It’s amazing what you can do without any flour! I made this gluten free chocolate cake using beets. Being “Deceptively Delicious” I fooled my husband. While my children are game to eat pretty much anything I make, my husband is known as the “picky” eater around here.
Because of his strong critiques and my perfectionist bent, I often find myself testing a new recipe four, five or more times. Though this one I nailed the second time, it was that easy.
As I whipped up beet cake 2.0, I did find myself thinking, “How can I hide this mystery ingredient from him?” He had scoffed at beet cake 1.0, spitting it into the sink. “How can I fool him?” I thought as I stirred the batter. I guess that would make me Jessica Seinfeld to his Jerry.
Though unlike Ms. Seinfeld, I found myself sneaking beets in not to add nourishment (all of my recipes are fairly nourishing with high protein almond flour and low glycemic agave). I was rather, trying to figure out a way to make a less costly cake.
Almond flour is fabulous to cook with, though pricey. I wanted to come up with a cake that would be cheaper to make -though do keep in mind that this cake while cheaper, does not offer the same nutritional benefits that one made with almond flour would.
Here’s my “deceptive” purple velvet torte. Enjoy!
Purple Velvet Torte
Ingredients
- 2½ cups grated beets
- 1 cup agave nectar or honey
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup grapeseed oil or palm shortening
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- ½ cup cacao powder
- ½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, heat the beets and agave to a boil, then cover
- Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, until beets are soft
- Transfer beet-agave mixture to a vitamix and puree on highest speed until smooth
- Blend in eggs, oil, vanilla, almond extract, cacao and salt until thoroughly incorporated
- Pour batter into a well greased 9 inch springform pan
- Bake at 350°F for 30-35 minutes until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean
- Cool and serve
My older son has been steadily working away on this blog with me. He is 10 years old and every week he discusses what “we” will be posting. He often sneaks down after I put him and his brother to bed, for a blogging session during which we take photos or write copy here.
This week, as I was on a deadline for another project, he decided that he would be the one shooting the pictures of the purple velvet torte. So, please welcome my new phototgrapher! He took these pictures on his own as I proofread another document, knocking the camera over only once. Besides that incident he was a total pro! Really.
He was however, very disappointed as he “proofread” this copy that I used the word “sneaks” above. He wanted me to say that we “work together,” and I must say, he is correct. I guess that would make me Heather to his Leta (once her daughter starts reading dooce Ms. Armstrong may have her hands full).
Update: I’ve edited the cooking time in this recipe thanks to one of the comments below. The one in the recipe above is now correct and my family is very happy since they are eating this gluten-free torte yet again (since I made it a third time to verify the cooking time). As always, thanks for your comments!
Katrina says
Interesting, but it sure look good!
NAOmni says
Oh this looks fantastic! Onto Delicious it goes…
NAOmni
VeggieGirl says
Oh my, so stunning!!
Trish says
This looks delicious! I haven’t ever done much with beets, but this looks like a great application. You continue to amaze me at your no-grain baking.
I use a lot of almond meal, and it does get expensive!
Emilia says
That cake looks delicious! I have to put it on my to do list, your recipes always work and taste so good.
I have been wondering what your thoughts are about the fructose in agave? Since fructose needs to be processed by the liver, it can become quite a burden for the body. Since I know how health conscious you are, I would love to know your opinion?
I have also read some stuff about how even young children in the US suffer from problems like a fatty liver because of the wide use of fructose which impairs the function of the liver?
Your son has a good eye for composition.
Susan Merrill says
I would like agave alternatives! Great idea…..
Marie says
I’ve used this substitution in the past for chocolate cakes that called for erythritol or honey: I’m a die hard stevia fan, so i substituted one cup of sweetener for 6-8 diced prunes in 1/3 to 1/2 cup water and simmered for about 20 minutes. Then I would add stevoside(Kal brand is all I use-it lasts three years or longer and I make up to three gallons of ice tea twice a week for my family of six!) (I don’t keep soda in the house.) So anyway, I will add 3/4 of a teaspoon-yes that’s a teaspoon-of stevia to the water/prune mixture to equal one cup of sugar or sweetener for my chocolate cake. When cool, I blend it in the blender or food processor and proceed with the recipe. Yummy and low-carb.
CoconutGal says
Ohhhh! Love it! Cute story and your son is a pro photographer. I would not have guessed.
You didn’t tell us what your husband said about the cake!?! I would not have been able to be the room while he tasted it in fear the look on my face would give it away!
I often do this with my taste testers because they are usually surprised to hear the wholesome ingredients I’ve used… this has what in it?
So fun :-D
~M says
This looks fabulous. I know almost all of your recipes are Passover-friendly, but having a budget-friendly seder cake makes this one super-awesome since we are expecting many guests, including a nut-free one! And this way I can stick veges into my vege-hating dad and in-laws! :P
Is the texture cakey (like your coconut flour cake) or more like a flourless chocolate cake? Are you able to use less agave due to the beets’ natural sweetness?
Also, do you grate the raw beets and then take the gratings and cook them with the agave and then puree? I’m a little confused about this part. And when you make this again, it’d be super helpful if you could weigh your beets at the market so it would be easier to figure out how many are needed to yield 2.5 cups grated.
Thanks, Elana! I hope your hands are not dyed pink from your experiments!
Oh – and excellent photography! Good job!
Megan says
I’ve been checking out your recipes from time to time, and finally subscribed! This was the first post to show up in my feed and I’m thrilled. Thanks for your hard work and dedication to sharing with your readers. =)
Christine says
Wow! That looks amazing. I’m still not entirely convinced that it’s not made with flour – it looks like it is!
Meghan says
Definitely trying this. I feel like this is one of those recipes (and I have many like this) where it is best to get your tasters to eat it first, and then tell them what it is.