Daring Bakers - March 2013

It is quite some time since my last post, which was also a Daring Challenge. A lot of work and my little girl being ill kept me away.

So, this month's challenge was very very intersting. Hidden Veggies! Hidden in delicious desserts!

Our host, Ruth from Makey-Cakey gave us a great challenge, as we were supposed to use vegetables in desserts, any kind of veggie in any kind of dessert. She also suggested some recipes.

I made two cakes....
1.
Carrot Cake
slightly adapted from here

300gr all-purpose flour
10 oz carrots, grated
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp salt
300gr white granulated sugar
50gr dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 180ο C. Butter and flour a cake pan or small pans or use a cupcake pan lined with cases. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.
In a bowl mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt very well. Put carrots into a large mixing bowl. Add the flour mixture to the carrots and toss until they are well-coated with flour.
In the bowl of a food processor, combine sugars, eggs and yogurt. While the processor is running, drizzle in the oil slowly.
Pour this mixture into the carrots and stir just until combined.
Pour into the prepared cake pan and bake for 45 min.
Reduce the heat to 160o C and bake for another 20 min or until the cake is ready testing it with a skewer to see that the centre is done.
Remove the pan from the oven and allow cake to cool 15 min. Then turn the cake out onto a rack and allow it to cool completely.
It is great with both cream cheese frosting and just dusted with confectioner's sugar.

Lovely and moist!

2.
I tried to make a Red Velvet cake using beets. I didn't like the result. The taste and the colour and the texture.... It was all wrong!
I will not give you the recipe, because quite frankly I threw it away. There is no need for more people to throw away good ingredients....

I will show you some pictures:

This is the beet purre. The colour is amazing!

Also the colour of the cake batter is perfect!

The pre-baking perfection ended. This is the baked cake and it is brown.

The finished cake.

It is not a Red Velvet. Sure, you can call it Cocoa Beet cake, but not Red Velvet....


Any way, I am so glad with the Carrot Cake recipe, that I have baked it twice already.

Thank you for the grate Challenge Ruth!

Louise