Ingredients

• 200g/7oz butter
• plus extra for greasing
• 250g/9oz cooked and peeled beetroot
• 200g/7oz dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
• 4 tbsp hot espresso
• 135g/5oz plain flour
• 1 heaped tsp baking powder
• 3 tbsp cocoa powder
• 5 free-range eggs
• separated
• 190g/6½oz golden caster sugar
• crème fraîche or double cream
• to serve

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Grease a 20cm/8in cake tin with a little butter and line the bottom of the tin with a disc of baking parchment.
• Blend the beetroot in a food processor to a rough purée.
• Melt the chocolate in a bowl suspended over a pan of hot water (do not allow the bottom of the bowl to touch the water)
• then pour in the hot coffee.
• Stir in the butter in small pieces and leave to soften. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
• Meanwhile
• sift the flour
• baking powder and cocoa together in a bowl and set aside.
• Separate the eggs. Whisk the yolks in a bowl until frothy. Stir the eggs into the chocolate and butter mixture
• then fold in the beetroot.
• Whisk the egg whites until still peaks form when the whisk is removed. Fold in the sugar.
• Fold the sugar and egg whites into the chocolate mixture
• then fold in the flour and cocoa mixture.
• Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 40 minutes
• or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.
• Allow to cool in the tin
• then serve with crème fraîche or double cream.