A naturally sweetened dark chocolate beet snack cake that is a comforting family favourite.
Course Desserts
Cuisine American
Keyword Vegetarian
Essential Ingredient Chocolate
Prep Time 20 minutesminutes
Cook Time 50 minutesminutes
Cooling time 10 minutesminutes
Total Time 1 hourhour20 minutesminutes
Servings 6people
Calories 479kcal
Ingredients
3mediumbeetsscrubbed
1 cupall-purpose flour
1/4cupdark cocoa powder
1 teaspoonbaking soda
1/4teaspoonfine sea salt
1mediumeggroom temperature
1/2cupunsalted buttermelted
1/3cuppure maple syrup
1/2cupliquid honey
1 teaspoonpure vanilla extract
1/3cupsour cream
1/3cupdark chocolatechopped
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400°F. Scrub the beets but do not peel or trim. Wrap whole beets in aluminium foil and roast until they can be pierced with a fork. This takes about 1 hour, but depends on the beet size, so keep an eye on them.
Chop the cooked beets into quarters, then whip them into a purée using a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. (It doesn’t need to be like baby food, more like porridge in texture.) Reserve ½ cup of purée for this recipe, and then transfer the remainder to a freezer-friendly container. Freeze for another beet cake at a later date.
Reduce oven temp to 350°F. Oil a standard 8 ½ x 4 ½ -inch loaf pan and line with parchment paper.
In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Crack the egg into another mixing bowl and whisk until frothy. Pour in the melted butter and beat until incorporated. Add the maple syrup, honey and vanilla and beat until the mixture is smooth and glossy. Tip in ½ cup of beet purée and combine well.
Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and then fold in the sour cream. Fold together to eliminate lumps, but do not over-mix. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and spread until evenly distributed. Sprinkle the chopped chocolate on top.
Place the pan in the centre of the oven and bake for about 45-50 minutes. Do not open the door early or the cake may collapse in the centre. Test cake with a toothpick; it should come out mostly clean.
Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove cake from pan and cool completely. Cake will keep for up to four days in an airtight container. Cake is best served at room temperature.