This weekend I’m doing a cookery demo at Feast, the new Food & Drinks Festival in Midleton, Co.Cork. Midleton is very near where I live and has one of the best Farmer’s Markets in the country. There are so many fantastic producers in the area and we’re very lucky to have access to all of their beautiful produce. I seem to constantly buy beetroot there every Saturday, especially this time of year. There are only so many salads you can eat so I’ve made a chocolate cake with some! This cake is sublime. There’s no other word for it. The earthiness of the beets with the rich cacao and fruity olive oil is all balanced with a honey kissed cream cheese frosting. So beautiful! I hope you try it.

I’ll also be making a Feta Bake with the last of the summer’s tomatoes, the recipe is below, this Chocolate Granola and golden beetroot hummus.

Lilly x

Chocolate Beetroot Cake

Makes 1 loaf

160g caster sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

200g grated raw beetroot

110g plain flour

35g cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

100ml light olive oil

For the frosting:

1 tbsp honey

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

200g cream cheese, cold

Preheat the oven to 170C. Brush a loaf tin with olive oil and dust with cocoa powder. Set aside.

Beat the eggs and sugar together till pale and light. Add the vanilla. Fold in the grated beetroot. Sieve in half the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder. Mix gently till combined. Add the olive oil and the remaining flour. Mix only till there are no lumps.

Spoon the mix into the prepared tin and bake for 50 minutes or until the cake starts to come away form the side of the tin and a toothpick comes out clean. Leave to rest in the tin for five minutes before cooling on a rack.

To make the frosting just combine the cream cheese with the honey and vanilla. Once the cake is cool spread the icing in a thick layer on top. You can drizzle with a little glace icing tinted with beetroot juice and scatter some cacao nibs or berries over the top too.

This cake tastes best when kept in the fridge.

Tomato & Feta Bake

(Serves 6)

• 1 red onion, halved & thinly sliced
• 1kg Tomatoes, halved or quartered
• 8 basil leaves
• 2 tbsp Marjoram leaves
• 80 g Kalamata olives, destoned & chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Chilli flakes
• Black pepper
• 500g Feta
• Crusty bread & a great salad to serve

Preheat the oven to 200C. 

Place the onion, tomatoes, olive oil, half the herbs, chopped olives and garlic in a bowl. Season with black pepper and a pinch of chilli flakes. Be very cautious in seasoning this dish as the feta and olives are already salty Mix gently. Place the feta in the centre of an oven safe serving dish. Arrange the tomato mixture on top and around the feta. Bake in the hot oven for fifteen minutes , scatter the remaining herbs over and serve immediately.