Pig's Bum! (Need I say more?)

As I mentioned in a previous post, I have got myself a big bunch of rhubarb. Happily, tonight's dessert not only uses this rhubarb to glorious effect, it also fulfils my desire to steam things. To top it off, it is called Pig's Bum, thus indulging my love of silly names. Ultimate Pudding.

But first, dinner. Again, no meat, but we definitely didn't go hungry. The weather was - you guessed it - rubbish today, and I felt like something bolstering for dinner, so I made a sort of loose minestrone. That is, I didn't follow any particular recipe, instead, just used what I had kicking round. That happened to be: onion, celery, carrot, pumpkin, potato and later on, asparagus. It must be one of the most virtuous dinners you can eat - a trillion vegetables, bound together by stock and a bit of pasta. It is so healthy that it pretty much obliterates the calorific dessert that follows...right?

Above: Veges for the minestrone - so many that I needed two chopping boards! Healthy!

So, I sweated the veges in a little butter and olive oil for about ten minutes. I then crumbled in a stock cube - Knorr Porcini flavoured cubes brought back for me from Italy by my aunty Lynn. (it's what Nigella uses!!) I then added water to the pot, brought it to the boil, and let it simmer away while I made the pud.

I wish I had thought to take a photo of the rhubarb (microwaved for a few minutes with a spoonful each of sugar and water) - it was just so pink, it looked as though I had added food colouring. The pudding, which is from Nigella's How To Eat, is basically a Victoria Sponge batter mixed in with the rhubarb. I have to agree with Nigella when she says how great the batter tastes. I have always been a sucker for eating the mixture though...Anyway, you heap it all into the greased pudding bowl, cover it, and steam for two hours.

Once the pudding was a-steaming, I added some chopped asparagus and a handful of macaroni to the pot of soup. Once the pasta had swelled up and cooked, I ladled it out and grated over some parmesan. It was perfect - warming, comforting, tasty.

Above: Tim's minestrone (rhymes with pinecone?)

As for the Pig's Bum, it turned out beautifully, an incredibly light sponge with flecks of pink throughout.

Above: Pig's Bum!

It tasted amazingly good, especially considering it took all of five minutes to make. Unlike the last couple of things I have steamed, it wasn't stodgy in the slightest - really very light in fact. So, by the time Tim and I had ploughed through it, and Stefan and Kieran had had some too...there really isn't much left! Will definitely be making this again at some stage.