Chocolate Brownie Beet Muffins

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These rich, chocolatey muffins are as good as biting into a brownie. The secret ingredient gives them the perfect moist texture. And no one will every guess that secret ingredient is beets!

Prep Time: 20 min

Additional Time: Boiling & Blending Beets

Cook time: 20-25 min

Yield: 24 muffins

Ingredients

• 1 cup beet puree

• 1 cup unsalted butter, grated

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

• 1/3 cup cocoa powder

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 tbsp cider vinegar

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1 egg

• 2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

Puréed Beets

1. Wash whole beets of similar size and place in a medium to large saucepan. Cover with water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium and simmer until a toothpick can be inserted and removed easily. This could be up to 45 min depending on the size of your beets.

2. Remove and drain the hot water and fill again with cool water. Once the beets can be comfortably handled, slip off the skins and coarsely dice into a blender or food processor.

3. Blend until smooth. Allow the purée to cool before using.

Brownie Muffins

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F and line a muffin tin with silicone or paper muffin cups.

2. In a large mixing bowl, mix together butter and sugar until they form a paste. Add in beet purée, cocoa powder, vanilla, vinegar, salt and the egg. Mix together, scraping the sides, until everything is well combined.

3. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until no dry flour remains. Fold in the chocolate chips.

4. Use an ice cream scoop to fill the muffin cups and bake in pre-heated oven for 20-25 min or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.

5. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Zhuzh it up!

• If you find yourself with an abundance of beets, boil and blend a big batch and freeze in 1 cup portions in your freezer. Just take out the frozen bagged portion and allow it to thaw before making these muffins.

• These also make great mini-muffins similar to a two-bite brownie. Just adjust the cooking time to about 10-12 minutes when you are baking smaller portions.

• To store the muffins for longer, allow them to cool and then place them in a resealable container and freeze. I find this is the best way to keep them for longer than a day!

This amazing recipe was written by Erin Walker