Stir it up with carrots

What is Stir Up Sunday?

‘Stir Up Sunday’ is the day when home cooks ‘stir up’ their Christmas puddings. It falls on a different date each year but always towards the end of November, before Advent begins. This year it’s on Sunday 21 November. The term came from the Anglican church, where the collect for the last Sunday before Advent is as follows : ‘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 …’  This turned into a  reminder to the congregation to ‘stir up’ their puddings, since most recipes require them to be prepared well before Christmas Day.

WW2 recipes with carrots

During World War 2 many cake recipes included carrots and potatoes since they were an alternative for sugar and reasonably plentiful. The Ministry of Food produced leaflets with recipes. In the case of Christmas Pudding, any spices you might use would have probably been in the kitchen pantry since the outbreak of war, so it might be mixed spice or all spice or any combination of these. Coupons for dried fruits would have to be saved up for several weeks. 

WW2 Christmas Pudding

3 oz (75g) carrots, grated

3½ oz (100g) potatoes, grated

3 oz (75g) plain flour (this would be wholemeal

1 oz (25g) breadcrumbs

1 oz (25g) shredded suet

½ tsp mixed spice

½ tsp nutmeg

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 tbsps water

2 tbsps mixed dried fruit

1 tbsp water, 

1 tbsp rum or brandy (if available)

Prepare the pudding basins for steaming by greasing them thoroughly. Mix together the carrot, potato, flour, breadcrumbs, suet and spices. Dissolve the bicarbonate of soda in the water and add to the mixture. If available soak the dried fruit in the rum or brandy then add it to the mixture. Mix well then place in the basin. Cover with greaseproof paper or foil and place in a saucepan with boiling water. Steam for 4 hours, topping up the water as it cooks.

 

Where did Christmas Pudding come from?

Christmas pudding was reputed to have originated in the 14^th century when a dish called frumenty, made with oats, milk and seasoned with cinnamon and saffron was served. Later, traditional Christmas dishes, such as mincemeat, were normally made with meat until the 1700s, when Georgian cooks started to experiment with meat less versions, flavouring the mixture with lemon juice and zest, alongside the dried fruit and spices. Here's a traditional Plum Pudding, including instructions for cooking in a microwave.

 

Stir it up and make a wish!   

In some families, ‘stirring up’ the Christmas pudding became a tradition where everyone took a turn in stirring the mixture and making a wish for the year ahead. The pudding should be stirred from east to west, in honour of the Magi (Wise Men) who came from the east to visit the baby Jesus. Some cooks also added silver coins to the mixture to bring good luck to whoever finds one in their portion.

Stir It Up for Christmas

Stir it up in the Great Kitchen at Cusworth Hall

Wishes were in the air at Cusworth Hall Doncaster last weekend. Stir Up Sunday (the last Sunday in the church year) is the day when everyone has a go at stirring the Christmas Pudding mixture and makes a wish. June, Hazel (alias Mary and Rose) and I put on freshly laundered aprons and caps worn by the former kitchen staff in the Hall and reenacted preparations for Stir Up Sunday in the kitchens at the Hall, just as in the 1900s.

Stir it up and make a wish   

We made the Plum Pudding recipe from Grandma Abson's Traditional Baking. The Victorians called raisins 'Plums' hence the traditional name for Christmas Pudding. Grandma generally made her own Christmas Puddings a few weeks before Christmas and tied them up with clean cloths such as muslin or cotton. The recipe comes from her elder sister, Emma. It makes 3 large puddings so I’ve cut it down here to make one for a 2 pint basin.

PLUM PUDDING

275g/10 oz currants

150g/5 0z sultanas

150g/5 0z stoned raisins

75g/3 oz mixed peel

150g/5 0z (vegetarian) suet

150g/5 0z breadcrumbs

150g/5 0z self raising flour

150g/5 0z  (soft brown) sugar

 25g/1 oz flaked almonds or chopped  nuts

1 tsp mixed spice

1 tsp cinnamon

Pinch  of salt

2 eggs (beaten)

1/3 small can stout

A little milk

Mix all the dry ingredients. Add the eggs, then the stout and milk. Mix all well. Cover with greaseproof paper. Steam or boil for 4 hours. Store in a cool place until Christmas Day. Then, steam for 2 hours prior to serving on the day.”

Steaming the Plum Pudding 
(see below to microwave it)

Meryl's tips for a perfect Plum Pudding

1.     If you don’t have a steamer, you can put the pudding basin in a large pan on an inverted saucer or small plate and pour water to about ¼ of the side of the basin.

2.    Keep topping the water up in the pan so it doesn’t boil dry.

3.    Always test with skewer – if the skewer comes out clean, then it’s fully cooked. If it still sticks to the skewer then cook for a minute or so longer.

4.    And just in case … You can do all this in a microwave and make a microwave Christmas Pudding. Cover the pudding in cling film and for the first stage, cook on medium power for around 20 minutes. Then leave to cool, recover with fresh cling film (or foil) and store in cool place as before. On Christmas Day, remove the foil and cover with cling film, reheat for 6-8 minutes on a moderate heat.

5.    Whatever the method for cooking, leave the pudding to stand  for a few minutes before serving and prepare Brandy Butter, Custard or cream – whatever you like best. We always have Rum Sauce.

Paul says : 'I’ll try a piece of cake too!