Beetroot chocolate cake with raspberry creme fraiche by Carina Contini
This chocolate cake has a fabulous moist texture, similar to a Sacher Torte but without any ground almonds. It’s a great choice if you’re looking for a slightly more unusual cake. My children love sweets but they don’t really like sweet cakes. The beetroot in this recipe helps remove the sweetness, so the children really go for it.
Taken from Carina Contini’s Kitchen Garden Cookbook.
For more information visit www.contini.com
Ingredients: Serves 6-8
225g 70% Valrhona dark chocolate
125g unsalted butter, softened
225g golden caster sugar
½ vanilla pod
225g cooked beetroot, peeled and coarsely grates
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
225g self-raising flour, sieved
For the raspberry cream:
125g raspberries
250g crème fraiche
squeeze of lemon juice
For the chocolate cream:
200g 70% cocoa Valrhona dark chocolate
25g unsalted butter
100g double cream
To decorate:
200g mixed berries (such as raspberries, blackberries and small strawberries)
zest of one orange
Method
1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas 4 and line a 26cm cake tin with baking parchment.
2 Break up the chocolate and melt it in a heatproof glass or ceramic bowl over a bain-marie. Do not let the simmering water touch the bottom of the bowl.
3 In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Split the vanilla pod lengthways and scrape out the seeds with a sharp knife. Slowly beat the melted chocolate, vanilla seeds and then the grated beetroot into the butter and sugar mixture. Finally, fold in the eggs and flour.
4 Transfer to the cake tin and bake for 40 minutes in the preheated oven until firm to the touch. Remove from the oven, cool for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack.
5 For the raspberry cream, squash the raspberries in a bowl, then fold in the crème fraiche and lemon juice. Set aside.
6 For the chocolate cream, break up the chocolate and melt it with the butter in a heatproof glass or ceramic bowl over a bain-marie. As soon as the water in the pan comes to the boil, remove the pan and bowl from the heat. Leave the chocolate to melt. Try not to touch it until it has all melted, then gently fold in the cream until the mixture is glossy.
7 When the cake is cool, use a spatula to spread the chocolate cream on top and over the sides.
8 Decorate with the mixed berries and a sprinkle of orange zest. Serve with the raspberry cream on the side.
In association with Taste Communications.
www.tastecommunications.co.uk
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