- 180 ml sunflower oil, plus more for greasing
- 190 g self-raising flour
- 60 g cocoa powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 250 g caster sugar
- 250 g beetroot, cooked
- 3 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- For the icing
- 250 g icing sugar
- reserved beetroot juice
- pink food colouring, optional
- 25 g white chocolate, broken into pieces
- 25 g dark chocolate, borken into pieces
Chocolate/beetroot Cake
Ingredients
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC/fan 170ºC/Gas 4.
2. Lightly oil a 23cm diameter, 7.5cm deep, round cake tin and line the base with baking parchment.
3. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa and bicarbonate of soda and stir in the sugar.
4. In a food processor, purée the beetroot, then scrape it into a sieve set over a bowl and push out the juices with the back of a spoon. Reserve the juices for the icing.
5. Tip the beetroot pulp back into the food processor, with the motor running, add the eggs and vanilla, then slowly pour in the oil. Mix until blended.
6. In a mixing bowl make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, pour in the beetroot mixture and, with a large spoon, gently fold together.
7. Pour into the tin and bake for 45–50 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
8. Remove the cake from the oven, leave it for 5–10 minutes in the tin, then turn it out on to a wire rack until completely cold.
For the icing
9. Sift the icing sugar into a bowl. Stir in a few drops of the reserved beetroot juice or pink food colouring depending on how bright you want the colour. The icing should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. If not, add water, drop by drop, until you achieve the correct consistency.
10. Turn the cake over, so the base becomes a flat top. Pour the icing over the cake and allow to dry for at least 1 hour.
11. Place a small heatproof bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water, making sure the base of the bowl does not touch the water. Add the white chocolate to the bowl and heat until it melts. Cool slightly, then spoon into a piping bag.
12. Repeat with the dark chocolate. Snip the very ends of both bags.
In these challenging times…
The Staff Canteen team are taking a different approach to keeping our website independent and delivering content free from commercial influence. Our Editorial team have a critical role to play in informing and supporting our audience in a balanced way. We would never put up a paywall – The Staff Canteen is open to all and we want to keep bringing you the content you want; more from younger chefs, more on mental health, more tips and industry knowledge, more recipes and more videos. We need your support right now, more than ever, to keep The Staff Canteen active. Without your financial contributions this would not be possible.
Over the last 16 years, The Staff Canteen has built what has become the go-to platform for chefs and hospitality professionals. As members and visitors, your daily support has made The Staff Canteen what it is today. Our features and videos from the world’s biggest name chefs are something we are proud of. We have over 560,000 followers across Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube and other social channels, each connecting with chefs across the world. Our editorial and social media team are creating and delivering engaging content every day, to support you and the whole sector - we want to do more for you.
A single coffee is more than £2, a beer is £4.50 and a large glass of wine can be £6 or more.
Support The Staff Canteen from as little as £1 today. Thank you.
