| Where: | Countrywide |
| When: | Late November / Last Sunday before Advent |
| Time: | All day |
Stir-Up Sunday is so called for two reasons. The first is from the wording of the collect in the church service for the day which begins ” Stir up , we beseech thee O Lord” and the second is because traditionally this was the day upon which the Christmas Pudding should be made in order for it to have time to mature before Christmas Day. Presumably the wording at church became associated with the appropriate time for pudding preparation and the two have been linked for many years.
Helpful Hints
Stir-Up Sunday is the last Sunday before Advent and because the dating of Advent varies a little from year to year, it can fall anytime between November 20th and 26th. In 2025 it will be on Sunday November 23rd.
Here’s our family recipe for anyone who needs one. It’s been tried, tested and adapted by relatives for well over half a century and John likes it best served with custard. It’s in Imperial measurements but if your scales are metric you can easily convert the quantities. It fills a 6-inch pudding basin:
You need 6 ounces each of raisins, sultanas and currants, 2 oz of mixed peel, 2 oz of glace cherries, 6 oz plain flour, 3 oz breadcrumbs (I just grate a few slices of bread), 6 oz suet (vegetable suet is fine), 4 oz brown sugar, 3 eggs, 1/2 a glass of brandy, a pinch each of nutmeg, mixed spice, cinnamon and salt, a teaspoon of coffee , rind and juice of a lemon and an orange , half a grated carrot and milk to mix.( John isn’t too fond of cherries so I don’t add many but as long as the overall fruit content remains the same you can tinker with the quantities of each to taste).
Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl, beat the eggs & add them and the brandy & juice and add enough milk to give a stiff dropping consistency. Grease a 6-inch pudding basin, fill it with the mixture (don’t worry if there’s a gap at the top) and cover the top of the basin with greaseproof paper (greased on the underside) with a layer of cooking foil over it, tied on with string. Steam in a steamer over a pan of boiling water for 7 hours and keep checking the pan to make sure it doesn’t boil dry. Store it somewhere cool & dry until you want to eat it: when serving you can either heat each portion up in the microwave like we do, or steam it again for about 2 hours.
When you serve the pudding you can set it on fire by turning it out of the basin, heating more brandy in a saucepan then pouring the hot brandy over it and putting a match to it, so it comes flaming to the table!
We will be making Christmas puddings with primary and secondary school children. It’s a great activity for bringing people together and for looking forward to the Christmas celebrations. It’s also a good excuse to drink a little mulled wine or fruit punch and sing a few early Christmas carols!
That’s what annual customs are all about – giving us all something to look forward to!
My son and I always make Christmas puddings with his Granddad who is now 92 and it has to be done on Stir up Sunday!
Just been checking that I have all the ingredients ready for next Sunday. My two children aged 7 and 5 will be helping to stir the pudding. Stir up Sunday is a lovely annual tradition in the lead up to Advent and Christmas and one we will be keeping up for years to come.
please could you send me a recipe for a right good pudding?!
Hi Gillian,
I’ve added our old family recipe to the page about Stir-Up Sunday so you might like to give it a try. Alternatively I believe Delia Smith’s recipe is well regarded ot the one in the Good Housekeeping Cookery Book. I’ll be making ours this Sunday – don’t forget to make a wish when you’re stirring it!
Averil
Here’s the recipe I use:
6 oz white breadcrumbs
6 oz suet
12 oz Lexia raisins
4 oz currants
4 oz mixed peel
5 medium eggs
6 fl oz brandy
Mix the dry ingedients very thoroughly by hand in a large bowl. Add beaten eggs one by one, then stir in the brandy and incorporate thoroughly.
Divide between 2 pudding basins, put a circle of greaseproof paper on the surface of the pud then tie a pleated sheet of foil securely on top. Boil in water or a steamer over a pan of water for 6 hours, then a further 2 hours on the day of eating. On Christmas day pour some warmed brandy over and light it carefully with a match to bring it flaming to the table.
This is a lovely non-stodgy pudding which you’ve always got room for even after all that turkey! Bon appetit.
As I stir the pudding mix I phone all the family, 2sons brother sister, they each, in turn, make their silent wishes. I love it.
DOES ANYONE HAVE A RECIPE THAT DOES NOT NEED BOILING FOR 7 HOURS?
Check out Marguerite Patton recipe for microwave Christmas pudding on youtube if you can’t steam for 7 hours.
The Christmas pudding can be cooked in the slow cooker or in the oven with the bowl sitting in water. Whatever way it is cooked make sure the water is topped up. I will be doing stir up Sunday in church next Sunday and encouraging children and adults to take part.