Chocolate Beetroot Cupcakes
Savour the unique blend of rich chocolate and earthy roasted beetroot in these indulgent cupcakes. The beetroot's natural sweetness enhances the deep cocoa flavour and adds a moist, tender texture. Finished with a luscious frosting, each bite offers a delightful surprise, combining indulgence with a playful twist on a classic dessert.
Servings: 12 cupcakes
Calories: 448kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
Roasted beetroot
- 3 medium raw beetroot
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
Chocolate beetroot batter
- 50 grams cocoa powder
- 225 grams self-raising flour
- 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 180 grams light brown soft sugar
- 125 grams butter
- 100 grams dark chocolate 70% cocoa solids
- 3 large free-range eggs
Beetroot frosting
- 300 grams icing sugar
- 4 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp full fat milk
- 1 tbsp roasted beetroot puree
- sprinkles for decoration
Instructions
To roast the beetroot
- Preheat oven to 200 C/ 425 F
- Wash 3 medium raw beetroot thoroughly under cold water to remove any traces of dirt. Leave at 2-3 cm of stalk at the top and the root tail intact.
- Place the beetroot on a baking tray and drizzle with 2 tbsp sunflower oil.
- Roast for 90 minutes, turning every 20-30 minutes, until the beetroot is tender. A knife will slide in and out of the beetroot easily when it is ready.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
- When cooled, the skin will slip off. Discard the skin, top and bottom, and place the whole beetroot in a blender. Puree. You will likely need to use the blender tamper to keep things moving.
To make the batter
- Preheat oven to 180 C/ 350 F. Line a 12-hole cupcake tin with large paper cupcake cases.
- Sift 225 grams self-raising flour, 180 grams light brown soft sugar, 50 grams cocoa powder and 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl.
- Break 100 grams dark chocolate into small pieces in a heat proof bowl, add 125 grams butter and suspend over a pan of barely simmering water. Usually I boil the kettle, pour it into a pan, place the bowl on top and leave it off the heat, stirring once or twice, until it has melted.
- Stir 250 grams of room temperature roasted beetroot into the dry ingredients along with the chocolate mixture and 3 large free-range eggs, beaten. Stir until just combined.
- Spoon into the paper cupcake cases. They will be full, but rest assured it will be ok.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes in the centre of the oven until a skewer, inserted into the centre of a cake comes out clean.
- Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
To frost and decorate
- To make the frosting, sift 300 grams icing sugar into a bowl and beat with 4 tbsp butter, softened, 2 tbsp full fat milk and 1 tbsp roasted beetroot puree until it reaches the desired consistency. I use a food processor for this.
- Using a disposable piping bag, pipe swirls of frosting on the top of the cupcakes. Decorate with sprinkles as desired
- Store in an airtight container. Cupcakes will keep lovely for a few days.
Notes
The recipe was adapted from the chocolate beetroot cake recipe found in Green & Black's Chocolate Recipes book (2003).
Nutrition
Calories: 448kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 79mg | Sodium: 202mg | Potassium: 325mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 44g | Vitamin A: 466IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 47mg | Iron: 2mg