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Not only are these beet cookies gorgeous, they’re perfectly sweet and super crunchy, the kind of treat that makes everyone happy. Beet that!
“I don’t like beets”! That was my darling son’s response when I told him I had made Sweet Beet Cookies. I thought sandwiching the word beet between sweet and cookie would serve as sufficient enough distraction for Kenya. Not so much. And since I never want to trick my kids into eating foods that are good for them and hope they learn to love them on their own, simply calling this recipe something like Red Cookies was out of the question.
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But if the name itself wasn’t a selling point, the site of these cookies was. As soon as Kenya actually saw them, his eyes lit up. “They’re beautiful,” he said. “I love beets!”
Sweet Beet Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup raw beets, shredded fine*
- 2 tablespoons oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F degrees.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
- Using your hands, add the shredded beets to the flour mixture and toss to coat.
- Add the oil and work with your hands to bring the dough together (the salt and sugar will fall to the bottom of the bowl so make sure you knead the dough well to combine everything — the outcome will be a smooth dough).
- Form the smooth, sweet beet dough into a flat disk and roll it out to 1/2 inch thick on parchment paper or a dry clean surface.
- Using a knife, cut the dough into squares or use small cookie cutters to cut out shapes.
- Bake on a Silpat or parchment-lined cookie sheet for 15-17 minutes.
Notes
- *You can only use RAW fine shredded beets for this recipe. Using canned beets will not work because of the thickness of the beets and they are already cooked.
Doubled the recipe using whole wheat flour and coconut oil, also added a little vanilla. It was so dry and crumbly I added 1 egg to doubled recipe so I could roll out and not have cookies falling apart. Rolled 1/4″ thick and baked 10 min. Worked out. Recently started eating more beets and love the idea of using them in cookies.
Just made these, came out pretty cardboardy. They were super dry – insanely dry as batter, so we added some applesauce – 3ish Tsp. Baked ’em up…instant red cardboard. Threw a bit of the ‘ol powdered sugar/water frosting…helped a bit. Will see what the three munchkins think tomorrow…
I made these today and they turned out lovely. 🙂 I followed the recipe as written, with the following additions: 2 tbsp sugar (added just the right amount of sweetness) and 2 tbsp unsweetened applesauce (it needed the moisture). I got about 15 2-inch heart-shaped cookies. After baking for 15 mins, the cookies were chewy and rosy pink. You can taste a hint of beet, but it’s definitely not a bad taste. I drizzled a simple sugar icing over top (1 cup powdered sugar + 2 tbsp milk of choice) to dress them up and add a hit of sweetness (since they’re for a bake sale). Will definitely make again, maybe with some cinnamon and vanilla.
Every time I have made these my beets were very very moist, like others have commented the dough was super sticky and oily. This time I tried not using any oil at all – I was going to add a bit at a time depending on the dough, but I didn’t use any, and they came out great! I used a little more than half a cup of shredded beets , basically using up everything I had grated. I also used powdered sugar to help roll them out since it was still petty sticky.. Okay, that brings down the health factor, but I figured since I had skipped the oil it was a good trade off
Yes, peel and grate!
I was wondering if you have to peel the beets before you grate them or just grate them with the skin on?
thanks!
I also used half cup whole wheat flour and half cup all purpose and the dough consistency came out perfect.. i know several other people commented on dough being too sticky and oily
Let’s see if my critics go for this…
I just made these and the dough was very much like playdoh. After baking, they came out to be more like crackers! They’re still tasty, so I’ll eat them. But, my 18 month old is having problems biting into them (so he just sucks on it).
I made these a few days ago and accidentally roasted the beets without realizing it said raw. Then I was doubling the recipe and, again by accident, put 4 times the beets with 2 times dry. I loved the recipe like that, very moist and cake-like. I tried again following the directions carefully and didn’t care for the crispier cookies, there wasn’t enough beet for us.
I made these, they are yummy. But they came out a bit too dry/tough for my 13 month old son.
Any suggestions on how to get them softer or more moist?
Thanks,
I think I may have done something wrong. Mine only made a very small ball of dough. I rolled it out 1/4 thick and only made about 24 cookies. Any suggestions?
The only dumb questions are the ones you should ask but don’t. You should be able to get raw beets in the produce section of your grocery store. They look kind of like giant radishes or red turnips. You get a thick dough that you use a cookie cutter on. You don’t need more liquid as the beets have juice in them. I tried this with whole wheat flour and melted butter instead of the oil. And made them in the food processor with the metel chopping blade, worked great!
Some people seriously ask the dumbest questions…Where do you get raw beets? Seriously??? This recipe just doesn’t sound like it could come out without any liquid added aside from 2 T oil, you who have made it are brave!
I’ve had great success with substituting 1/4 c unsweetened applesauce per egg in cake and bread recipes. I’ve never tried it in cookies…someone told me it doesn’t work….
Thank you for egg-free cookie recipes! It’s hard to know how to avoid egg in baked goods (especially when you are not good in the kitchen and have to have a recipe)