Beetroot & Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

Directions

1. 1
   Wash the beetroot with the skin on and wrap them in aluminium foil.
2. 2
   Bake them for 30 minutes in the oven at 180C/350F and then peel them.
3. 3
   Blend the beetroot into a smooth puree in a food processor.
4. 4
   I'll use 160 g of this mixture for the cupcakes.
5. 5
   Sift together the ingredients marked with ().
6. 6
   Allow the butter and eggs to warm back up to room temperature.
7. 7
   Chop up the chocolate and melt it over a bain-marie (a double boiler).
8. 8
   Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
9. 9
   Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl for 5 minutes until smooth.
10. 10
    Add the beaten egg and beat the mixture again.
11. 11
    Then pour in the melted chocolate and beetroot puree and mix together until smooth.
12. 12
    Gently fold in the vanilla extract and the sifted ingredients.
13. 13
    Be careful not to over-mix the batter at this point.
14. 14
    Line a cupcake tray with cupcake cups and fill each one with 1/12 of batter (the batter won't rise very much).
15. 15
    Bake the cupcakes for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.
16. 16
    Insert a skewer into the cupcakes to see if they're fully baked, if no raw batter comes out then they're ready.
17. 17
    Allow the cupcakes to cool on a wire rack.