Pecan Rolls

When I came across this recipe in Better Homes and Gardens, I knew I couldn't resist giving it a try. However, once I saw that each roll is 618 CALORIES, and considering I was at the gym while reading the magazine, I also knew I couldn't eat this myself or feed it to my family in good conscience... I would have easily wiped out a 60 minute swim workout in a couple of bites!

It took a couple tries, but I found a good compromise for this recipe. The number one goal was to cut down the butter- the original recipe has almost a whole cup for only 12 servings. That along with full fat sour cream, egg yolks and milk make for a hefty dose of saturated fat. By switching to skim milk and reduced fat sour cream, using 2 eggs whites and one whole egg, and cutting down the butter(or even using trans-fat free tub margarine) you can save a ton of calories from fat. Additionally, by using cooking spray in place of butter for the pan, the plastic wrap, and even in the filling you can make a difference.

Secondly, there is way too much sugar in this recipe- 2 whole cups, to be exact. I cut the sugar in the dough down to 2 tablespoons, and cut the entire recipe for the sugar filling and the sugar/butter topping in HALF. It was still enough to get a satisfying sweet flavor, and by using the majority of the sugar and butter on top of the roll, right where you can see it, really makes it look delicious (you know we eat with our eyes, too!).

To boost the nutrition, I kept the whole amount of pecans (even though I cut the rest of the topping in about half)  which are a really underrated nut but have tons of health benefits. I also used roughly half white whole wheat flour and half white flour for a fiber boost. I tried using all white whole wheat but sadly came out with a too-dense roll. When using part whole wheat flour, it helps to cut down the total amout of flour by about 1/4-1/2 cup to keep the dough less stiff. Be sure to use the cinnamon liberally, as it may help with blood sugar control and is an anti-inflammatory food.

The final result of these modifications is a roll that has half the fat content and about 200 calories shaved off. Saturated fat grams go down to 3, from 13 in the original recipe. The fiber content is doubled! Much more like something you could eat for breakfast and not spend the rest of the day working out to negate the effects.

Check out the revised recipe and nutritional analysis here. Don't be intimidated by all the directions- its not hard, just several steps long- good for a sunday afternoon when you'll be home all day.