Traditional pursuits in November - part 4
Stir-up Sunday
Stir-up Sunday takes place on the last Sunday of the Christian church year, preceding the first Sunday of Advent. It is an informal name for the last Sunday before Advent when the collect for the day, from the Book of Common Prayer, begins with ‘Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people . . . ‘ In Victorian times it became a reminder to make the Christmas puddings. It remains the traditional day for families to make their Christmas puddings.
Although Prince Albert, the consort of Queen Victoria, is credited with introducing the Christmas pudding to Britain, it was actually George I who brought the pudding to public attention in 1714. In similar vein, it was widely believed that Prince Albert introduced the custom of bringing a tree into the house at Christmas. It was actually Queen Charlotte, wife of George III, who was responsible for this in 1800. Albert simply popularised it.
Convention dictates that the pudding should contain thirteen ingredients, representing Jesus and the disciples. Each member of the family takes a turn to stir the pudding, from east to west, that is, clockwise, in honour of the three wise men who travelled from the east to see the baby Jesus.
It is stirred with a wooden spoon, which represents the manger, and each person makes a wish while stirring. The pudding mixture is quite stiff and before the advent of kitchen aids, would have required much effort to stir.
Once mixed, the pudding is steamed and stored, ready to be reheated on Christmas Day. Some families add a silver sixpence - nowadays a 5p piece – to the mix, which is meant to bring good luck to the person who finds it, so long as they don‘t break a tooth on it.
This year
Stir-up Sunday will be on November 26th.
I make our puddings well in advance (sometimes a whole year in advance) and give them plenty of time to mature and sweeten. If I have left it to this Sunday the chances are it is too late to get done in the rush to complete all the other demands on my time as the year crashes toward Christmas and I am still working full time (and commuting 5 hours each day). This year I am making no preparations at all and leaving it to my OH and his sister - who have gone out and bought an entire cooked and vacuum packed (microwavable) Christmas dinner. Hmmm, not my style at all but how they were brought up so that's their thing.
ReplyDeleteChristmas pudding is best after Christmas, I find - about 6 months after!
DeleteI wonder if it was true that you couldn't use copper coins as the copper would leach out into the cake. At some point sixpence must have had quite some value. Not our time of course but the olden days.
ReplyDeleteYou could be right about copper coins, but I think a sixpence was more valuable.
DeleteI wonder if the tradition of everyone having a turn arose from some tired mama who needed help with the stirring? :)
ReplyDeleteI think there's a lot of truth in that.
DeleteI'm afraid that Christmas pudding always came from the Co-op in our family. Although my Yorkshire grandmother lived with us throughout my childhood, she neither cooked nor was inclined to pass on any traditions in the kitchen, sadly.
ReplyDeleteCheers, Gail.
That's quite refreshing to hear. Stir-up Sunday is always mentioned in 'The Archers' and I''m sure it makes lesser mortals feel slightly inadequate.
ReplyDeleteI do remember that the Christmas pudding originated
ReplyDeletein the 14th-century as a sort of porridge, originally known as
“Frumenty”, which bears little resemblance to the dessert we
know today...also known as a plum pudding or figgy pudding.!
And it was more like a porridge...(l think)...!
HeHe! And what with inflation...l put a £10 note in mine...!
⛄ 🔥 🎄 🎁 🧦 🔔 🎄🧑🎄🎅🎁 ⛄ 🔥 🎄 🎁 🧦 🔔 🎄
I'll have some of your pudding, please:-)
DeleteHaHa! I'll make a 'note' of it...! :O).
DeleteHi Janice - Christmas pud I've never made ... but am always in a setting where everything is made by someone - family traditions abound. Cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteIt's good to enjoy traditions so long as they're not limiting . . .
DeleteAnother one of those English traditions I love so much and which are why I am an Anglophile! xxx
ReplyDeleteIt's really too much on top of a traditional Christmas dinner . . . but we persevere;-) x x x
DeleteI loved reading about this tradition. I have never had Christmas pudding. I will have to check if they sell them anywhere nearby.
ReplyDeleteChristmas pudding is very, very rich - a little goes a long way:-)
DeleteThat puppy would melt even the toughest person's heart
ReplyDeletePuppies are gorgeous but they grow up so quickly.
DeleteNo stir up Sunday for me this year but I do usually make my pudding then. It's fun following traditions like that.
ReplyDeletexx.
Understanding the tradition makes it more meaningful, too, even if you don't necessarily believe it all.
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