. Add flour, baking powder, oil and vanilla extract. Mix until they are incorporated — however, don't over-mix!

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Photo by Shawn Eliav

5. Pour batter into the greased pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon, then top with the pecans (Tip #1: For an extra crunch, pour half the batter, sprinkle with cinnamon and top with pecans, and then add the rest of the batter. Sprinkle more cinnamon and pecans on top — you'll need 3/4 cup chopped pecans if you decide to do this.).

Photo by Shawn Eliav

Photo by Shawn Eliav

6. Bake for 35-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Immediately after removing the pan from the oven, drizzle the top with maple syrup. Doing this when the cake is still hot allows more of the syrup to be absorbed (i.e. a tastier cake). Enjoy!

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Photo by Shawn Eliav

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