Baking | Beetroot, Apple & Walnut Cake

I recently visited my Grandmother and I made her a cake. I wanted it to be nourishing and full of healthy ingredients but not low fat or low calorie as she needs high calorie snacks and things in her cupboards for when she doesn't feel like cooking (being 80+ that is a lot of the time) I also wanted the cake to be long lasting and if she eats it in 7 to 10 days it would be ok, possibly even spread with butter (we are talking about a lady who doesn't bin a n y t h i n g !).

I made her a massive jug of fresh beetroot, carrot & apple juice with an inch of root ginger thrown in for good measure, I used the pulp from the juicer to make the cake. I find some juices I make, the pulp is useless as it is dry and tasteless (parsley, celery) or too bitter (lemons and oranges) but some combinations are tasty and feel like they have some life left in them! 

Ingredients:

6oz self raising flour

6oz butter

6oz eggs (3 large)

6oz muscavado sugar

1tsp baking powder

3oz walnuts

9oz juicer pulp

Splash of the juice to loosen the mixture

Zest of 1 orange

Also:

A loaf cake tin 

Pre-heat oven to gas mark 4 

(Use middle shelf)

In a big bowl, cream together the butter and the muscavado sugar until it is well combined and softened, it will become smooth and whipped, you can use a wooden spoon and elbow grease or a mixer.

Sieve the flour into the bowl with the baking powder, crack the eggs and add them to the bowl then stir once or twice to lightly combine.

Now add the pulp and walnuts to the bowl with a splash (perhaps 1 or 2 tablespoons) of the juice or juice of an orange if you prefer.

Mix until combined but do not over stir. Use a spatula to clean down the sides and base of the bowl to incorporate every scrap of mixture. 

Do not push the mixture down into the tin but do gently smooth the top.

I used a rather floppy and cumbersome silicon loaf tin, I usually use a non-stick tin but being at my Grandmother's house I had to use her one. It is a nice shape, with a stable base unlike other silicon cake pans I have used before and it is from Lakeland.

I think this tin has been discontinued at Lakeland (www.lakeland.co.uk) but you can obtain similar ones. Once I was used to the silicon cake tin it I actually was very impressed, when the cake was cooked it slid out very easily and the silicon wasn't too hot to touch.

Cook the cake for 30-40 minutes on gas mark 4, use the middle shelf. 

If the cake colours too quickly place a slip of foil over the top and remove 5 minutes before removing from the oven. This will let the cake cook but should slow the top down and stop it browning and even burning.

Once the cake has cooled for 5/10 minutes slip out of the cake tin and cool on a wire rack.

When 100% cold place in an airtight container.

The cake came out the oven and it has completely lost the pink colour. I was hugely impressed with the course texture of fibre and the walnuts. It was light and moist but substantial. This cake should be dense but moist and not too sweet. 

The muscavado creates a rich flavour with a deeper colour and feels more natural than using caster sugar. I found the cake tin which was a smidgen too small so I cut a slice off, this cake tin seemed ideal as you can see through it and my Nanny would not forget it was in there! When I sliced into the loaf you can see wonderful pieces of beetroot, carrot and ginger and the lovely chunks of walnut.

Do you have any good uses for the fibrous pulp that comes out your juicer?