Beetroot brownies
By Jane Hornby
Cooking time
Prep: 15 mins Cook: 40 mins Plus coolingSkill level
EasyServings
Makes 15-20With around half the fat of regular brownies, these are a slightly less guilty pleasure, but still have that intense chocolate hit
Nutrition and extra info
Additional info
- Freezable
Nutrition per serving
- kcalories
- 255
- protein
- 4g
- carbs
- 32g
- fat
- 13g
- saturates
- 7g
- fibre
- 2g
- sugar
- 24g
- salt
- 0.11g
Ingredients
- 500g whole raw beetroot (3-4 medium beets)
- 100g unsalted butter, plus extra for the tin
- 200g bar plain chocolate (70% cocoa)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 250g golden caster sugar
- 3 eggs
- 100g plain flour
- 25g cocoa powder
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Method
- Wear a pair of rubber gloves to stop your hands from staining, then top, tail and peel the beetroot – you’ll need about 400g flesh. Roughly chop and put into a large bowl. Add a splash of water, cover with cling film, then microwave on High for 12 mins or until tender.
- Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. While the beetroot cooks, butter then line a 20 x 30cm traybake or small roasting tin. Roughly chop the chocolate and cut the butter into cubes. Tip the cooked beetroot into a sieve, drain off any excess liquid, then put into a food processor or blender with the chocolate, butter and vanilla. Whizz until the mix is as smooth as you can get it. The chocolate and butter will melt as you do this.
- Put the sugar and eggs into a large bowl, then beat using an electric hand whisk until thick, pale and foamy, about 2 mins. Spoon the beetroot mix into the bowl (it won’t look too pretty at this stage, but bear with me), then use a large metal spoon to fold it into the whisked eggs. Try to conserve as much air in the mixture as you can. Sift in the flour and cocoa powder, then gently fold these in to make a smooth batter.
- Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 25 mins or until risen all over, with just the merest quiver under the centre of the crust when you shake the pan. Cool completely in the tin, then cut into squares.
Recipe from Good Food magazine, September 2010
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Comments, questions and tips
Comments
Great recipe! Grated the beetroot when cooled and squeezed out excess juice. Melted chocolate and butter separately , creamed the sugar (hlf caster & hlf brown) and eggs in a mixer, added the rest of the ingredients on slowest speed until combined , baked in a slow oven (150c) for just over an hour & topped with lime and cream cheese frosting when cooled....perfect!
I tried these last night, used 25g extra flower to avoid a soggy result just in case, but everything else I stuck to as per recipe and they turned out perfect. They were exactly the same colour as the ones above. I used dark bournville cocoa. while mixing the beetroot to liquidize it I used a table spoon of milk to get it mixing. I tried them with a friend once they cooled and we loved them. My new favourite dessert! Try it, you'll love them. I was a cheat and used the vacuum packed beetroot from Lidl, steamed them for ten minutes... no fuss.. less mess!
I tried these last night, used 25g extra flower to avoid a soggy result just in case, but everything else I stuck to as per recipe and they turned out perfect. They were exactly the same colour as the ones above. I used dark bournville cocoa. while mixing the beetroot to liquidize it I used a table spoon of milk to get it mixing. I tried them with a friend once they cooled and we loved them. My new favourite dessert! Try it, you'll love them. I was a cheat and used the vacuum packed beetroot from Lidl, steamed them for ten minutes... no fuss.. less mess!
I followed the recipe step by step but the result is awful. 25 minutes are funny - the cake (or what the hell is it) is melting once cut. And the taste of beetroot totally covered any sign of chocolate or cocoa. Yuck. Maybe if I've baked it a lot longer it would be done but I think the taste wouldn't be better. First Good Food recipe which is disappointing for me.
Made these because I want to try and use vegetables in my baking.
My husband, who is not a cake person, thought they were brilliant and said they were the best things I have made.
I sort of cheated by using pre-packed cooked beetroot but this made it easier and quicker than preparing it from scratch so not such a bad idea especially as I'll have to make them again and again!
I absolutely loved it! Beetroot gives a fine, red-fruit like after taste. If you don't know beetroot was used, you won't be able to guess it. Unless you tried this recipe before! The resulting brownies are lighter, more gentle in taste, but still very heavy and "brownie-like" in texture. I made them several times already and will make them again and again!