D is for Dark Chocolate and Beet Brownies

January 18, 2006

Beet Chocolate Brownies

When I first thought of this chocolate-beet combination, I was a little doubtful this was going to work at all. Des légumes avec mon chocolat préféré ? Ca va pas, non ? (Vegetables with my favorite chocolate, are you nuts?). Now I like dark chocolate a lot, and beets as well, so I thought : Pourquoi pas ? Browsing once more through my numerous cooking sheets lying all on the floor this am (I had the time, yes!) or on the living room chairs, my magazines and books, I discovered a recipe for Dark Chocolate and Beet Brownies (from Cuisine Gourmande). And because today is D Day on SlashFood, I decided to take the jump and make:

Dark Chocolate-Beetroot Brownies

The letter D for Dark Chocolate on D Day !

Here is what to do to make this little treat, if you are courageous enough! Come on. No need to be afraid! I just did a few adjustments to the recipe I had found, because I like my sweets to taste Dark chocolaty and less sweet.

Beet Chocolate Brownies

You need:

  • 3 oz (90 g) Dark chocolate (I used a 75 % cocoa dark chocolate)
  • 3.5 oz (100 g) flour
  • 3.5 oz (100 g) almond powder
  • 3 oz (90 g) sugar
  • 3 oz (90 g) butter (soft)
  • 4 eggs
  • 7 oz (200 g) shredded raw red beetroot
  • Vanilla extract
  • Confectioner sugar and cocoa for decoration

Steps

  • Start by peeling and shredding the beets. Set aside
  • Melt the chocolate in a double boiler.
  • Mix together (using a food processor, I use my Kitchen Aid Stand) the butter with the eggs, then add the sugar.
  • Mix until lighter, then add the chocolate, flour, almond powder, the beets and the vanilla extract, and mix well.
  • Butter a small mold (argh, grrrgrr, I cannot be consistent, mold, mould, you know what I mean! One of those things I just can not register) (I used a round mould but a square one works well) and placed greased parchment paper at the bottom)
  • Pour the preparation in it and bake in the oven for about 30 mns in a preheated oven, 350 F (180 C)

    • Note: Your brownies are cooked once the blade of a knife comes out dry after you insert the blade in the cake.

Anything with Dark Chocolate! I say : Yes! But one condition: only if the chocolate is dark enough, that is a minimum of 70%. I personally dislike Lindt 70% (leaves an after taste). I love Michel Cluizel, La Maison du Chocolat, NewTree. Amongst my favorites. With beets in the preparation, I was just happy. I tested it. Moist, sweet, but not too much.

Morale:

Could this be the French-American version of the English carrot cake, I wonder now! The reconciliation between the two stubborn bodies?

Et pourquoi pas! (And why not!)

These are the 3 words to remember from today’s lesson. (Béa, you are not teaching French anymore, stop it!)

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Tagged as: Cakes , Chocolate , Dessert
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33 Comments »

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  1. I think it’s a good idea, the dark chocolate and the beetroot. I want to try this recipe … Thank you.

    Comment by Fabienne — On January, 18th, 2006 at 2:29 pm

  2. what a discovery I bake a lot of brownies but never tried with beetroot
    no more beetroot season is over!!

    Merci Bea for sharing this
    Oh please mumble in francaise its ok
    at least am learning… I might go back to France early summer…

    Comment by sha — On January, 18th, 2006 at 3:26 pm

  3. Waouh! je me demande si la photo rend la couleur réelle ou si en vrai, c’est encore plus beau??!! Super idée en tout cas, il faut que j’essaie ça surtout que tu as ajusté la recette à mon goût!
    au fait, rien à voir, préfères-tu les commentaires en anglais?

    Comment by avital — On January, 18th, 2006 at 4:24 pm

  4. Amazing picture and recipe. Last week I made a beetroot cake in the same way I make my carrot cake and it was delicious. I would rather say that this cake would be a british version of the carrot cake but this is only my personal point of view.
    Bonne soirée.

    Comment by pascale — On January, 18th, 2006 at 4:41 pm

  5. Hi Fabienne,

    Glad you like it!

    Hi Sha,

    You are funny! No more beets for you? in Greece now?
    Coucou Avital,

    Les commentaires en francais ou en anglais, c’est comme tu preferes! ;-) Tu peux pratiquer ton anglais comme cela! ;-)

    Les couleurs sont bien comme cela, et c’est delicieux! ;-)

    Hi Pascale,

    Thanks for your nice note. You are right, it is certainly an English version of the carrot cake. But now I am wondering where brownies were first made. England? The States? They are certainly very popular here in the States! I should google it! Bonne soiree aussi!

    Comment by Béa — On January, 18th, 2006 at 5:50 pm

  6. I’m not a chocolate addict but the association between chocolate and beetroots seems interressant and the photography is terrific!

    Comment by Claire emma — On January, 18th, 2006 at 6:41 pm

  7. Interesting combination (I think they get some sugar substitutes from beets now)…so it would actually compliment the bitterness of the dark chocolate.

    Great photo!

    Comment by Kat — On January, 18th, 2006 at 7:01 pm

  8. Bea, this chocolate-beet cake looks stunning! Thank you for coming over to my blog. I’m happy to have found yours. And you’re doing great with the photography!

    Comment by shauna — On January, 18th, 2006 at 9:05 pm

  9. Bea, thanks for stopping by my Messy Cucina! I really like your blog and will be back! I’m going to make these brownines if only to sound like a genius when I tell everyone what kind they are!

    Comment by darla — On January, 18th, 2006 at 9:37 pm

  10. Hi Claire Emma,

    Thanks for your nice note. The combination is indeed surprising!

    Hi Kat,

    You are quite right, the sweetness of the beetroot replaces sugar. If you like them sweeter, just do 75 g chocolate and 100g sugar.

    Hi Shauna,

    Thanks for your nice note too. Your blog is a real nice discovery for me. Tons of great information!

    Hi Darla,

    Thanks for stopping by, I am glad you like my blog. Yes wouldn’t it be funny to serve this to people who hate beets (and there are many) and they tell they like it? Try more sugar of you are not too fond of dark chocolate. The original recipe was 75 g chocolate and 100 g sugar. Let me know.

    Bea

    Comment by Béa — On January, 18th, 2006 at 9:44 pm

  11. Last fall, I had similar great fun with Secret Ingredient Chocolate Cake!

    Comment by Alanna — On January, 19th, 2006 at 11:52 am

  12. Sorry – html goof — that link is Secret Ingredient Chocolate Cake.

    Comment by Alanna — On January, 19th, 2006 at 11:54 am

  13. Wow, what an unusual combination! Love beets and dark chocolate but would never have thought to combine them together in a cake.

    Comment by MM — On January, 19th, 2006 at 12:19 pm

  14. Wow, interesting combo. How did you keep your hands from turning pink??? I hate working with beets!

    Comment by Gerald — On January, 19th, 2006 at 11:55 pm

  15. Best thing about this recipe: Shred the beets and set aside.

    Far as I can tell that’s the only thing you do with them.

    Comment by Gustavo — On January, 20th, 2006 at 12:04 pm

  16. Hi Alanna,

    Nice recipe of yours! Looks good!

    Hi MM,

    Yes the beets and chocolate are unsual but really, if you are not told about the beets when eating, you might not be able to tell!

    Hi Gerald,

    Yes you get dirty hands, that’s for sure. But I just love beets, so ;-)

    Hi Gustavo,

    Beets in all forms, great choice!

    Comment by Béa — On January, 20th, 2006 at 1:00 pm

  17. Gustavo is right — there are no instructions for the shredded beets.

    Comment by Maureen — On January, 23rd, 2006 at 6:15 pm

  18. Ah sorry, I am getting it now. I corrected the instructions. You of course need to add the beets. Thanks Gustavo and Maureen.

    Comment by Béa — On January, 23rd, 2006 at 6:37 pm

  19. Tried it, ate it, loved it!! ;-)

    Comment by gigi — On October, 10th, 2006 at 9:03 am

  20. [...] Ok, now you know why I like beets but you’re probably still wondering why I would decided to combine them with chocolate and turn them into a muffin.  Well I can’t exactly take all the credit for the idea.  Once I realized that I no longer hate beets, I couldn’t wait to find some new recipes to try out.  I started scouring the internet and was surprised to find numerous recipes for Chocolate Beet Cake.  WHAT???  I certainly wasn’t expecting that.  But the recipes are everywhere.  Then I made another discovery.  One of my favorite food blogs, La Tartine Gourmande,  also featured a Chocolate and Beet recipe.  I decided that if Bea thinks it’s a good combination, then it probably is!  [...]

    Pingback by What Makes These Dark Chocolate Muffins Special? Beet’s Me. « Pinch My Salt — On October, 28th, 2006 at 11:12 am

  21. [...] D is for Dark Chocolate and Beet Brownies by La Tartine Gourmande recipe i will try this weekend, got some beetroot in the weekly box (tags: food recipes) [...]

    Pingback by designswarm thoughts » Blog Archive » links for 2007-08-22 — On August, 23rd, 2007 at 3:23 am

  22. I’m looking to start a food cart with Quinoa and related gluten and wheat-free menu.
    Your blog has made me even more determined to get started.

    Comment by WB Pila Laronal,Jr. — On September, 19th, 2007 at 10:24 pm

  23. Hi Bea, I’m crazy for beetroot and have never made dessert with it, so I am eager to try this.

    p/s: I mentioned your brownie in my beetroot post.

    Comment by Nora — On November, 15th, 2007 at 10:53 pm

  24. Daughter mistakely bought block of 90% callebaut chocolate. What does one make with this block. Hate to waste it, but it can’t be eaten plain. Where to find recipes using this 90% dark chocolate?

    Comment by arleen szczypinski — On February, 18th, 2008 at 3:37 pm

  25. Hi,
    this is in regards to the question above regarding the 90% dark chocolate. You should be able to use it in anything which calls for unsweetened chocolate – there are a lot of recipes for that. I just made a batch of espresso brownies this weekend (twice actually) using unsweetened chocolate, from an internet recipe. Came out absolutely yummy (thats why had to make it twice in 3 days!)

    Comment by Julia — On March, 17th, 2008 at 2:58 pm

  26. I tried this and I’m sorry to say, it was pretty unpleasant. It really tasted of beetroot. I like beetroot, but it really spoiled the chocolate flavour.

    Comment by Angela — On August, 17th, 2008 at 5:00 am

  27. [...] last, but certainly not least, there’s the beet as the darling of the dessert tray. The Dark Chocolate and Beet Brownie at LaTartineGourmande is a deep, dark, satisfying creation. And, like carrot cake, it allows the [...]

    Pingback by FoodieView Blog » Recipe Roundup: Three Words for Obama: Just “Beet” It — On February, 16th, 2009 at 2:43 pm

  28. Bea, I love this flavor combination…and the photos totally have my mouthwatering! We are so excited to have it (and the photo) included in this week’s FoodieView Recipe Roundup! Thank you!

    Comment by Michele @ FoodieView — On February, 17th, 2009 at 4:36 pm

  29. Has anyone converted this into an American scale? I don’t have a scale for weighing the ingredients, but would love to make it… cups, teaspoons, anyone?

    Comment by Anna — On September, 19th, 2009 at 1:04 pm

  30. What exact SIZE is your “small mould?” 8″ x 8″??? Or half of that? Thanks!!!

    Comment by Michelle — On September, 30th, 2009 at 11:18 pm

  31. Hi Michelle,
    8 x 8 would be fine.

    Comment by Béa — On October, 1st, 2009 at 11:04 am

  32. [...] Dark chocolate and beet brownies from La Tartine Gourmande [...]

    Pingback by beets (roundup edition) — On October, 11th, 2009 at 1:18 am

  33. This is the first cake I made from a recipe! And it’s great! Light, not too sweet, chocolate, my favorite beets, no baking powder (desperately looking for the recipes without it)… Maybe I will add some alcohol next time. Do you think it makes sense? what would you suggest? You see, I cannot stop changing recipes… it’s stronger than me.

    Comment by Margotka • ILLUCUCINA — On November, 2nd, 2009 at 8:25 am

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