Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord , the wills of thy faithful people; that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may of thee be plenteously rewarded; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.Thus reads the collect for the last Sunday before Advent, Stir Up Sunday, when tradition has it that preparation should begin for the feast of Christmas with the making of the Christmas pudding.
Many's the year I've been sat in the pew listening to this collect and thinking 'Drat. I've missed it again.' But not so this year when, for perhaps the very first time ever, I have stirred my pudding.
I adore Christmas pudding ... and Christmas cake ... and mince pies. One whiff of dried fruit, spices and spirits and I'm caught up in the mystery and excitement of the festival. It all starts today.
I've experimented with a variety of recipes but for the last few years I've returned to St Delia's traditional one. Today I measured and chopped and stirred. Tomorrow I'll steam.
For some reason I can no longer remember I made so many Christmas puddings last year that we have a large and a small left over, and we had one for hubby's birthday and presumably one for Easter, too, as that has become a tradition in our house in recent years.
ReplyDeleteGood idea to chop and mix one day and steam the next.
Wow. That's a lot of pudding!
ReplyDeleteI once tried out a delicious National Trust recipe that made a few puds - two large and one small, if I remember correctly. However I usually stick to just the one. My younger daughter doesn't like fruit puddings so there's just the three of us.
My husband does often buy a luxury supermarket version if they're reduced after Christmas.