Friday, May 06, 2011

Chocolate Cake with a Twist: with Beetroot

"Chocolate is a perfect food, as wholesome as it is delicious, a beneficent restorer of exhausted power. It is the best friend of those engaged in literary pursuits." - Baron Justus von Liebig
I love experimenting with new ideas and this is once such successful experiment. After all the laid back Easter break getting back to work is kinda hard...esp with the weather so dull after the holidays, it sort of affects your mood. Well, frankly all I needed was a chocolate pick-me-up..nope not the emergency boyfriend replacement kit..but something moist and chocolatey baked at home. Something easy to whip up...like a simple dump-it-all-in-the-processor-cake. "S" absolutely loves the carrot cake I make... Infact I think it is okay to say that it's the only cake he likes and goes for a second helping.Being a die-hard chocoholic I have been trying hard to convert him (with little luck). So this is my umpteeth #attempt to make him a chocoholic..This super moist chocolate beetroot cake should melt even the stoniest of hearts. 
Dont be intimidated by using vegetable in your cake, trust me the beetroot in this cake is almost non-existent, but renders its sweetness, deep colour and moistness to the cake. 
Both of us are really trying to lose some weight and for some reason this cake (maybe because it has beetroot) allows you to indulge with a little less guilty feeling! I managed to make my friends eat the cake and then revealed the secret ingredient...but all of them loved it! You could skip the ganache and make a lovely mascarpone icing just like the one for carrot cakes and maybe colour it deep pink.





Chocolate Beetroot Cake
Ingredients

Self Raising Flour - 175g
Muscavado Sugar - 150g
Caster Sugar - 100g
Baking Powder - 1/2tsp
Cocoa Powder - 50g
Chopped Dark Chocolate - 75g, melted
Pinch Salt
Roasted Hazelnuts - 100g+extra for topping
Beetroot grated or cooked - 2 (abt300g)
Oil - 180ml
Sour Cream- 2tbsp
Large Eggs - 3
Vanilla Extract - 1tsp
Method:
Preheat oven to 180C. Grease and line a 8" springform tin with parchment paper.Whiz all the ingredients in a food processor, until you have a smooth and creamy texture. Pour and scrape the cake mixture into the prepared form and bake for 45-60min or until the skewer inserted comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool completely in the tin.
For the Chocolate Rum Ganache
Ingredients
Dark Chocolate 150g, chopped
Heavy Cream 80ml
Dark Rum 30ml (optional)
Method:
In a saucepan heat the cream until just slightly warm. Pour the warm cream on chopped chocolate and whisk. Slowly stir in the rum. The mixture will thicken as it cools. Using a metal offset spatula spread the ganache on top of the cake as desired.

8 comments:

Alex Evelyn said...

Wow, beetroot, chocolate and rum, what an amazing combination, perfect for a friday treat. I've got a great beetroot and horseradish relish recipe on my site that I made a few weeks ago if you are a beetroot lover - www.chutneyandspice.com
Enjoy eating your cake!

Debugcooking said...

oh a Relish...yes Yes..I do love humble Beetroot!

Jyothi said...

Beetroot in itself is a treat for me, any given day, but coupled with chocolate and rum, what could be better! :) I've used beets to make cupcakes before, but never thought of adding chocolate! Thanks for the lovely recipe, and the great photographs!

My Kitchen Antics said...

hey arthi...i tried out this recipe. Did everything accordingly, but the cake just didnt rise. I mean it was flat and like a fudge :(
i wonder where i went wrong..you think the baking powder should have been doubled or somethin??
but taste wise it was still nice...do let me know.
Thanks

Unknown said...

This sounds luscious! I did some chocolate beetroot truffles from Harry Eastwood's veggie cake book once but cake sounds much better.

Debugcooking said...

Nisha..the cake itself doesnt rise very much to be honest...it is quite fudgy moist and dense...due to the beetroot just like any fruit cake...hope this helps!!

Anonymous said...

Beetroot is one of my favourite veggies, and chocolate cake is always a winner, so this is a great combo! It looks superdelicious, I love that it´s so dark...

And I always love cakes with a healthy alibi! ;)

Uchaf said...

Nisha, check the date on your baking powder!

Post a Comment

Design © 2011 Laura Jane Designs