Triple Chocolate Beet Cake
A dark and moist Vegan Triple Chocolate Beet Cake cake topped with rich chocolate glaze for a delicious chocolate-y dessert.
Welcome to Virtual Vegan Potluck 2013!
Today marks the 4th Virtual Potluck (the second one I’ve participated in) with 146 bloggers from around the world, each contributing one awesome vegan recipes. From whereever you start, you can scroll through as many blogs as you would like using the “go back” and “go forward” buttons down below and I recommend you do, especially if you are looking for some new, delicious, and vegan Thanksgiving ideas.
If you’ve already been traveling through the Virtual Potluck, I hope your eyes have made room for dessert because I’ve brought you chocolate…
…to be exact.
This Vegan Triple Chocolate Beet Cake is so rich and unbelievable moist, all because of one very special ingredient: beets. Wait, don’t go running! The beet flavor in this cake goes completely undetected. But don’t take my word for it, take the word of all my friends. I brought this cake to an real-person potluck after the photo shoot and it was gobbled up before I could even hide a piece to take home for my midnight craving.
“It tastes just like chocolate cake.” One friend said to me.
“Yeah. That’s what it is.” I replied.
“But…it’s vegan?!”
Are there sweeter words for a vegan baker? I don’t think so. So dig in, give this Vegan Triple Chocolate Beet Cake a try. It’s perfect for all the chocolate lovers who are ready for something other than Pumpkin Pie at the Thanksgiving Table.
Did you make this recipe? Leave a comment and rate it below.
If you made any substitutions, let us know how it turned out!
- 3 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cups beet puree, 4-5 small beets
- 1 cup warm water
- 3/4 cup applesauce
- 1/3 cup oil of choice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup canned coconut milk
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
Place beets in a large pot and cover with about 2 inches of water. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 30 minutes until beets are soft and can be easily pierced with a knife. Remove from heat, drain, and allow beets to cool for 15-20 minutes. Once cool enough to touch, remove skins and place in a food processor. Blend until smooth. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 10" bundt pan and set aside.
In a large bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate whisk together beet puree, apple sauce, water, canola oil, and vanilla extract. Add the wets to the dries and mix until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan and bake for about 45-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Flip out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.
Follow these instruction to make the Chocolate Ganache. Pour over cooled cake and serve.
Serving and Storing – Vegan chocolate bundt cake is a decadent dessert perfect for to share for the holidays or as a nightly dessert. I recommend serving it with a vegan whipped cream, fresh fruit like strawberries, or vegan ice cream. Store the bundt cake for about 5 days on the counter. To store it, place it in a large, airtight container. You can also freeze this cake for up to three months. When ready to serve, pull it out and let it thaw for at least 60 minutes.
Make in Advance - To do this, bake the cake according to the instructions. Once the cake is cool, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and place it in the freezer. This cake can be frozen for up to 2 months. When ready to serve, let the cake thaw at room temperature for 1-2 hours.
Recipe Tips
- Generously spray your cake pans. We do not want any of this delicious cake sticking to its edges.
- Do not open the oven door while the cake is baking. This causes the structure to fall leaving you with a dent in the middle of your cakes. You can check for doneness after 45 minutes.
- Bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. If the cake starts to get dark around the edges, you can cover it with tin foil to bake the last 10 minutes.
- Let the cake cool at least 20 minutes in the cake pans before turning it onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Let the cake cool completely before topping with chocolate ganache.
Variations - This batter makes two 9×4 loaf pans. Bake them for 40 minutes before checking for doneness.
Doug says
I make your cake recipe and it was amazing. Hard to believe that it contains beets. It’s a keeper. I saved to my Pinterest page for future use.
chez says
can you use pre-cooked beetroot? not in vinigar, but the stuff that comes pre-packed?
Sarah says
That should work fine.
Sarah says
Yeah, that would be fine.
Yuri says
Weird question, but is there a substitute for the apple sauce?
Sarah says
You could try another fruit or vegetable purée. Pumpkin would work well.
Kim says
I have pickled grated red beets, they are basically puréed! Do you think they will work??
Lisa says
Love it, making it a second time now for staff. Need to use vegan chocolate chips for truly vegan.
Sarah says
This was an amazing recipe – better than other beetroot cake recipes I’ve tried, and it is possibly the best vegan cake recipe I’ve made! Fresh from the oven it had a brownie texture – a crunch to the outside, moist in the middle, a lovely crumb and deep rich chocolate flavour. Absolutely delicious. I make the ganache and it still tasted wonderful – and froze well. Thanks for a great recipe!
Sarah says
Thanks for sharing! I’m so glad to hear it
Ana says
Hi, how can i substitute sugar in this beautiful cake ? it looks amazing but i don’t eat sugar
Mary Wasielewski says
Hi! My mom just went full-on vegan, and I’m starting to plan for Thanksgiving. This recipe is high on the dessert list. BUT! She is also oil-free. I see that you’ve already included applesauce. Do you have any recommendations for how to eliminate the rest of that oil?
juju says
Please send this recipe to my email so I can share it by email..Thanks..great cake!
I used frozen organics beets.
Jessie says
I just made this cake. Although I am not vegan, I must say it looks, smells and tasted awesome. Very moist, tender crumb, very chocolatey.
Denise says
I made this for my blog’s challenge. What a wonderful cake. Everyone I gave it to to try raved about it! Thank you so much for a great recipe to try.
Sarah says
I’m glad it was a hit! Thanks for letting me know.
joe says
I was not happy with this recipe right after I made it, but the cake tastes better with each passing day (more chocolaty flavor) and now my 7 YO loves it!
John Donaldson says
I needed to make a couple vegan cakes for a friends graduation. The recipe I got from my friend was god awful. I found this recipe and havent tasted it yet but it looks and smells fabulous. Thank you.
Sarah says
Thanks, John. I hope you and your friends enjoy it!
Emily says
Do you think it would be okay to substitute coconut sugar? My husband cannot have cane sugar but I am dying to make this!
Sarah says
Unfortunately I have never baked with coconut sugar so I don’t know how it would affect the cake. You could Google coconut sugar to cane sugar conversion and see what it says. If you do try it let me know how it turns out!
daniela ehrsam says
thank you so much for this great recipe. i tried it and it was the best vegan cake i ever ate 🙂
Sarah says
Thanks Daniela! I’m glad you liked it. Thanks for taking the time to share.
Diane says
Thanks for the recipe! Halved it to suit the amount of beets I had on hand, and it worked out nicely in a coconut-oil greased loaf pan. It was very moist and chocolately — though DH noted that he could still taste the beets (grimace); he is not a fan, so some of that might have been mind games.
Keely @ Gormandize says
You really can’t go wrong when the words “triple chocolate” are involved. This cake looks divine!
Pixie says
Amazing! Beets in chocolate cake? It actually does sound good – and the pictures – oh, my!! I need to take lessons! I called my photographer son over to look at the top picture, because I want that quality for my blog. I loved your answer, “Yeah, that’s what it is.” Non-vegan people are so funny. 😉
Sarah says
Thanks Pixie! The beet flavor is totally hidden and just creates amazing texture for cake. You should try it sometime!
Anna {Herbivore Triathlete} says
This is a beautiful cake, I can’t believe it has beets in it! Happy VVP!
Laura says
Love bundt cakes – wish I had a slice of this right now!