This week there are two beetroot in the veg box, huge bigger than tennis balls and by some mistake we’ve doubled up on the weekly shop. My mind immediately leaping to beetroot and chocolate as a way to cash in on the bonanza. Beetroot adds a dense moist texture with a sweetness that means we can use a little less sugar. This is great as a pudding served with a compote some ice cream or a spoon or two of Greek yoghurt.
Since buying a pressure cooking preparing beetroot has been a doddle. We typically put it on the potato setting and add a little extra water. If they are little bigger, they just need a little extra time, a nudge on the pressure dial and a couple of extra minutes.
20×30 shallow baking tin, greased and lined with baking parchment
Oven at 180°c, 350°f or Gas Mark 4
- Beetroot: 300g (cooked from fresh, to the point of being soft, peeled and finely grated)
- Butter unsalted: 250g roughly cubed for melting
- Dark chocolate: 300g broken into pieces
- Eggs: 4
- Caster Sugar: 250g
- Wholemeal self-raising flour: 200g
- Salt: a pinch of fine sea salt
Melt the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water. As soon as it starts to soften, reduce the heat and add the butter. Stir until it has melted.
Meanwhile beat the eggs and sugar together within an inch of their lives, a good five to ten mins depending on the speed of the beater. Looking for pale light and fluffy, doubled in volume.
With the beater on slow, add the melted chocolate mix into the eggs, just looking to combine the two. Sift the flour and salt together over the chocolate. Adding the wheat grains back in. Gently fold this in and when it’s nearly combined fold in the grated beetroot as well. Don’t overwork this as we are trying to keep the air in the mixture.
Scoop the mixture into the lined tin and bake for 25-30 minutes, remember this will carry on cooking when you take out the oven and we want them to stay moist.
Leave to cool in its tin on a wire rack, before cutting into squares.
