Julie Costell created this chocolate fudge beet cake whose namesake root vegetable is key to the cake’s texture and toothsome flavor. “The beets will sweeten the cake so you don’t have to add a boatload of sugar,” says Costell. “They also create this great, moist texture … It’s going to look kind of like a red velvet cake but without dye and all that bad-for-you stuff.”

Chocolate Fudge Beet Cake
Recipe courtesy of Ms. Julie’s Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
6 large red beets (5 for the cake, 1 to juice)
2 cups canola oil, plus more for roasting beets and oiling pan
3 cups cane sugar
6 tablespoons ground flax seed
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
5 cups spelt flour, plus more for dusting
4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

For the glaze
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons raw beet juice 
2 tablespoons cocoa powder

DIRECTIONS
Cake: Preheat oven to 375 F. Wash beets and trim their leaves, leaving about 1/2 inch of the stem. Drizzle with canola oil, then wrap and seal beets in foil. Place on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast beets for about an hour or until a knife easily pierces the skin. 

Remove beets from the oven. Open up the foil packet and allow the beets to cool completely. Peel or rub skins off with fingers. Chop beets into bite-size cubes. Measure 4 cups of beet cubes and place into a food processor and puree until smooth. Set aside.

Reduce the oven temperature to 350 F. Grease a Bundt pan with canola oil. Dust with flour to coat the bottom and sides. Place chocolate chips in a small glass bowl. Bring 2 inches of water to a boil in a small saucepan then reduce to a simmer. Place glass bowl of chocolate chips over pan of simmering water and melt chips, stirring constantly with a silicone spatula. Remove from heat immediately, as chocolate can quickly burn. Set aside.

Using an electric mixer, mix together oil and sugar on medium speed for two minutes. Beat in ground flax seed until mixture thickens, about 2 minutes. Add in melted chocolate and vanilla and beat until smooth. Add in beet puree and mix until fully combined, scraping sides and bottom of bowl as necessary. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Add flour mixture to chocolate puree mixture. Beat on low speed with electric mixer, just until incorporated, being careful not to over mix. If needed, gently fold in any remaining flour mixture with a silicone spatula. Pour the batter into prepared Bundt cake pan and bake for 45–60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove cake from the oven and let stand for 20 minutes. Invert onto a cooling rack, leaving pan around cake until it cools completely. 

Beet juice: Juice beet with a juicer. Strain pulp. Set juice aside. (No juicer? Roast the extra beet alongside the five beets for the cake batter. Puree separately and strain out 2 tablespoons of juice.)

Glaze: Using an electric mixer, mix powdered sugar and cocoa powder at low speed. Add beet juice and increase speed to medium, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Pour glaze over cooled cake, spooning it on to the cake often as the glaze dries. Cake will keep 2–3 days covered tightly.