Stir Up Sunday

20th November 2020 Going Postal Arts, Cooking, Culture, Hobbies 0

The last Sunday before advent begins (22.11) is traditionally known as ‘stir up Sunday’.

This is when families would come together to make the mixture for their Christmas Pudding, all taking it in turns to stir the pot and making a wish for the year ahead. Traditionally a coin was added to the mixture before cooking to bring wealth to whoever found it on Christmas Day………. For the delectation of the Puffinati, here’s an easy-to-follow guide on the best way to prepare your own very special Christmas Pudding.

First, assemble the ingredients.

But before that, prepare yourself a DOM. All chefs need inspiration (& a heart starter).

DJM, Going Postal — *Insert “Cocktail in a stylish glass with orange peel attached to it.” by shixart1985 is licensed under CC BY 2.0*

A DOM (Duke of Marlborough) will enable the creative juices to flow.

You will need :

1 oz dry sherry

1 oz rosso vermouth

1 dash orange bitters

1 twist orange peel

Proceed to mix the sherry, vermouth & bitters. Stir well (don’t shake). Introduce ice cubes, then strain the liquid into a cocktail glass.

Add a twist of orange peel. Serve. Contemplate the task ahead. As a bird won’t fly on one wing, help yourself to another. Peruse the

list of ingredients for your pudding :

120g of breadcrumbs
120 g of suet
100g of flour
175g of soft dark brown sugar
500g of mixed dried fruits, (sultanas, currants, raisins)
25 g flaked almonds (chopped)
25g of candied peel
1 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cooking apple, peeled & grated
1/2 orange, zest only
1/2 lemon, zest only
150 ml cognac
2 eggs

Right…….. Time for action this day.

Place your empty glass down.

Sigh.

Gaze at glass. Time to……..

Pick up the damned laptop.

Fire up its Interwebby Search Engine & go to https://www.figgys.co.uk/products (*)

Select the size of pudding required.

Order & input delivery details.

Pay.

Check email confirmation received from Figgys

Close laptop

Congratulate yourself on a sterling job well done. Crack on & prepare another batch of DOM.

(*) no inducement has been offered or requested for this endorsement. The Figgys product whilst being reassuringly expensive is quite simply superb & the Puffinati deserve to have only the best put before them. The flavour of their puddings is enhanced when served with brandy butter. Figgys don’t supply this, but it’s easy peasy to do it yourself. Even AlJr could………well maybe not, no ketchup or birdseed is required.

To prepare the brandy butter, add 100g of unsalted butter to a large bowl and allow it to soften. Once soft enough to beat, whisk the butter until light and creamy. Add 225g of icing sugar & beat it until all of the sugar is mixed in. The tricky part is next – whisking in the cognac – do this sparingly – tasting frequently to get the balance right between sweetness & alcohol. When you’re happy with the result, cover the bowl & store in the fridge until required.

Top tip : Brandy butter tastes even better if it’s prepared Christmas Eve.