Daube of Red Ruby Beef and Carrot Pudding

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Today for our dinner we had one of the ready meals that had been sent to us via Pipers Farm, the Daube of Red Ruby Beef from their Ready Meal Range. From their page:

We take joints of rolled & tied Beef shin & cook them slowly for 20 hours until they are tender. We then make a rich sauce using Brandy, reduced red wine, our own homemade Beef jus & Beef stock infused with cinnamon, juniper, orange zest, peel & bay leaves which we allow to simmer gently. Finally we combine the Shin with sauce, adding onions, crisp bacon lardons. kalamata olives, carrots & chopped parsley.

There were two portions which was just enough for us. It was convenient and very easy to use. I just simply dropped the handy single portion pouches into some boiling water and then simmered them for 20 minutes. Easy peasy, lemon squeasy. The hardest part was getting it out of the bag, but I managed to do it with the aid of some tongs and my kitchen scissors.

The portions were quite ample in size, in fact I couldn’t finish mine. (Mitzie didn’t mind because that meant she got to taste it too.) The beef was tender and flavourful, as was the sauce. I loved the saltiness of the kalamata olives, which went very well with the beef and offset the sweetness of the prunes. If I had anything negative to say about it at all, it would be that I found the meat to be a little bit fatty, but then shin can be somewhat fatty, and I would have preferred the lardons to be crisped before baking. Todd didn’t mind any of that . . . it’s just me being a bit finicky. Other than those two things we both really really enjoyed. I served it with some steamed long grain and wild rice. It retails at £4.50 per serving which is really quite reasonable, and as with all of their products, it comes with a money back guarantee if you are not satisfied.

For afters I made us a delicious Carrot Pudding. Carrot Pudding makes a delicious alternative to Christmas Pudding. It’s almost like a steamed carrot cake, and what’s not to like about that!

It’s a recipe that I got from my ex MIL about 35 years ago. I tweaked it a bit to suit our tastes of course. She didn’t have any spices in hers, nor vanilla, but we like a bit of spice and so I’ve always added some.

I like to serve it with a homemade caramel sauce.

Oh, this is some scrummy . . . a delicious lightly spiced steamed pudding . . . moist from the addition of carrot and potato . . . spooned hot and steaming into your bowl and then topped with lashings of a buttery, rich caramel sticky toffee sauce.

If you have any Christmas Pudding haters in your family, I would highly recommend this.
Not only is it deliciously moreish, but it is also very economical, which in these tight times can’t be beat! I don’t think I know anyone who doesn’t already have potatoes, carrots, butter, eggs and flour in their larders! (You can leave out the raisins if you wish, but we really like them.)

*Carrot Pudding*
Serves 8 to 10 people
Printable Recipe

Old fashioned, easy and quite economical . . . oh, and very, very delicious!

7.5 ounces soft light brown sugar ( 1 cup packed)
4 ounces butter, softened (1/2 cup)
2 large free range eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
6 1/2 ounces plain flour (1 1/2 cups)
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
pinch of cloves, nutmeg and ground cardamom
2 medium carrots, peeled and grated (1 cup)
2 medium potatoes, peeled and grated, squeezed dry (1 cup Squeeze all the water out and discard before measuring)
6 ounces of raisins (1 cup)

To serve:
caramel sauce, custard, cream or ice cream

Have ready a pot of boiling water fitted with a steaming basket and a lid. Butter a large pudding basin and set aside.

Cream together the brown sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Sift together the flour, soda, salt, and spices. Stir this into the creamed mixture Fold in the carrots, potatoes and raisins.

Spoon the pudding into the prepared pudding basin. Take a large sheet of foil. Butter it well and then make a pleat in the centre. Fit this around the top of the pudding basin, leaving room for expansion. Secure with a rubber band and make air tight.

Place this into the steamer basket over the boiled and simmering water. Cover with a lid. Steam for 3 hours, checking periodically to make sure that the water doesn’t run dry, and carefully adding more as needed.

Remove from the heat and take off the foil. Carefully slide a sharp knife around the inside of the pudding basin to loosen. Invert a serving plate over top and then carefully tip out the finished pudding. Serve warm with some caramel sauce, custard, cream or ice cream.

Note: Any leftovers can be reheated by placing into a steamer basket and steaming over simmering water for a couple of minutes until heated through.

*Caramel Sauce*
Makes about 1 cup
Printable Recipe

Very easy to make. Thickens upon standing. Great for all sorts of desserts, ice cream toppings, cake toppings, fruit toppings etc.

3.75 ounces of soft light brown sugar (1/2 cup)
2 ounces butter (1/4 cup
2 TBS golden syrup (can use corn syrup)
125ml of heavy cream (1/2 cup)
1 1/2 tsp of vanilla

Place all of the ingredients into a small saucepan. Bring to the boil, then simmer, stirring occasionally to help prevent it from catching over very low heat for about 5 minutes.

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