This is great snack to carry on the hill – rich and stodgy with some healthy additional ingredients – chia seeds, hemp protein, nuts and berries. There’s even some vegetables thrown in. It’s practically a superfood!
Essential ingredients:
- Cooked mashed veg 400-450g / 14-15ounces / 2 full cups
DRY:
- Cocoa powder 1 cup (100-120g)
- Plain flour 2 cups (250g)
- Baking powder 1 teaspoon
- Salt 1 teaspoon
WET:
- Sugar 1/3 cup (70g)
- Oil 3/4 cup
- Milk (as required)
Optional ingredients:
- Vanilla paste/extract 2 teaspoons
- Chocolate chips 1 cup (100-150g)
- Frozen Berries 1 cup heaped/ rounded
- Pistachios/ nuts 1/3 cup
- Chia seeds 2 tablespoons
- Hemp protein powder
Equipment:
- 20cm x 20cm / 8” x 8” cake tin
- Food processor (but can also do by hand – mash/grate cooked veg as required)
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 160 deg C / 320 deg F fan forced or 180C/ 350F non fan forced
- Blend cooked veg in food processor
- Add wet ingredients, mix well (occasionally scrape down sides of processor to ensure even mixing)
- Add dry ingredients (ideally previously sifted), mix well.
- If mixture is dry, which is likely, add milk as required. It can be as much as 1/2 cup (or more) depending on consistency of mash and type of flour used. It should be fairly thick – you will need to scoop it out rather than pour it out
- Scrape mix into a bowl and add optional ingredients (except pistachios) if using.
- Mix well
- Scoop into a lined cake tin, push into corners and even out the surface
- Sprinkle nuts on top and push them in slightly
- Bake for about 45- 50min until cracks appear in the surface, or until a skewer (or sharp knife) comes out clean
- Remove from oven and cake tin and allow to cool (still in baking lining) on a wire rack
- Best left to cool completely before cutting
Substitutions:
Plain flour: white, spelt, rye, GF, oat, wholemeal, etc. Requires more milk if using GF flours.
Sugar: light brown muscovado, brown, raw
Oil: olive, sunflower, rapeseed, avocado, walnut oil
Milk: any variety will do – dairy, almond, rice, hemp etc
Mashed veg: beetroot, pumpkin, parsnip, potato, sweet potato – any left over cooked veg can be used
Chocolate chips: can use a chopped block of chocolate. Dark, milk and white chocolate all work well
Frozen berries: any variety – raspberry works really well. Frozen berries hold their shape better while mixing, fresh fruit often disintegrates.
Prep Time | 30 mins |
Cook Time | 45-50 mins |
Servings |
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- 1 cup cocoa powder
- 2 cups plain flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup light brown muscovado sugar
- 3/4 cup rapeseed oil
- 1/2 cup milk (any variety)
- 2 cups cooked mashed beetroot
- 2 teaspoons vanilla paste
- 1 cup dark chocolate (roughly chopped)
- 1 cup frozen raspberries
- 1/3 cup pistachios
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 2 tablespoons hemp protein powder
Ingredients
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|
- Preheat oven to 160 deg C / 320 deg F fan forced or 180C/ 350F non fan forced
- Blend cooked veg in food processor
- Add wet ingredients (sugar, oil and milk) and mix well (occasionally scrape down sides of processor to ensure even mixing)
- Add dry ingredients (cocoa powder, flour, baking powder and salt) and mix well - ideally sift the dry ingredients first
- If mixture is dry, which is likely, add milk as required. It can be as much as 1/2 cup (or more) depending on consistency of mash and type of flour used. It should be fairly thick - you will need to scoop it out rather than pour it out
- Scrape mix into a bowl and add the remaining ingredients (except pistachios) if using
- Mix well
- Scoop into a lined cake tin, push mixture into the corners and even out the top surface
- Sprinkle nuts on top and push them in slightly
- Bake for about 45- 50min, or until a skewer (or sharp knife) comes out clean
- Remove from oven and cake tin and allow to cool (still in baking lining) on a wire rack before slicing