I first came across beetroot brownies at the best service station in the world… yes, you guessed it, Tebay. I was sceptical at the thought of beetroot in brownies, but adding it brings extra fibre and moisture, making them wonderfully fudgy and rich. It is a bit like adding banana to your banana bread to create a denser texture, which is exactly what you want in a brownie, don't you think?
A Brief History of Brownies
Brownies originated in the United States, but the exact origin is unclear. One well-known story credits Bertha Palmer of Palmer House with their creation around 1893. She asked her chef to make a dessert that was smaller than a piece of cake and easy to eat from a boxed lunch. The result was the Palmer House Brownie, made with chocolate, walnuts, and an apricot glaze. The Palmer House in Chicago still serves the same recipe today.
The first known printed use of the word brownie in reference to a dessert appeared in the 1896 Boston Cooking-School Cook Book by Fannie Farmer. However, these brownies were made with molasses and did not contain chocolate. This style of brownie later became known as a blondie, a term that emerged in the mid-1900s.
As with any great recipe, people have tweaked the brownie over the years to suit their tastes. To whoever first thought of adding beetroot, I doth my swimming cap to you.
Ingredients
- 400g of pre-cooked beetroot
- 100g unsalted butter (plus extra for greasing the tin)
- 200g dark chocolate
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 250g golden caster sugar
- 3 eggs
- 100g plain flour
- 25g cocoa powder
Method
- Prepare the tin and preheat the oven
Set the oven to 180°C. Butter a 20 x 30cm traybake tin and line it with baking paper.
- Chop and heat the beetroot
Roughly chop the beetroot and warm it with a splash of water until it is tender. Then you need to drain as much moisture as you can from the beetroot before adding it to the mixture.
- Blend the wet ingredients
Place the beetroot into a food processor or blender along with the chocolate, butter, and vanilla extract. Blend until smooth.
- Whisk the eggs and sugar
In a large bowl, whisk the sugar and eggs using an electric hand whisk until the mixture is thick, pale, and foamy.
- Combine the mixtures
Spoon the beetroot mix into the whisked eggs. The deep red colour will make you think of all those murder documentaries you’ve watched on Netflix, but trust the process. Use a large metal spoon to fold the ingredients together, trying to keep as much air in the mixture as possible.
- Add the dry ingredients
Sift in the flour and cocoa powder, then gently fold until the batter is smooth.
- Bake
Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 25 minutes. The brownies should rise evenly, with just a slight quiver under the centre of the crust when you shake the pan. To double check, skewer the mixture and if it comes out dry, you are good to go.
- Cool and cut
Let the brownies cool completely in the tin before cutting them into squares. If you are taking them to a swim, make them the day before so they are firm enough to transport. Hot brownies straight from the oven may be delicious at home, but they will sweat in the container as you go to your swim location, not ideal, so wait until they are cooled down.
Enjoying Your Brownies
Then all you have to do after your swim and quick change with a Changing Tube, is to sit back and smile as people go “Really?! This has beetroot in it?!”
Don’t forget to tag us with @your.warmcor on social media. We love seeing how you bring post-swim joy to life!
