I can’t stand the smell, the texture, or the taste of beetroot. I think it’s nasty and if you ever serve it to me raw – say, in a salad – I’ll take it as an act of aggression and never speak to you again.

I’m kidding, I won’t take it personally. I’ll just push the beetroot outside the plate and try to ignore the fact that it ever featured on it. I’m sorry, I simply can’t stand beetroot.

But you know what? I buy beetroot every week. I buy it for myself! I buy it… and I eat it. I eat it a lot actually.

But I eat it with chocolate – in sweet breads, protein cakes, and protein muffins ;-)

I don’t do this out of twisted desire to attack my tastebuds, out of a wacked-out sense of duty to who knows who, or because I feel I HAVE to. I do it wilfully. I go out of my way to buy beetroot.

WHY!?

For two reasons: 1. because the stuff is a nutritional powerhouse! It’s full of vitamins, minerals, and when consumed peri-workout, it’s been argued to positively impact performance and recovery and 2. because – when used it moderation – it sets chocolate baked stuff on faaayah!

Now, I don’t need to convince you about the first reason. The nutritional benefits of beetroot have been well-documented (for a pretty general overview, turn here). But I do probably need to convince you about the second, especially if you, like me, hate beetroot. I won’t do it through words, no. I’ll do it through this recipe. I’ll let the bread do the talking ;-)

Ingredients:

3 small cooked beetroots (300g in total)
1/4 cup cooked sweet potato
1/2 cup 100% cocoa powder
1/2 cup strong whey protein powder
1/2 cup almond milk
3 tablespoons coconut flour
1/4 cup chocolate egg white protein (or, if you don’t have it… just throw in two whole eggs)
1 tablespoon chocolate extract (this is 100%
optional but hnnnng)

Directions:

Blend everything together and bake in a bread loaf mold at 170 C (332 F) for about 35-45 minutes or until when stabbed with a knife your knife comes out clean. Depending on which protein powders you use your timing *may* vary so just keep an eye on it and remove it from the oven when it looks done.

Macros per slice (out of 10):

84kcals
9g protein
5g carbs (out of which 3g is fiber!)
3g fat

I had a slice of it last night – fresh out of the oven, with some peanut butter and a scoop of WheyHey protein ice cream on top. It was scrumptious!!!!!!!

And it always shocks me because, well… it contains beetroot!?

I then had another couple of slices this morning with my coffee (Gerard had his with peanut butter), before hitting the gym and BAAAM! I had an awesome workout :-D

Ah, beetroot… you weird controversial vegetable; I guess the moral of your story is “don’t judge a root by it’s color – or smell, or texture, or taste.” Thank you for being you.