Cocoa meets beetroot in this cake, giving it earthiness and tang. Beetroot naturally gives the velvet cake its distinctive shade without the need for any food colouring.
(4oz) unsalted butter, softened, plus extra to grease
250g
(9oz) raw beetroots (peeled weight), coarsely grated
75ml
(3 fl oz) buttermilk
11/2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1tsp.
vanilla extract
200g
(7oz) caster sugar
250g
(9oz) plain flour
2Tbsp.
cocoa powder
11/2 tsp baking powder
2
large eggs
For the icing
100g
(3 ½oz) unsalted butter, softened
350g
(12oz) icing sugar, sifted
1tsp.
vanilla extract
175g
(6oz) full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature - we used Philadelphia
Directions
Step 1
Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4. Grease and line a 900g (2lb) loaf tin with baking parchment.
Step 2
For the cake, in a food processor whiz the grated beetroot, buttermilk, vinegar and vanilla to a pulpy purée. Add butter, sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder and eggs and whiz to combine.
Step 3
Pour mixture into the prepared tin and bake for about 1hr-1hr 10min or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in tin for 30min, then remove from the tin and cool completely on a wire rack.
Step 4
When cool, make the icing. In a freestanding mixer or using a handheld electric whisk, beat the butter, half the icing sugar and vanilla in a large bowl until completely smooth (go slowly at first to avoid a cloud of icing sugar). Add the remaining icing sugar and the cream cheese and beat until just combined (do not overmix or icing may become too loose).
Step 5
To assemble, slice the cooled cake in half horizontally; reserve crumbs. Use half the icing to sandwich the cake halves back together, then top with remaining icing and sprinkle with crumbs.
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To store
Iced cake will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
