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Naturally-sweetened and inherently moist, this chocolate beet snack cake features winter beets – peels and all, in a comforting treat.
The winter months don’t have to feel limiting when you’re a seasonal eater. It’s the perfect time to take shelter in the kitchen and pack the oven full of roast vegetables and baked goods.
It seems like my stove is always blistering hot, ready to receive a steady rotation of breakfast muffins and sheet pan suppers.
For years now this Chocolate Beet Snack Cake has been a family favourite, as much for its deep flavour as the sentiment of home it evokes. I know you’re going to love it, too.
Chocolate Beet Snack Cake
This is the cake that is cooling on the counter when my children arrive home from school. It’s also their requisite birthday celebration cake, served up in bundt form.
Naturally sweet, inherently moist, you wouldn’t guess that this cake features winter beets – peels and all. Maple syrup balances out the slight bitterness of the beet peels and the dark cocoa plays well with both.
Bake this recipe once, and you’ll want to add it to the family dessert repertoire for generations to come.
Chocolate Beet Snack Cake is a treat that only improves with age! Make it well in advance of afternoon tea or Valentine’s Day.
TIP: Cook the beets ahead of time and this stir-together cake will be in the oven in minutes. Note that I give directions for extra roasted beet purée, as you will certainly be making this recipe again.
Kitchn has a step-by-step guide for roasting perfectly tender beets every time. This is more or less the method I used. Beet puree can be frozen, so dish up any extra in 1/2-cup portions and freeze for another baking day.
Chocolate Beet Snack Cake
A naturally sweetened dark chocolate beet snack cake that is a comforting family favourite.
4.81 from 21 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Desserts
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Vegetarian
Essential Ingredient: Chocolate
Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes minutes
Cooling time: 10 minutes minutes
Total Time: 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes
Servings: 6 people
Calories: 479kcal
Ingredients
- 3 medium beets scrubbed
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup dark cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 medium egg room temperature
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/2 cup liquid honey
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1/3 cup dark chocolate chopped
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.
Nutrition
Serving: 50g | Calories: 479kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 78mg | Sodium: 375mg | Potassium: 452mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 43g | Vitamin A: 625IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 68mg | Iron: 3mg
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Aimee
Cooking has always been Aimée's preferred recreational activity, creative outlet, and source of relaxation. After nearly ten years in the professional cooking industry, she went from restaurant to RSS by trading her tongs and clogs for cookie cutters and a laptop, serving as editor here at Simple Bites. Her first book, Brown Eggs and Jam Jars - Family Recipes from the Kitchen of Simple Bites, was published in February 2015.
