I saw this in the September issue of BBC Good Food, I had to try it. Who would think of adding beets to a chocolate cake? It is very chocolaty, no hint of a beet, and a crumbly dense texture. The exterior is shiny, a little weird for a cake. This is also dairy-free for those of you out there who are intolerant of dairy, or just plain out of stock.
This cake was scarfed by even those who fear veggies, of course I didn’t let out my secret. It is so worth making. Especially since you (people who don’t live where I do) can get beets at Trader Joe’s that are already cooked and peeled in the produce section. Everyone could eat more beets. Think of all the vitamins and fiber in this decadent dessert.
The recipe calls for mixing it in a blender, well, if you have an awesome blender give it a try. I made the mistake of trying it in my regular Oster blender, I don’t suggest it. In the beginning I had my doubts. Doubts confirmed, I can tell you, not a good idea. I transferred everything to my food processor and it worked beautifully. I would make this again just because you can throw all the ingredients in the food processor (not the blender). I see that the website calls for a food processor, not the blender called for in the magazine.
I used the metric measurements because I have a scale and think it is easier, but I have included the American measurement conversions or look online for your own conversions. I also only used 2 eggs, all I had, and it turned out just fine. By the way, caster sugar is superfine sugar. We don’t get golden superfine sugar in these parts so I made my own sugar mixture with raw granulated sugar and muscovado sugar which has a yummy taste. If you see some in the store, buy it, it is so much better than brown sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 large cooked beet, about 175g (6oz of beets) in weight, roughly chopped
- 200g (1-1/2 cups) plain flour
- 50g (1/2 cup) cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 250g (~1- 1/4 cups) golden caster sugar (I used 1/2 raw sugar, 1/2 muscovado sugar)
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 200ml (7 fl oz) sunflower oil or other neutral oil
- 100g (3.3 oz) dark 70% chocolate chopped into pieces
- crème fraîche or whipped cream, to serve (try coconut ice ‘cream’ for a non-dairy version)
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Put the beets into a food processor and blitz until finely chopped but not pureed. Add a pinch of salt and the rest of the ingredients, except the oil and chocolate. When completely mixed (you may need to scrape the sides down once or twice), add the oil in a steady stream, as if you were making mayonnaise.
- When all the oil has been added, stir in the chocolate, then Pour the mix into a greased and lined loaf pan. Cook for 1 hr until an inserted skewer comes out practically clean. Let the loaf to cool on a rack before slicing. Serve slices with the crème fraîche, clotted cream, ice cream or coconut ice cream.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
My husband hates vegetables, but loves chocolate cake – this will be the ultimate revenge for me!
That looks really good. I like the sound of using beets in a cake like this.