Nigel Slater's Extremely Moist Chocolate-Beet Cake
Top off thick slices with crème fraîche and poppy seeds.
Beets -- who knew?
Lightly butter an 8-inch springform cake pan.
Line the pan with a round of parchment paper, and preheat the oven to 350℉.
Boil whole and unpeeled beets in unsalted water until tender. After draining and letting them cool under running water, peel them and cut off their stems and roots.
Slice them into chunks before processing them in a food processor.
Once processed, the beet chunks should be in a course purée.
Break the chocolate into small pieces.
Over a pot of simmering water, melt the chocolate in a small bowl without stirring.
Before the chocolate melts completely, pour hot espresso over the chocolate and stir only once.
Sift flour, baking powder, and cocoa together in a bowl.
Add butter cut into small chunks to the chocolate mixture, and gently nudge the butter under the surface of the chocolate to soften it.
Separate the egg yolks and the egg whites, leaving the egg whites in a large mixing bowl. Stir the egg yolks together.
Take the bowl of chocolate off of the simmering bowl of water. Stir the butter delicately but quickly until it was completely melted into the chocolate.
After letting sit for a few minutes, quickly and evenly stir in the egg yolks until they blend into the chocolate mixture.
Fold in the beet purée.
Whisk the egg whites until they're stiff.
Once the egg whites have stiffened, fold in the sugar.
Gently fold the egg white and sugar mixture into the chocolate mixture.
Finally, fold in the sifted flour and cocoa.
Once mixed, pour it into the cake pan and place in the oven. Decrease the temperature to 325℉ and bake for forty minutes.
The edge of the cake should feel spongy, and the inner part of the cake should still jiggle if the pan is lightly shaken.
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Author Notes: Step aside, red velvet. It just so happens that the deep pink earthiness of a beet is surprisingly well suited for bittersweet chocolate. Crushed beets are also an inexpensive way to make a cake achingly moist, nearly molten. And you don't need all that red food coloring after all. Adapted slightly from Tender by Nigel Slater (Ten Speed Press, 2011). - Genius Recipes
Serves 8
- 8 ounces fresh beets
- 7 ounces fine dark chocolate (70%)
- 1/4 cup hot espresso
- 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 3 tablespoons good quality cocoa powder
- 5 eggs
- Scant 1 cup superfine sugar
- Crème fraîche and poppy seeds, to serve
- Lightly butter an 8-inch springform cake pan and line the base with a round of baking parchment. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cook the beets, whole and unpeeled, in boiling unsalted water. Depending on their size, they will be tender within 30 to 40 minutes. Young ones may take slightly less. Drain them, let them cool under running water, then peel them, slice off their stem and root, and process in a blender or food processor until a coarse purée.
- Melt the chocolate, broken into small pieces, in a small bowl set over a pot of simmering water. Don’t stir.
- When the chocolate looks almost melted, pour the hot espresso over it and stir once. Cut the butter into small pieces -- the smaller the better -- and add to the melted chocolate. Push the butter down under the surface of the chocolate with a spoon (as best you can) and leave to soften.
- Sift together the flour, baking powder and cocoa. Separate the eggs, putting the whites in a large mixing bowl. Stir the yolks together.
- Now, working quickly but gently, remove the bowl of chocolate from the heat and stir until the butter has melted into the chocolate. Let sit for a few minutes, then stir in the egg yolks. Do this quickly, mixing firmly and evenly so the eggs blend into the mixture. Fold in the beets. Whisk the egg whites until stiff, then fold in the sugar. Firmly but gently, fold the beaten egg whites and sugar into the chocolate mixture. A large metal spoon is what you want here; work in a deep, figure-eight movement but take care not to over-mix. Lastly, fold in the flour and cocoa.
- Transfer quickly to the prepared cake pan and put in the oven, decreasing the hea immediately to 325 degrees F. Bake for 40 minutes. The rim of the cake will feel spongy, the inner part should still wobble a little when gently shaken. Test with a cake tester or toothpick too -- if it is still gooey in the center, continue baking just until moist crumbs cling to the tester.
- Set the cake aside to cool (it will sink a tad in the center), loosening it around the edges with a thin icing spatula after half an hour or so. It is not a good idea to remove the cake from its pan until it is completely cold. Serve in thick slices, with crème fraîche and poppy seeds.
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
Tags: birthday cake, Red Velvet, red velvet cake
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2 months ago Hema
Tried this cake.. it came out quite well.. super moist.. tasty (added a couple of spoons of sugar more), beautiful texture... except that it was VERY OILY.. I used unsalted butter n the measurement stated.. but don't know what went wrong.. :(
but other than the oily part.. we loved it.. :)
Enjoying the cake (with help of kitchen towels!) :*
P.S. added a spoon full of vanilla essence.. wanted to make sure the cake doesn't smell eggy! Hope this dint make it oily!:O
2 months ago millicent
YUM YUM YUM. This cake took forever to make, cost a mini-fortune and used so many bowls, whisks, pots and pans but was definitely worth the wait. This cake was phenomenal as it was so moist and rich. It disappeared within a few hours which is always a good sign. As I have chickens that lay too many eggs, and grow a lot of beetroot I spent my money on quality (and expensive) chocolate and cocoa. I am always one to eat off the land but when I do buy something... always buy the best. Good quality chocolate and cocoa definitely give this cake its extra edge. Thanks
3 months ago Indrani
I love this cake! What a great recipe. I had to bake it an extra 15 minutes or so like some of the other commenters but it stayed really moist. I had been thinking of my mother's Sacher torte, so I sliced it into two layers and sandwiched it with apricot jam. Then, just because, I frosted it witha a slightly sweetened whipped cream and cream cheese frosting. It may be my favorite cake ever -- as chocolatey as a flourless soufflé type cake but not as dense and heavy. Thank you!
3 months ago Stacey Snacks
I posted this cake on my blog yesterday........I didn't do the creme fraiche, but Martha's chocolate ganache icing.
It was wonderful and moist! We loved it!
http://staceysnacksonline...
3 months ago gingerroot
Fussy as promised, this cake really delivers on flavor and texture. What a lovely chocolate cake! I made it for a goodbye party for friends moving to London. After all the oohs and ahhs my 5 yo son announced the secret ingredient with a big grin. I used a 9 inch springform and had no trouble with the cooking time - it was perfect at 40 min (though my oven runs a touch hot). Thanks for another fabulous genius recipe.
3 months ago gingerroot
One more thing...one of our friends recently learned he is lactose intolerant (though he can have butter) so we skipped the creme fraiche for a simple dusting of confectioner's sugar - it was perfect.
4 months ago steph battershill
the most heavenly, divine, scrumptiously delicious cake EVER. WITH creme fraiche and poppy seeds, an absolute must. My partner, my 11 and 13 year old and myself had a piece and then stared reverently at it for about 40 minutes - desperate to tuck in but afraid to make it disappear. I didn't add the extra couple of tbsp of butter and used 3/4 of a cup of sugar - a sacred cake to us
4 months ago Leighodo
could you help me with the cup measures... do you know what they are in grams or ml's? thanks
4 months ago Anna H
I just wanted to say thank you for such a great recipe! I made it tonight and it was lovely - rich, but not too rich; moist and dense without being heavy; the perfect amount of sweetness. I used a 9inch springform since that's all I had and it took 45 minutes to bake. I'll definitely be making this again!
5 months ago jillianleedy
I love this cake. Made it with cream cheese frosting instead of the creme fraiche. It wasn't as healthy but it sure was yummy! Beets are delicious. This cake has changed my entire concept of what I now look for in red velvet cake.
5 months ago mschrank
Very good...almost like a flourless chocolate cake, but more cake-like with the small bit of flour. Nobody tasted beet at all...not sure what dickensthedog did to make theirs so overpowering. The recipe is a bit intimidating, with the "as best you can," "firmly but gently" (say what?) and "transfer quickly" phrases. I may have over-baked a bit...the toothpick tester still showed wet batter several minutes after the inner part no longer wobbled when gently shaken. I ended up baking it almost 65 minutes. Still, quite moist and will make it again.
6 months ago dickensthedog
I am sorry to say that this was not a winner for us. The flavor of the beets overpowered the chocolate flavor. We served it to guests last night, and no one liked it; no one even finished it. And, as my dear Aunt Muriel would have said, it was "a patchke" (Yiddish for a lot of work to make), and between the cocoa, beets, and melted chocolate, there was a lot of clean up to do as well.
6 months ago pcairic
Yummy!!!
It's crème fraîche, not crème frâiche. The little hat (circumflex accent) goes on the i.
You can also do without, according to the 1990 orthographic reform.
(full disclosure: my mother tongue is French, and no, French people didn't invent the fries)
6 months ago Kristen Miglore
Kristen is the Senior Editor of Food52
Thanks for letting us know! Not sure how that hat went rogue, but it's fixed now.
7 months ago Rick's Favorites
Made your cake yesterday for the first time taste good but is very dry. What causes it to be so dry? I expected it to be very moist with all the beets and chocolate. Made exactly to your directions.
6 months ago Kristen Miglore
Kristen is the Senior Editor of Food52
I'm very sorry (and surprised) to hear that the cake was dry! What type of pan did you use? And what did the tester look like when you pulled the cake from the oven? Thanks for letting us know.
7 months ago Rick's Favorites
Made your cake yesterday for the first time taste good but is very dry. What causes it to be so dry? I expected it to be very moist with all the beets and chocolate. Made exactly to your directions.
7 months ago HFog
like a previous poster, i had to bake it an additional 20 minutes and even so still it was a little goopy.
7 months ago T. Renea
I made this recipe this weekend for my sons 21st birthday. I have an garden and have beets pretty much year round. I made cup cakes and it was wonderful. One of the most involved cakes I've made but Wonderful! Of course everyone loved them too until they found out the secret. I plan on making them again but next time I may use one 70% and one 50% chocolate bar. Thanks for the great recipe and I cant wait to try another one.
7 months ago T. Renea
I made this recipe this weekend for my sons 21st birthday. I have an garden and have beets pretty much year round. I made cup cakes and it was wonderful. One of the most involved cakes I've made but Wonderful! Of course everyone loved them too until they found out the secret. I plan on making them again but next time I may use one 70% and one 50% chocolate bar. Thanks for the great recipe and I cant wait to try another one.
7 months ago dina2470
i got 4 beets at the farmer's market but had no way to weigh them. about how many/what size beets is 8 oz of beets? and can i measure them (1 c.) after they are cooked and pureed? don't want to mess this up! thanks ( :
7 months ago Kristen Miglore
Kristen is the Senior Editor of Food52
I always ended up with 2 1/2 to 3 smallish beets -- 1 cup of puree should work!
7 months ago Barbara Linville
Now do you make CremeFraiche and poppy seeds frosting?
7 months ago Kristen Miglore
Kristen is the Senior Editor of Food52
You can buy creme fraiche at the store (or substitute sour cream -- lightly sweeten it if you like): just spoon it on and sprinkle poppy seeds on top! Easy, right?
7 months ago Barbara Linville
Now do you make CremeFraiche and poppy seeds frosting?