cake – Eat Wyoming

Beet Chocolate Cake

Chef Leah Hays

Make your true love's heart skip a beat with this luscious beetroot chocolate cake. The depth flavor comes through with an easy beet puree. Eat your colors with a little chocolatey goodness.

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Prep Time 40

Cook Time 1

Cooling/Decorating Time 1 30

Total Time 3 10

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Eastern European, German

Ingredients

Cake Batter

200 g beet root medium, washed about 2 (or 3 small)
¼ cup hot water
½ cup cocoa powder
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
½ cup local honey
½ cup milk
3 each eggs lightly whisked
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 ½ cups self-raising flour sifted

Cream Cheese Icing

1 cup icing sugar sifted
5 oz cream cheese

Chocolate ganache

1½ cup chocolate chopped or chips, your choice of dark or milk
9 oz cream

Instructions

Cake Batter

Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush a 8" round spring form cake pan with the melted butter to lightly grease. Line the base with non-stick parchment paper.
Cut the top and bottoms off of the beet roots, lightly oil, wrap in foil and bake until an inserted knife comes out of the roots easily. Let cool slightly and the peels should come right off with your hand, no peeler required.
Place cooked beets, hot water and cocoa powder in a food processor and blend until smooth.
Add the sugar, honey and eggs, and mix until smooth.
Combine the milk, oil and vanilla in a liquid measuring cup and reserve.
Place your beet mixture in a mixing bowl and fold in half the flour and then half the milk mixture until just combined. Repeat with the remaining flour and then the remaining milk mixture.
Pour the cake mixture into the prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven for 55-60 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Set aside for 5 minutes and then turn onto a wire rack to cool.
For a little valentine's flair, consider using a 4 inch round pan and a 4 in square pan. Split the batter in two even amounts. Once baked and cooled, cut the round cake in half to create two half circles. Place these on a cake pan with the square positioned like a diamond, on the top two edges, creating a heart shape!

Cream Cheese Icing

Whip the room temperature cream cheese until light and fluffy. On low gradually add the powdered sugar and whip until fluffy and stiff peaks form.
This is a great place to add a bit of raspberry extract, cherry liqueur, brandy, or whatever you fancy. Use as a filling or topping.

Chocolate Ganache

Pour the cream into a medium pot and heat on low it until it is not quite boiling, take care not to scald. You’ll know it’s ready when bubbles start to form around the edge of the pot.
Remove from the heat and pour over the chocolate in a heat proof mixing bowl. Let stand for 2 minutes, then stir until the chocolate is fully melted into the cream, this should be smooth and shiny. Don't fret if it doesn't come together right away, once the chocolate emulsifies with the fat of the cream it will become smooth melty and delicious.
Use as a filling or topping.

Notes

Consider using fresh fruits like raspberries or strawberries on top. Get a bit more festive with honey roasted beets cut out in heart shapes!

Keyword beetroot, beets, eat the rainbow, secret veggies, valentine’s day menu

Crispy Bean Cakes

Chef Leah Burback

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

rest time 5

Total Time 30

Course Appetizer, Breakfast, Main Course, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine American, Eastern European, French, Latin American, Peasant

Servings 4 servings

Equipment

food processor
Spatula
Frying pan

Ingredients

2 cups Black Beans cooked (or 1 can)
as needed bean pot liquor or veggie stock
1 cup Oat Flour GF Harvest
1 cup Rolled Oats GF Harvest or cooked quinoa
as needed Bread Crumbs or puffed quinoa cereal
as needed Oil or ghee optional, if you fry them
1 ½ tbsp Flax Seeds ground
1 ½ tsp Salt
1 tsp Smoked Paprika
1 tsp Garlic powder
1 tsp Onion powder

Instructions

To fry: Fill cast iron skillet with about 1 inch of sunflower or avocado oil. Bring the temperature up to 350°F over medium heat.
To pan fry: Heat a medium-sized cast iron skillet to medium-high heat
To bake: Preheat your oven to 425° F
Place drained beans into a food processor and gradually add liquid and process until just smooth and pureed.
Combine your rolled oats, oat flour, ground flax seed, bean purée and seasonings till fully incorporated, let rest for 5 minutes for oats to absorb into the mixture.
Portion out into bite size (2 Tbsp.) or two bite size (¼ cup) and roll in bread crumbs for an even coat.
To fry: Test a small piece of the mixture, this should sizzle immediately and start to float within a couple of seconds. Fry each meatball about 2-3 minutes on each side, rotating/flipping till dark golden brown all over.
To pan fry: To hot cast iron skillet, add 2 Tbsp of oil to the pan per batch of cakes and cook 2-3 minutes per side, should be crispy and golden brown when flipped. Oil should only smoke slightly, if too smoky turn down the heat to medium, each batch added will cool off the heat of the pan slightly, try adjusting the batch size if temperature issues persist.
To bake: Spray a parchment lined sheet tray or cast iron pan with olive or avocado oil. Place cakes in neat rows and spray tops as well. Bake for 6-8 minutes until crispy, flipping half way through to ensure carmelization on both sides.
Cool cakes on a grate to drip off any excess oil, salt the outside, and serve with green goddess dressing, as a slider option with your favorite burger toppings, or as a meatball substitute in your favorite dishes!

Notes

To increase these crispy delights to a complete protein try substituting the rolled oats or rolling them in puffed quinoa cereal.

Adjust flavorings to match each dish but stick to dried ingredients or reduce existing recipe liquid accordingly.

Keyword 30 minute recipe, appetizer, croquette, fiber, hearty vegetable, meat alternative, meatless, protein