These moist and fluffy Chocolate Beet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing make a delicious sweet treat and would be fabulous for any celebration!
These beetroot cupcakes are the best chocolate cupcakes I've ever tasted! They have a deep chocolate flavor and are so moist and tender. They have a fluffy texture and taste simply amazing with the cream cheese frosting.
These beet cupcakes are similar in appearance to red velvet cupcakes. They have a reddish hue when you cut into them but are made without any food colouring. It's all from the colour of the beets.
A touch of beet purée is also added to the icing which is why it's tinted pink. You can skip this step if you prefer a regular cream cheese frosting.
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How to Make Beetroot Cupcakes
Including beets in chocolate cake is nothing new. There are plenty of recipes for chocolate and beet cakes, brownies and pancakes online.
The beets help add moisture to the cupcakes which means these cupcakes stay moist for days after having baked them.
Here's an overview of the ingredients and steps to making this cupcake recipe. You will find the ingredient amounts in the recipe card at the end of this post.
Ingredients Overview
- Beet purée: You'll need to roast or steam about 4-5 small beets to make the purée.
- Vegetable, light olive oil or grapeseed oil
- All-purpose flour
- Dutch-processed cocoa
- Baking powder, baking soda and salt
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs
- Pure vanilla extract
- Coffee: You'll need to brew a cup of coffee.
- Water
- Cream cheese
- Lemon juice: Freshly squeezed
- Icing sugar
Steps Overview
The first step in making these cupcakes is to roast the beets, let them cool to room temperature and purée them in a food processor.
Since beets are so delicious and good for you, you may want to roast a few extra beets for snacking or adding to a salad like this Roasted Beet and Orange Salad.
Next, you'll need to make the cupcake batter. Sift the dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and whisk to blend.
Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of your food mixer and blend until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, beet purée and vanilla extract, beating after each addition.
Once blended, add half of the flour mixture while beating on low speed, then add all of the coffee and water. Add the rest of the flour mixture and beat the batter for a couple of minutes until well blended.
Spoon the batter into the paper-lined muffin tin until ¾ full. Bake until a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out with just a few crumbs clinging to it, about 18 minutes.
Let the chocolate cupcakes cool in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes. Remove the cupcakes onto wire racks and let cool completely before frosting.
How to Make the Cream Cheese Frosting
For a pink coloured frosting, combine the reserved beet purée with the lemon juice. Strain the beet purée and lemon juice mixture so that you are left with only pink lemon-beet juice.
Using a mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter on medium-high speed until smooth. Beat in the vanilla and lemon-beet juice. Add the icing sugar and beat until well blended and the icing is smooth.
Storage Instructions
Unfrosted cupcakes can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to three to four days. Store frosted cupcakes in the refrigerator.
I hope you enjoy these chocolate beet cupcakes as much as we do!
More Delicious Sweet Treats
- Mini Apple Bundt Cakes
- Cinnamon Bundt Cake
- Gluten-Free Almond Flour Brownies
- Healthier Sugar Cookies
Chocolate Beet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing Recipe
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- ¾ cup beet purée + 3 Tbs. beet purée for the icing about 4-5 small beets
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup Dutch-processed cocoa
- 1- ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter
- 1-¾ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ¾ cup hot strong coffee
- ½ cup hot water
For the Cream Cheese Icing:
- 250 grams brick cream cheese regular, softened
- ¼ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons beet purée
- 4 cups icing sugar sifted
Instructions
To Make the Beet Purée:
- Preheat your oven to 375ºF.
- Wash the beets really well. Place the beets in foil paper and add 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil, rub the beets with the oil and then seal the foil so that the beets are well enclosed. Place them on a baking sheet and roast for approximately 45 minutes to an hour depending on the size of the beets, you know they are well cooked when you can easily pierce them with a knife. Remove from the oven, unwrap the beets and let them cool to room temperature before you peel them.
- Purée the beets in your food processor and measure ¾ cup of beet purée. Set aside. You will also need to set aside another 3 tablespoons of the purée for the cream cheese frosting. You can make the beet purée ahead of time and refrigerate it for up to 3 days.
To Make the Chocolate Beet Cupcakes:
- Place a rack in the centre of your oven and preheat oven to 350ºF.
- In a medium bowl, sift together the all-purpose flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
- In the bowl of your mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy about 3 minutes on medium speed.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Add the beet purée and the vanilla extract. Beat well and scrape the bowl at least a couple of times.
- Add half of the flour mixture while beating on low-speed, then add all of the coffee and water. Add the rest of the flour mixture and beat the batter for a couple of minutes on medium speed.
- Spoon the batter into the paper-lined muffin cups until ¾ full.
- Bake until a toothpick inserted in a cupcake comes out with just a few crumbs clinging to it, about 18 minutes.
- Let the cupcakes cool in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes. Remove cupcakes onto wire racks and let cool completely.
For the Cream Cheese Icing:
- In a small bowl, combine the beet purée with the lemon juice and set aside. Strain the beet purée and lemon juice mixture so that you are left with only the coloured liquid. Strain the liquid a second time and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese with the butter on medium-high speed until smooth.
- Beat in the vanilla. Add the reserved beet coloured liquid and beat until well blended.
- Beat in the icing sugar, one cup at a time until the icing is smooth.
To Assemble Cupcakes:
- Fill a piping bag fitted with a large tip of your choice and pipe the icing onto the tops of the cupcakes. Or you can just spread the icing on the cupcakes. If desired you can add sprinkles to the tops.
Notes
- Unfrosted cupcakes can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to three to four days. Store frosted cupcakes in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
Nicole says
Awesome recipe! I followed the recipe to a tee, but added a little bit of....just kidding! I actually followed it with real measurements and didn’t add or modify anything . It was delicious and moist. The colour of the batter and icing brought me so much joy.
I even used some beet purée to make pink pancakes .
Thanks for this recipe! It’s a keeper!
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Thank you Nicole! So happy you enjoyed the recipe and love the idea of pink pancakes. By the way, love your sense of humour!!
Alex says
Wonderful job with the photos.
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Thanks!
therese says
These are amazingly delicious. Next day is the best day to eat them.. after they have been in the fridge, but then taken out about 30 min before eating.. mmm.. ill keep this as a family recipe tradition! I already have people asking for the recipe.
Thank you!
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Thank you so much Therese for letting me know how much you enjoyed these cupcakes. I'm so glad to hear that you'll be keeping this recipe as a family tradition. And I agree, they are better the next day!
Michelle says
The colors are so pretty! Since these cupcakes have beets that makes them healthy, right?
; )
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Thanks, if only!
skd says
My !!! These look awesome 🙂
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Thank you!
avnipalekar says
OMG - these are the cutest cupcakes I have seen in a while!
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Thank you! Had lots of fun making them 🙂
Allison says
Wow, these look great. And I love how beets are the secret ingredient that makes these almost look like red velvet cupcakes here... no one would ever know! 🙂
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Thanks! You're right, no one I served them to tasted, felt or saw any pieces of beet in the cupcake!
fallenforfood says
I just thought the same 🙂 I was like "I have to look which kind of food coloring... - oh, it's beetroots!" 😀
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Yes, no need for food colouring, beetroots do a great job naturally and they also make the cake incredibly moist!
Jo-Anne says
Hey the photos are beautiful! I'm definitely going to try these for my dad's birthday on March 1st. I love the idea of the beet pulp in the batter
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Thanks! You really should make these, they are the best I have ever had. You can also make this recipe into a layered cake.
Myrna says
These look amazing!!!
Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Thanks! They also taste amazing!
Judith Walters says
@Sweet and Savoury Pursuits, can you use canned beets to speed this along. So incredible delish!!!
Fida | Sweet and Savoury Pursuits says
Hello Judith,
I have never used canned beets, but I think as long as they are not pickled, it should be okay. Make sure to drain the beets and process until puréed. Let me know how it turns out if you decide to give canned beets a try!