Holiday Carrot Pudding (Version 1) with Sweet Lemon Sauce or Traditional Hard Sauce

This is the first of two posts for Holiday Carrot Pudding made in the microwave. Version 1 is napped with your choice of Sweet Lemon Sauce or Traditional Hard Sauce - a special favorite when my children were young. Version 2 offers a Creamy Rum Sauce. The sauces are interchangeable, of course, or you can always use a different old favorite. When my children were young, I made this great pudding with its Traditional Hard Sauce, so I’ve included that recipe, too. The candied ginger in this recipe makes it especially tasty.

Holiday Carrot Pudding (Version 1) with 

Sweet Lemon Sauce or Traditional Hard Sauce:

½ c. (125 mL) butter or margarine, softened

½ c. (125 mL) brown sugar

1 large egg

1 c. (250 mL) firmly packed grated raw carrots

2 tsp. (10 mL) candied ginger

½ c. (125 mL) raisins, plumped (see Index for How to Plump Dried Fruits)

1 c. (250 mL) currants, plumped

1-¼ c. (310 mL) cake flour (see Further Note)

1 tsp. (5 mL) baking powder

½ tsp. (2.5 mL) baking soda

½ tsp. (2.5 mL) cinnamon

½ tsp. (2.5 mL) nutmeg

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy and no grainy feeling remains when mixture is rubbed between thumb and forefinger. Stir in carrots, ginger, raisins, and currants. In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients. Sift over wet ingredients, stirring until well blended. Pour into greased 9 x 9-in. (23 cm x 23 cm) microwave-safe dish. Cover with cling film (see Note), turning back a small corner to vent steam. Cook, 11-to-12 min. at full power on rotating turntable of microwave oven. 

Test for “doneness” with long skewer; skewer should come out clean. Slice into squares while pudding is still warm, serving with sauce of your choice. Yields 9 servings.

  

Further Note: No cake flour? Substitute 1-¼ c. (310 mL) all-purpose flour minus 1-½ tbsp (22.5 mL). 

Sweet Lemon Sauce:

1 c. (250 mL) water

2 tbsp. (30 mL) cornstarch

½ c. (125 mL) light brown sugar

Juice and zest of one lemon (see Note)

Combine all ingredients in microwave-safe 4 c. (1 L) measure or bowl. Cook on high power 3-to-4 min. until thickened and smooth, stirring twice.

Note: To extract the maximum amount of juice from a lemon, place it in very hot water for several minutes before rolling it on a flat work surface. 

Traditional Hard Sauce:

This sauce is my hands-down favorite for Holiday Carrot Pudding! 

1/2 c. (125 mL) butter, softened (no substitutes

1-1/2 c. (375 mL) light brown sugar

1/3 c. (80 mL) heavy cream (“whipping cream”) 

1 tsp. (5 mL) vanilla 

With an electric mixer, cream butter, slowly adding sugar and frequently scraping sides of bowl with silicone spatula. When sugar is fully mixed in, continue creaming about 5 min. or until no grainy feeling remains when mixture is rubbed between thumb and forefinger. Mixture should appear fluffy.

Gradually add cream, beating after each addition. Add vanilla, combining well. Transfer to clean 9 x 9 in. (23 cm x 23 cm) pan or other small, square baking dish lined with parchment. Chill until sauce hardens, cutting into at least 9 squares. 

Transfer chilled, hardened squares to dessert table, serving over each portion of warm pudding.