Not now kids, I'm photographing the beets

Yesterday I made a layer cake. You may be thinking, wow, who bakes when it's 90 degrees out? And that's exactly what I was thinking. Especially while I was icing the cake, and my cream cheese frosting was sliding down the side.

The farm boxes are getting more colorful. And finally: beets.

I had never tasted a fresh beet until a couple of years ago. I fell in love. Usually I roast the beets, then slice them and toss them with a vinaigrette and serve over salad greens with goat cheese. Last year I made up a hot/cold salad which used all of the above, plus sauteed beet greens and some toasted walnuts. Delicious.

But I wondered. What else can be done with beets? Are there new beet frontiers? My Internet search turned up loads of recipes, including lots of cakes. Red velvet and chocolate seem to be the most popular, but I wanted something a bit less heavy. I found this Beet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting recipe from Cooking Light.

I considered following in the footsteps of Southern church ladies everywhere and making this a sheet cake, but decided I should try the recipe as written before making any changes. So I followed it to the letter. Even the part where they said to use wax paper in the bottom of the pan; normally a step I would ignore. The batter was this amazing (or amazingly weird, depending on your feelings about beets) pink.

It came out of the oven looking like a regular cake though. Golden with red beet flecks. Very moist, and not too sweet. Me and layer cakes are not on such great terms. Mine are always lopsided, and I never get enough frosting in between the layers. But the idea of a layer cake appeals to me, so I'll keep trying.

I think next time I'll make cupcakes instead, and maybe add a little goat cheese to the cream cheese frosting.