I love these as both muffins and cupcakes. Whisk Bakeshop makes chocolate beet cupcakes that I’m head over heels for. I simply cannot resist them, so I decided to try my hand at a recipe. The best part is that you taste no beets in the final product. They humbly provide only the fluff and moistness that butter would normally deliver – except beets are better for you than butter.
I made these as muffins, but they were so cake-like that I ended up pairing them with a peanut butter frosting. That was one of the best decisions I ever made. The chocolate chips add an extra level of texture and chocolate flavor … and if you substitute almond milk and skip the frosting, you have vegan muffins. Happy baking!
Beet Muffins with Peanut Butter Frosting Adapted from a recipe at the Minimalist Baker 2 baby beets, trimmed and scrubbed*
¼ cup coconut oil, plus more for drizzling
1 cup milk (or almond milk if making vegan), divided
1 tsp. vinegar
¾ cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup plus 1 heaping Tbsp. all-purpose flour
Scant ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
Pinch Kosher salt
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Peanut Butter Frosting (Optional. Recipe follows.)
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place the beets on a piece of foil, drizzle with a bit of oil, wrap them tightly, and roast 45 minutes, until tender. Remove from foil and let cool to room temperature.
• Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
• Puree the cooled beets with ½ cup of milk until combined. In a separate large bowl, add the vinegar to the other half of the milk and set aside until it curdles a bit.
• Beat the sugar, coconut oil, vanilla extract and pureed beets into the curdled milk until foamy. Fold in the chocolate chips and stir until the batter is smooth.
• Fill the cupcake liners ¾ full. Bake 22 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Let cool completely before unwrapping and store in an airtight container. Frost with peanut butter frosting if desired.
*Pre-roasted beets are available at Trader Joe’s.
Peanut Butter Frosting ½ cup butter, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter
3 tablespoons milk, plus more as needed
2 cups powdered sugar
Beat the butter and peanut butter together in a medium bowl. Gradually beat in the powdered sugar, and as the mixture thickens, add the milk 1 tablespoon at a time until all the sugar is incorporated and the frosting is thick. Beat at least 3 minutes until fluffy.
This article appears in January 2014.
