Roasted Beet Molten Chocolate Cake

I finally found a molten chocolate cake recipe with gooey center. I first did it one week ago, while George was visiting. Unfortunately I didn't manage to turn it out from the ramekin. I told George "I vouched to keep making this until I get it right". Tonight, again, I revisited the same recipe. With a twist - I added roasted beet puree to the batter.

Pinnada gave me a big bag full of beet roots the other day. I love beet roots. Its sweetness is good raw, steamed, roasted, in any which way. Beetroot is one of those that has been long used for medicinal purposes, especially priced in its stimulating effects on liver detoxification process. It's crimson-purple color, brought about by the pigment betacyanin, is reported to be a powerful cancer fighting agent. Beetroot fiber also helps to promote healthy bowel function and cholesterol level. Its betacyanin and fiber are known to be responsible for its role in preventing colon cancer. Many health advisers recommend consumption of beet juice to increase level of antioxidant enzymes and number of special white blood cells. This has been shown to successfully inhibit nitrosamine (a cancer causing compound) in patients with stomach cancer.

Despite its captivating crimson-purple color and medicinal properties, Adrian is no fan of beet. When he saw me fiddling with the beets this morning, this were his words, "you know my feeling about beets? Don't be offended." He must have forgotten how much he enjoyed the Beetroot Hummus. Anyway, I didn't think he had the slightest idea where these beets were going. I digress.

I successfully inverted the pudding, intact, on to serving plate. That was exciting. It's even more so when I found the center was gooey with melted chocolate. When I brought it to Adrian, I could tell by the look on his face that he was searching for the beets. He took a bite of it, "Mmmm... yum.". A while later, "this is very good. I like the sauce. But where is the beets?" I believed they were being digested in his stomach as he continued his search. What a great way to serve beets to non-believers.

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
  
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 Tablespoons natural cane sugar
• 1 Tablespoon butter
  
• 50 gram 78% bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon roasted beet puree (recipe to follow)
  
• 2 1/2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• small pinch of salt
• Citrus Reduction (Recipe to follow) (option)
  
• Strawberry and kiwi to serve (option)
  
• Vanilla ice cream to serve (option)
  

Roasted Beet Puree

Wrap beets, with one inch of their stems attached, with aluminum foil and bake at 200C for 60 minutes, until the are fork-tender. Blend to a smooth paste. You may strain away the clumps if necessary.

Citrus Reduction

• 1/4 cup grapefruit juice
• 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 Tablespoon natural cane sugar

Pour ingredients to a saucepan and let it simmer to half of its volume. Chill before use.

Chocolate Cake

1. Preheat oven at 200C. Grease two 4oz ramekins with butter and coat the sides with sugar.
   
2. Melt butter and chocolate over a water-bath.
3. Beat egg and egg yolk with sugar. Fold in melted chocolate and stir to combine.
4. Stir in beet puree, flour and salt to mix.
5. Divide batter into two and spoon over prepared ramekins. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
6. Remove immediately and let it cool for 10 minutes before inverting to individual plates. Serve with fresh fruits, ice cream and citrus reduction.
   

Beetroot Hummus

"All hummus should be made with beetroot - it's so pretty" quote from Adrian. Should I remind him he used to dislike beetroot?

Here's a quick and nutritious recipe to use up beetroot and add a new twist to a traditional Middle Eastern dish - Hummus - .

Hummus is a staple of Middle Eastern cookery. Its blend of chick peas and sesame seeds are a valuable source of calcium, protein, vegetable fats, iron and B vitamins. The addition of beetroot increases the vitamin C content and adds magnesium. All of which combines to make this pretty much a super-food.

Beetroot added a pretty pink color to the otherwise bland-looking dip. You can either make this from scratch, with dried chick peas and fresh beetroot or you can whiz it up in 5 minutes using pre-cooked beetroot and a can of chickpeas / frozen chick peas. Serve it with toasted bread, fresh vegetable sticks or as a side dish.

For other twist on hummus and homemade tahini, go here. I dressed the dip with some roasted pine nuts. I guess I can call it Pink Hummus Snaubar. I meant to decorate it with parsley but I mistaken celery for flat-leaf parsley...... now what am I going to do with that bunch of celery in the fridge?

Ingredients:
1 beetroot, cooked and diced (roasted or boiled)
1C cooked chickpeas
1 TB white sesame, roasted (or tahini)
1 glove garlic, minced
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 TB olive oil


Blend the ingredients together in the following order:

1. lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, white sesame/ tahini
2. beetroot, chickpea (add water if necessary)
3. Season with salt if necessary.
   

Beet and Feta Salad

Ever since the success of introducing beet root into Adrian's diet, I have been wanting to cook with more beet roots. As Dan said, beet root is a very versatile ingredients. He was generous enough to share with me some of his killer beet recipes back in his Bed Supper Club-day. They are really tempting, and equally intimidating. I'm going to stick to baby-step and experiment the home-style before I venture to the pro-style.

It's such a pain to cook beet - it takes such a long time to get it cooked! In my case, 40 minutes. What did I do as I wait? I whipped up an Apple Crisp.

The maple syrup-candied walnut was a good touch; it added some crunch to the salad. Its sweetness is a good compliment to the saltiness of feta. The orange zest, too, added a not overly whelming citrusy taste. On last thought, I threw in some sprouts (broccoli, alfalfa and pea) for variety.

Ingredients:

• beets, washed, trimmed and cut in half
• 1/3 cup of walnuts, chopped
  
• 3 tablespoons maple syrup
• salad greens of your choice
• 1/2 cup of orange juice, or one orange
• orange zest, grated
  
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• feta cheese, crumbled

1. Cover cut beets with water and boil until tender. About 40 minutes.
   
2. At the mean time, mix orange juice, balsamic vinegar and olive oil in a medium bowl.
   
3. Lightly toast walnuts in a frying pan for a few minutes. Add maple syrup and stir to coat.
   
4. When beets are done, let cool under running water. The skin will slide off easily at this point. Chop into bite-sized chunks.
5. Place salad greens to individual plate. Toss all ingredients together, spoon on salad green to serve.
   

Roasted Beet with Orange and Walnut Dip

According to the Liver Detox book that I'm reading, beet root is good for toning and rebuilding the liver. Something I want to share with Nook. There has been ongoing investigation on the role of beet extract in protecting normal and diabetic livers, as well as they role on elevated cholesterol level in individual with cancer.

While the Romans used beet for fever and constipation, Roman soldiers famously coined 'take favours in the beetroot fields', as an euphemism for visiting the prostitute - beet root juice has been considered as aphrodisiac since the Roman times.

Beet root really is one of nature's many wonders - from treating indigestion to blood pressure and cancer - . Consumption of this purple vegetable also known to produce pink urine. We'll see.

So far I have successfully turned Adrian's dislike of olives and eggplants to the better. Tonight, it's a "I-hope-you-like-beet root-although-I-knew-you-don't" night. I saw the look on his face and it's understood when he said, though with a smile, "Don't take it personally if I don't eat much".

"You will like this" Says the cook.

Verdict: The cook is always right.

I like the nutty, creamy flavor the toasted walnut added to the dip. Adrian likes how the orange and garlic hinder the beet root-ty taste. I actually like beet root as it is, but it feels good when he says "OK. You are right. I like this".

You can use the dip as sandwich spread, mix it into hummus for a gorgeous light pink colored dip, or simply serve as a platter with vegetable crudites, melba toast, loves, crackers and apple wedges.

I served it with strips of red and yellow capsicums, and toasted bread with spread of feta. I suspect cream cheese, tahini and yogurt would work just as well. I thought we were not going to finish the dip but I somehow discovered that the dip works as dressing for the Warm Spinach Goat Cheese Salad. They look pretty together =)

Ingredients:
makes about 1 1/2 cups

2-3 medium beets
3/4 scant cup walnuts
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tbsp sugar
2 cloves garlic
3 tbsp orange juice
salt, pepper
1/2 tsp orange zest

1. Wash and dry the beets. Wrap them in foil,place in a baking dish and bake in a 200C oven for 1 hour or till the beets are fork tender. Let the beets cool a little and peel the skin.
2. Toast walnuts in a pan over medium heat till they are light brown.
   
3. Place the roasted beets, toasted walnuts and all other ingredients, except orange zest in a blender. Puree till smooth.
   
4. Adjust vinegar, sugar, and salt to taste. Transfer the dip to a bowl and mix in orange zest. Serve chilled with pita bread and vegetable crudites.