Chocolate and beetroot, an unlikely match I thought at first… until I discovered how delightful this pair truly are together. Fudgey and chocolatey rich with a very pleasurable earthy beetroot aftertaste, this cake is as indulgent as it is pleasurable. And hey, it’s got veggies in it, so it can’t be that bad for you 😉
You won’t forget this one in a hurry. Do yourself a favour.
INGREDIENTS
400g good quality dark chocolate, broken up into pieces
6 eggs, separated
150g caster sugar
250g beetroot, very finely grated
100ml thickened cream, whisked to soft peaks
75g almond meal
butter, for greasing pan
good quality cocoa powder and double cream, to serve
METHOD
- Preheat oven to 170 degrees C. Melt chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water until smooth. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, whisk yolks and 2/3 of the sugar in an electric mixer until pale and creamy (3-5 minutes). Add melted chocolate and grated beetroot, stir to combine and set aside.
- Whisk egg whites in an electric mixer to soft peaks, add remaining sugar and whisk until smooth and glossy. Fold cream and egg whites through chocolate mixture, then fold through almond meal.
- Spoon into a 22cm round watertight cake tin, buttered and lined with baking paper. Place in a roasting pan and then pour enough boiling water to come halfway up the sides of the tin. Bake for 45 minutes then reduce oven to 150 degrees C and bake until cake springs back when lightly pressed (approximately 30 minutes).
- Turn off the oven and cool cake in the oven for 20 minutes. Run a knife around the sides and cool pan for another half hour before turning out. Dust with cocoa powder (through a sieve) and serve with cream on the side.
Thermomix Instructions
- Follow step 1 as above.
- Put egg whites into a thoroughly clean and dry Thermomix bowl. Whip on speed 3.5 for 2-3 minutes or until soft peaks form (keep an eye on them). Add 1/3 of the sugar and whisk until smooth and glossy (speed 3.5 for another 15-30 seconds). Scrape out into a bowl and set aside.
- Prepare cream if you haven’t already done so. Add cream to Thermomix bowl and whip on speed 3.5 for about 30 seconds or until soft peaks form. Scrape out cream into a bowl and set aside.
- Peel beetroot and chop into large chunks and put into Thermomix bowl. Chop on speed 5 for 3 seconds and then speed 8 for 5-10 seconds until beetroot is very finely chopped. Scrape out into a large mixing bowl and set aside.
- Add egg yolks and remaining sugar to the Thermomix bowl and mix on speed 4.5 for about 3-5 minutes or until mixture is pale and creamy. Add melted chocolate and beetroot and beat on speed 4 for about 20 seconds or until just combined. Turn out mixture into the large mixing bowl you had the beetroot in earlier.
- Fold egg whites and cream into the chocolate mixture. Then fold through the almond meal.
- Follow steps 4 and 5 as above.
Sign up to our newsletter Pantry Notes today to have recipes and more delivered straight to your inbox.