Empty the fridge baking

It's the end of the week and I have a few bits and bobs left in my fridge that I'd prefer to use than throw away. One of these items is 3/4 of a bag of beetroot bulbs. I've seen a few recipes where beetroots have been added to baking to make something sweet, but never tried it. Last year my friend at work made me a chocolate beetroot cake for my birthday and it was delicious - so moist and rich. However, being the end of the week, I had minimal butter, no eggs and no chocolate left... so what to do with the beetroots I just roasted (besides making a salad, which I will have for dinner tonight!!). I did a little search online and found a few recipes for beetroot biscuits. I decided to play with this idea and made some end-of-the-week-fridge-clean-out cookies! They were surprisingly nice, not the most delicious biscuit I've ever made/eaten, but worth a try. They are crumbly and have a nice chocolate hit followed by the sweetness of the beetroot. ENJOY.

Chocolate Beetroot Biscuits
80g butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup beetroot (grated or pureed)
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 3/4 cup plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder 
1/2 tsp baking soda

The first step is to roast the beetroots. Then let them cool completely before skinning them and grating or pureeing them for the biscuits.

Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees C and line a baking tray with non-stick paper (being the end of the week, I only had alfoil, no judging please). In a bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until combined and smooth. Add the beetroot and vanilla extract then beat until the mixture is a bright purple and smooth. Combine the cocoa, flour, baking powder and baking soda, then mix it into the butter batter. Scoop out a teaspoon size ball of batter and place on the baking tray, repeat with remaining batter allowing some space for the biscuits to slightly spread when baking. Pop in the oven and allow to cook for about 10 - 15 minutes (time will depend on size of biscuit). Remove biscuits from oven and allow to cool on tray for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. 

The roasted beets - look like little gems!

Pre-baking. Look at that colour!

Fresh from the oven.