I think you’re used to my cakes made from vegetables and fruits, and that you’re convinced they’re tasty, right? So, with the occasion of the little hands’ 3rd birthday, here comes another special cake for our collection. This time, it’s a chocolate beetroot birthday cake with cheesy strawberry cream and chocolate icing. With few ingredients, no butter, no refined sugars, no gluten, no nuts, but still tasty, sweet, and moist, with all the favorite ingredients and flavor combinations that even the toughest judge (his grandmother) enjoyed. If only I could share some of the cake with every one of you, I would, but I’ll share the pictures, the recipe, the tips, and the information you’ll need to know for each step of its preparation with the same joy. Are you ready?
What we are going to need
For the cake
- Beetroots. Those of you following Little Hands since its creation, you know by now that we really love this vegetable, so this year, it’s time for it to be the “secret” protagonist of our cake.
- Eggs. Necessary and irreplaceable.
- Coconut oil. I prefer cold-pressed coconut oil. If you try making the cake during the winter, you should first melt it so that it’s liquid when you use it.
- Sweetener. I made the beetroot cake with honey as well as with maple syrup, so you can add whichever you prefer. Always remember that you must not give honey to children under the age of one year old, and sweeteners in general are best avoided until the age of two. However, I know that the birthdays of our little ones are an exception to some rules, and the recipes I give you for birthday cakes are the only ones with these quantities of sweeteners when compared to other recipes. What kind of cakes would they be otherwise?
- Oat flour. I used whole-grain oat flour, and that’s what I suggest. Of course, you can grind the oat flakes yourselves, but since we’re making a whole cake, I’d suggest you buy it.
- Cocoa. Choose a high-quality cocoa with a good fat content, and always without any sugar. I prefer cocoa with 10% fat. Alternatively, you can use carob powder at the same quantity.
- Baking powder.
For the cream
- Strawberries. I decided to add strawberries in the cream of our chocolate cake at literally the last minute and it was one of the best decisions I ever made, since they fit perfectly. However, it wasn’t strawberry season, of course, so I used frozen strawberries that I had available. You’ll need to get them out the freezer a few minutes before use so that they can soften up, and you can use fresh ones, as well.
- Cream cheese. Always check the ingredients before buying something that will be eaten by your little ones. Regarding cream cheese, it’s important that it doesn’t mention the preservative called carrageenan in the ingredients.
- Coconut milk. In a tin, and it would be good to have it chilling since the day before, but not necessary.
- Vanilla extract. Important to balance the flavor and aroma, but not necessary.
- Lemon. Just a few drops that fit the taste of strawberries and cream cheese excellently.
For the icing
- Chocolate with no sugar or additives. The chocolate I used had 3 ingredients: cocoa mass, cocoa butter, and coconut sugar, in this order. So, there is sugar that’s suitable for our little ones, and you can buy it in stores with organic products, or make your own.
- Coconut milk. In a tin, because it has more fat. If you open it and you find that the coconut has separated from the water, mix well and then follow the procedure outlined below as normal.
To make it
- Whisk.
- Food processor.
- Cake tin. I prefer an adjustable cake tin, which I set at 20 centimeters this time for a thicker cake. Of course, you can use a tray as well, just oil it and sprinkle some flour.
- Spatula. To spread the cream inside, and the icing outside.
Decoration by the little hands
This year, the little hands took action for his beetroot birthday cake. About a month ago, we found ourselves in the nuts store we frequent. Suddenly, he brought me a package of Smarties and politely asked if we could buy it for his birthday cake. As you can imagine, we bought it without arguments, as I don’t like forbidding things to him, since it creates negative results. Of course, I explained what they were and why I wouldn’t eat any, but that we can add anything he wants to his cake.
And that’s how it was done! The little hands took upon them the decoration of the beetroot birthday cake, and I barely helped. We spread the icing together and then emptied the Smarties package on the cake. You can see the result! If I had been in charge of the decoration, it would have been different, but since the little hands did it, this is the most beautiful cake there is!
Tips
For the cake
- Temperature differs from oven to oven, so 20–25 minutes in, take a look at your cake. It’s ready when it has changed color.
- With this cake, you can bake the whole mixture in a cake tin and then cut it in half. If you do it that way, you should double the baking time. Also, let it cool completely before cutting it in half. I personally prefer using an adjustable tin and baked the cake in two layers. In one of my trials, I baked it in three!
- Let it cool before you remove it from the cake tin, because there’s a high chance it will break if you do it while it’s hot.
- You can prepare the cake from the day before, but that’s not necessary. In general, this chocolate cake can be ready in a single day, in 3 hours (including cooling time).
- If you make it the day before, you should store it in the fridge, covered or wrapped in saran wrap.
- You can use the same base of the beetroot cake and change the filling with another cream. You can see some of my older suggestions here, here, and here.
For the icing and the cream
- You should be careful with the icing, since a higher temperature will destroy it. You’ll need to have patience during mixing, and the correct temperature for the coconut milk.
- The icing might seem too thin initially. Give it a few minutes to thicken up and it will be perfect.
- If your cake is in the fridge, you must be quick while spreading the icing, or it will freeze while you are spreading it.
- You’ll just need to mix the cream well with soft movements, with a whisk or spatula. You can make it without coconut milk, but we liked it more with the milk.
In general
- Follow the steps and instructions outlined below in the letter. Desserts are more complex than most foods, and every gram counts. Don’t change the quantities, and especially don’t substitute the ingredients, or the result will be widely different.
- Put the beetroot birthday cake on the cake stand or the disk you’ll use to present and serve it to avoid unnecessary movements.
- If you have leftover beetroot puree, you can use it to make sweet or savory beetroot pancakes, or beetroot crackers. You can also store it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- We liked eating the cake on the same day and not from the fridge, since it was fluffier.
See also:
- Πάρτι γενεθλίων: Ό,τι χρειάζεστε για να το οργανώσετε (Πρακτικές συμβουλές, χρονοδιάγραμμα, λίστα αγορών και μενού)
- Vegan τούρτα μήλου, ζουμερή με σοκολατένια γέμιση
- Τούρτα σοκολάτας με βάση από γλυκοπατάτες και κρέμα μασκαρπόνε
Preheat the oven at 180°C.
Put the beetroot in the food processor and process until smooth.
Whisk the eggs in a large bowl.
Add the honey, the coconut oil, and the beetroot puree, and mix.
Continue by adding the oat flour, the cocoa, and the baking powder, and mix until homogenous.
Divide the mixture in 2 or 3 20-centimeter cake tins, with walls oiled with coconut oil. You can cook the whole mixture all at once and then cut it, but in this case, bake for twice as long.
Bake each layer for 25 minutes or until a knife emerges dry when shoved in.
Remove from the oven and let cool completely before removing from the tin or form and cutting the layers of the cake (if not cooked separately).
Place them in the fridge (covered with saran wrap) until you prepare the cream and the icing.
If the strawberries are frozen, remove them beforehand to soften.
Process the strawberries in the food processor.
Add all ingredients in a large bowl and mix with smooth movements until homogenous and ready for assembly.
Break the chocolate in small pieces.
Heat the coconut milk in a pot until it’s barely steaming.
Pour the warm coconut milk over the chocolate in a bowl.
Mix until the chocolate has melted.
Let the icing aside for 30–40 minutes so that it thickens up and is ready to cover the cake.
Assemble the birthday cake on the disk where you’ll serve it.
Carefully place the first layer, then spread the cream with a spatula, from the center outwards.
Spread with smooth movements and flatten.
If you made two layers, place the second layer and continue with the icing. If you made three, remember to add cream between the second and third, before spreading the icing. If you want, you can store the cake in the fridge and add the icing later, in which case you’ll need to add the icing with quick movements.
Spread the icing over the cake’s surface and flatten it well, so that it covers the whole cake.
Decorate to your liking and enjoy.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat the oven at 180°C.
Put the beetroot in the food processor and process until smooth.
Whisk the eggs in a large bowl.
Add the honey, the coconut oil, and the beetroot puree, and mix.
Continue by adding the oat flour, the cocoa, and the baking powder, and mix until homogenous.
Divide the mixture in 2 or 3 20-centimeter cake tins, with walls oiled with coconut oil. You can cook the whole mixture all at once and then cut it, but in this case, bake for twice as long.
Bake each layer for 25 minutes or until a knife emerges dry when shoved in.
Remove from the oven and let cool completely before removing from the tin or form and cutting the layers of the cake (if not cooked separately).
Place them in the fridge (covered with saran wrap) until you prepare the cream and the icing.
If the strawberries are frozen, remove them beforehand to soften.
Process the strawberries in the food processor.
Add all ingredients in a large bowl and mix with smooth movements until homogenous and ready for assembly.
Break the chocolate in small pieces.
Heat the coconut milk in a pot until it’s barely steaming.
Pour the warm coconut milk over the chocolate in a bowl.
Mix until the chocolate has melted.
Let the icing aside for 30–40 minutes so that it thickens up and is ready to cover the cake.
Assemble the birthday cake on the disk where you’ll serve it.
Carefully place the first layer, then spread the cream with a spatula, from the center outwards.
Spread with smooth movements and flatten.
If you made two layers, place the second layer and continue with the icing. If you made three, remember to add cream between the second and third, before spreading the icing. If you want, you can store the cake in the fridge and add the icing later, in which case you’ll need to add the icing with quick movements.
Spread the icing over the cake’s surface and flatten it well, so that it covers the whole cake.
Decorate to your liking and enjoy.
Notes
Αυτό το περιεχόμενο χορηγείται με άδεια Creative Commons Αναφορά Δημιουργού-Μη Εμπορική Χρήση-Όχι Παράγωγα Έργα 4.0 Διεθνές .
Το περιεχόμενο αυτού του blog αποτελεί πνευματική ιδιοκτησία της εταιρίας LITTLE HANDS BLW. Συνεπώς, ΑΠΑΓΟΡΕΥΕΤΑΙ κάθε αναδημοσίευση, αντιγραφή ή τροποποίηση του χωρίς την έγγραφη συγκατάθεση της εταιρίας. Εάν ενδιαφέρεστε για το περιεχόμενο του blog, μπορείτε να επικοινωνήσετε μαζί μας για να συζητήσουμε πως θα μπορούσαμε να συνεργαστούμε.
