Recipe: Chocolate Beet Cupcakes with Sour Cream Ganache Frosting

Beets are one of those divisive vegetables — either you love them or hate them. I happen to love them. I’m a sucker for that sweet flesh and gorgeous fuschia color, but I know plenty of people who play for the other team. Beet-haters, I ask that you suspend your disbelief for one moment. Try not to discount the chocolate-beet cupcake based on your feelings for the vegetable alone. Open your heart to beet cake because the final product is far better than the sum of its parts.

Fact: Beets taste like dirt. “Earthy” if you’d prefer the more commonly used euphemism. But it’s that mellow, soil-like flavor that makes them such a beautiful vehicle for fat and acid. (Think goat cheese, sour cream, or … frosting!) And I would argue that their deep earthiness is exactly what makes them a perfect buddy for chocolate. The taste of unsweetened chocolate has always kind of reminded me of mud, too. Beets and chocolate are like two peas in a delicious, dirty pod. They’re similar, but different, and they really enhance each others’ richness, fruitiness, and general tastiness.

And even more importantly, beets are full of sugar — a very obvious addition to a cupcake. In this recipe, the beets add both sweetness and moisture to the cupcakes, rendering them just dense enough to be delightful.

Trust me. These are some sick beets.