Comfort food - beef and prune casserole

Hayley Edwards, of The Roving Chef, demonstrates how to create a delicious beef and prune casserole. Perfect for a cosy evening at home. Print out the recipe below.

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Recipe

Serves: 3-4
Preparation time: 20-30 mins Cooking time 4 hours

Ingredients
1.5lbs / 700g braising steak
2 large onions - chopped
2 carrots - sliced into 1cm
2 courgettes -sliced into 1 cm
3 /4 fat cloves of garlic - sliced
1.5pt of beef stock
10 fat prunes (Agen would be the best)- cut in half
Olive Oil 1-2 tablespoons
Salt and pepper
1-2 glasses full bodied red wine (optional)
2 Bay leaves

1. Warm the oil in a thick bottomed pan on the top of the stove, it doesn't need to be spitting just hot enough to let the meat brown.
2. Dice the beef into man sized chunks, place in the pan and brown.
3. Remove from the pan and put to one side, put the onions and garlic into the pan, pop the lid on, and let them sweat (cook without colouring). When they are tender, re-add the beef to the pan along with the stock, carrots, courgettes and bay leaves and gently bring to the boil.
4. Add the prunes.
5. Season with salt and pepper - not much as you can always add more later on.
6. Add red wine - don't be stingy - 2 glasses.
7. Replace lid and leave to cook slowly on top of the stove/or oven at 160 for about 3.5 - 4 hours. The meat will be so tender it will cut like softened butter with all flavours mixed, mingled and having a love affair in the pot.
8. Pour your self a large glass of red wine or G&T and relax...
9. I normally serve with steamed or baked potatoes, broccoli and peas

Tips
This dish is perfect for coeliacs as no flour is used and the prunes add sweetness.
Add any other vegetables you like, parsnips for example are delicious.

About Hayley

Roving Chef London was launched in early 2007 when Hayley decided that it would be a great idea to actually teach people how to cook in their own homes, so they can learn on a one-to-one basis at their own pace and what they want to learn ¢â¬â why make life harder than it needs to be? Contact Hayley at http://www.rovingchef.net.