Beetroot and Carrot Cake. Pink Perfection.

Before we left England we visited loads of National Trust properties to get our historical hit for a year.  At one property they had a lovely cottage garden with a lady handing out National Trust vegetable recipes.  One of which was a beetroot cake.

When the husband was on a 24-hour shift last week I experimented with the recipe.  The mixture seemed incredibly dry so I added some yoghurt to loosen it and also increased the spice list.  I also jazzed it up by using brown rather than caster sugar and topping it with a simple carrot cake icing.  It is truly delicious in a non too sweet carrot cake way and the pink colour of the mixture is unlike anything I’ve cooked before.  Definitely one to shock your take-a-cake-to-work/school/coffee morning - it bats a Victoria sponge into touch in both the taste and novelty categories.  Oh and it makes a pretty good breakfast.

Ingredients

250 g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp mixed spice

150 ml vegetable oil

300 g light brown sugar

3 dessertspoons plain yoghurt (I used low fat)

3 free-range eggs, separated

100 g chopped mixed nuts (I used walnuts and hazelnuts)

Pinch of salt

150 g grated raw beetroot

150 g grated raw carrot

For the icing

100 g icing sugar (sifted)

20 g unsalted butter, cubed

zest of 1 lemon

1 drop of vanilla extract

60 g full fat cream cheese (I used Philadelphia)

Method

1. Line a 20 cm cake tin with baking paper and preheat the oven to 180C.

2. Mix together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, mixed spice, salt and then beat in the oil and sugar.  (I used a wooden spoon rather than beaters).

3. Beat in the egg yolks, beetroot, carrot, nuts and yoghurt.

4. Whisk the eggs whites in a separate bowl until stiff, and then fold into the main mixture using a large metal spoon.

5. Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake for 1 hour until spring to the touch.  Allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes and then turn out, remove the baking paper and place on a cooling tray.

6 Whisk the icing sugar, butter, lemon and vanilla together in a bowl.   Stir in the cream cheese.  Don’t over beat it or it’ll turn runny.  If it does pop it into the fridge until it gets its act back together.

7. Spread the icing over the top of the cake and devour.