Healthy Baking: This Chocolate Cake Can’t Be ‘Beet’!

If you’re trying to make healthier eating choices, you may not do much baking anymore. That’s a shame, when your amazing LG double oven ProBake convection range can actually produce some very healthy baked goods! Anything you bake at home will probably be healthier than something purchased at a store.

With the LG ProBake’s double ovens, you can even bake this cake while your roast chicken, along with the rest of the root vegetables, is cooking to perfection in the lower convection oven!

Have you tried this crazy sounding taste combo? It really does work! Beets are sooo good for you with their fiber, minerals, and vitamins. They’re also very high in betalain, which is a powerful anti-inflammatory, as well as the antioxidants we need to keep our brain healthy. The dark chocolate, cocoa, and coconut oil add even more healthy reasons to indulge with this very good for you cake.

The best thing about this cake? No one will guess that it contains a root vegetable until you tell them. They’ll just think it’s the moistest, most delicious chocolate cake they’ve ever tasted!

Chocolate Beet Cake (Adapted from a recipe on Food.com)

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups (preferably unbleached) flour, sifted

2 tablespoons cocoa (preferably Dutch Process)

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup coconut oil, melted and slightly cooled

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 – 1 1/2 cup beet, pureed thoroughly until velvety smooth*

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate (2 – 1 oz. squares of baking chocolate, melted and cooled until just warm)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

* You can use canned beets (as long as they aren’t pickled!), roasted beets, or even beet puree for babies.

Note: A 15 oz. can of beets in water, drained and pureed, is ~1 cup)

Directions

1. Preheat your LG range’s upper oven to 350° F. and move the rack to its lowest position.
2. Grease a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan.
3. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
4. Combine the melted & slightly cooled coconut oil, eggs, and sugar in a mixing bowl. (The coconut oil needs to be warm enough that it’s liquefied, but not so warm that it scrambles the eggs!)
5. Beat with an electric mixer for 2 minutes on medium speed .
6. Beat in the pureed beets, barely warm chocolate, and vanilla.
7. Gradually add the dry ingredients, beating well after each addition.
8. Pour into the prepared baking pan.
9. Bake for 25 minutes or just until the cake tests done. Because this cake is very moist, the best test for doneness is when the cake will ‘spring back’ when touched lightly in the center.
10. Set the pan on a rack and let the cake cool in the pan.
11. Cover the cake and let it stand overnight to improve the flavor.
12. Sprinkle the cake with sifted confectioners’ sugar or use your favorite cream cheese icing. If you choose to make the icing, be sure to use light (not non-fat!) cream cheese to keep it healthy. Well, as healthy as icing can be, anyway!

This recipe produces a delicious, healthy chocolate cake. The only problem is telling when it’s done. Because it’s so moist, the traditional toothpick test isn’t reliable. The toothpick might come out gooey even if your cake is overdone! That’s why the touch test is better for this particular cake.

If you have trouble with other recipes over or under baking, it might be time to have your oven checked by a professional appliance technician. A qualified technician can check to see if everything is working properly. The selector switch, temperature sensor, or bake igniter may need replaced in order to have your oven up and running properly. A well-trained technician will soon have you baking with an appliance that works perfectly.

Once your oven is baking correctly, follow these tips for choosing the proper pan for your next healthy baking adventure:

A light-colored metal pan with a dull finish is good for general baking tasks. If it’s aluminum, it will absorb and conduct heat evenly.

The same pan, but with a shiny finish, is great for cakes and some cookies. The shiny finish reflects heat and produces a lighter, more delicate crust.

A metal pan with a dark finish absorbs more heat and retains it for longer. It works great for delicious (and healthy) roasted vegetables. For baked goods, reduce the oven temperature by 25°. Also check for doneness sooner than the recipe states.

Glass pans heat up slowly but hold their heat well. Bake with them just like a metal pan with a dark finish. The exception is pies – don’t reduce the heat for them or the bottom crust may not get done!

Stone bakeware is expensive, but it will last a lifetime with good care. It bakes everything beautifully.

If you would like a career as an appliance technician, contact us. Who knows? You just might become an incredible baker’s hero!