Beetroot chocolate loaf

Ingredients – serves 10

• 100g milk chocolate
• 1 large beetroot
• 200g butter or margarine at room temperature (plus extra to line the cake tin)
• 200g sugar
• 3 eggs
• 200g plain flour
• 75g cocoa powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
• 1 tbsp maple syrup or honey
• pinch of salt

*Beetroot stains! Wear an apron and be careful!

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas mark 4.
2. Take a cake tin (a loaf tin is ideal but you can use a small round one as well) and coat the the inside with butter/marg and then line it with grease-proof paper.
3. Wash the beetroot and trim off any scraggly bits. Using a cheese grater, grate the whole beetroot, skin included. Wash your hands to stop them staining red.
4. Melt the chocolate. You can do this on the hob or in the microwave:
5. Hob: Break the chocolate up into small pieces and put in a heatproof bowl. Place the bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water (you only need about half an inch in the pan) and make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Let the chocolate slowly melt. Turn off the heat before the chocolate is nearly all melted and stir. The residual heat should melt the rest.
6. Microwave: Place the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and add milk or oil if you want to thin it. Microwave the chocolate for 30 seconds on low power then take it out and stir it with a spoon or a spatula. Microwave it in 10-15-second bursts until it’s almost melted, scraping the bowl each time. Stir the remaining chocolate until it’s completely melted.
7. Beat the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl (you can use a kitchen aid, a hand held mixer, or do it by hand stirring quickly with a wooden spoon) until creamy. add the eggs an