This chocolate beet loaf is moist, tender and has a rich chocolate flavor with subtle beet undertones. This bread is made with almond flour and cooked beets and sweetened with maple syrup. It's a great paleo bread - nutritious and kid friendly.
Our home garden didn't do so hot this year, but we did end up with plenty of beets! So many, that I've been whipping up some of my favorite beet recipes from the blog, like my chocolate beet muffins and vegan beet brownies.
This healthy chocolate beet loaf is my newest addition and much loved by the kids!
This beet bread recipe has a rich chocolate flavor with a hint of beet. It's moist and tender, made with almond flour and cooked beets and sweetened with maple syrup.
My whole family loves it and they aren't particularly fond of beets. So, it's a great way for me to sneak some into their diet.
Why You'll Love this Chocolate Beet Loaf
- Paleo and Gluten Free - made without grains or wheat
- Moist - it has a soft, tender texture
- Dairy Free - made without butter or milk
- Easy to Make - the batter is blended in a food processor or blender and then poured into a loaf pan and baked.
Ingredients
Here's what you'll need to make this chocolate beet loaf:
- cooked beets - I washed, peeled and steamed my own beets, but you can buy pre-cooked ones.
- eggs - no egg substitutes have been tested
- yogurt - any type of yogurt will work for this recipe. I used dairy free almond milk yogurt.
- maple syrup - to sweeten the bread.
- vanilla extract - added for flavor.
- almond flour - to keep this loaf paleo and gluten free
- cocoa powder - I recommend a Dutch processed cocoa powder
- tapioca starch - needed for texture purposes. The best substitute would be arrowroot starch.
- baking powder - make sure to use a grain free baking powder to keep the recipe paleo. I make my own paleo baking powder, but Otto's Naturals has a great one too.
- baking soda - for the rise.
- salt - enhances the flavors.
How to Make Chocolate Beet Bread
The batter for this bread is made in a food processor or high powered blender, poured into an 8" x 4" loaf pan and then baked in the oven. Here are the steps:
- First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8" x 4" loaf pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- Puree the cooked beets in your food processor or blender.
- Add in the remaining wet ingredients and blend.
- Add in the dry ingredients and blend until smooth. You may have to stop a couple times to scrape down the sides.
- Pour the batter into your lined loaf pan. Place the loaf in your preheated oven and bake at 350 degrees for 55-60 minutes.
- After baking, let the loaf rest in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer it to a wire cooling rack. Cool to room temperature before cutting.
Tips and Tricks
- Prep the beets ahead of time: I like to prep my beets the night before so that they're cooled and ready to go the next morning. To do this, wash your beets, then peel the skin off. Cut the beets into cubes and steam in a steamer pot until tender. Store the cooked beets in a glass container in the fridge.
- Measure ingredients by weight: although I provide volume measurements, measuring by weight is a lot more accurate. You can do this by using a small kitchen scale.
- Don't overbake the loaf: keep a close eye on the loaf when it gets to the 50 minute mark. You don't want to overbake the loaf or it will dry out.
Storage
Store any leftover bread in an airtight container in the fridge. It is best eaten within one week.
FAQ
Yes! Love Beets is a great brand that can be purchased in store - already cooked and ready for recipes.
Tigernut flour should work as a nut free option for the almond flour. In addition, you can swap the almond milk yogurt for coconut or regular yogurt.
More Recipes Using Beets
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Chocolate Beet Loaf (Gluten Free, Paleo)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 8" x 4" loaf
Description
This chocolate beet loaf is made with cooked beets, almond flour and sweetened with maple syrup. It's a moist loaf with a rich chocolate flavor and mild beet undertones.
Ingredients
- 1 cup chopped cooked beets (165g)*
- 3 large eggs
- ⅓ cup unsweetened yogurt (I used almond milk yogurt)
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups almond flour (180g)
- ½ cup cocoa powder (40g)
- ⅓ cup tapioca starch (42g)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8" x 4" loaf pan with parchment paper.
- Blend the beets in a food processor or high powered blender.
- Add in the eggs, yogurt, maple syrup and vanilla, blend.
- Add in the remaining loaf ingredients (almond flour, cocoa powder, tapioca starch, baking powder, baking soda and salt) and blend until smooth.
- Pour the batter into your lined loaf pan.
- Place the loaf in the oven and bake at 350 degrees F for 55-60 minutes.
- After baking, cool the loaf for 5 minutes in the pan, then transfer it to a wire cooling rack.
Notes
*For the beets: you can either buy precooked beets, or cook your own. To cook, wash and peel the skin off of the beets. Cut them into cubes and place in a steamer pot. Steam until tender (beets can easily be pierced with a fork), then cool to room temperature.
Christina
Hi Katie, I can’t believe you’ve now got a recipe for a beet loaf, I can’t wait to try it! I have grown beets for the first time this year and have a glut. So I’ve made the fresh beet muffins a few times (and they’re amazing), and wanted to adapt the recipe for a loaf. And now I don’t need to as you’ve done it for me!
I’ll let you know how it turns out😃 Thank you for all your wonderful recipes.
Katie
Oh awesome! My kids adore this loaf, hopefully you like it too 🙂
Christina
This turned out delicious and a great way to use up some of my beet harvest! It didn’t last long either! I’m making another to send to my daughter 😊
Katie
Yay! Oh, I'm so happy you loved it as much as my family did 🙂 Thank you for the review Christina!
Katie
This is a recipe my kids absolutely love! Enjoy!
Marianne
I’m coming off the AIP elimination diet and slowly reintroducing some foods. Eggs are okay (I think) however, I’m wary of nuts, chocolate and almond flour. Can I sub your chocolate for carob in most recipes and the almond flour with cassava? BTW I think you would love trying Paleo Valley Bone Broth protein. It’s great in recipes vs collagen peptides or pea protein IMHO. Plus it’s a complete protein and delicious!
Katie
Hi! I don't have any experience baking with carob, so I can't say how well it will work as a substitute for cocoa powder. Almond and cassava are not interchangeable. You can swap almond flour for tigernut flour in most recipes (it's nut free, gluten free and paleo). And yes, I use paleovalley bone broth protein in my coffee every morning (and a few of my recipes incorporate it). It's so good!