Stir Up Sunday is the traditional day to begin making your Christmas pudding! Learn how it gets its name and how to make a fantastic Christmas pudding with our expert pudding-maker Jill, as well as enjoying our beautiful spiritual reflections...

If you'd like to make Jill's pudding the recipe is below:

Ingredients

2 oz flour (plain or self raising)

1 tsp mixed spice

2 oz fresh white bread crumbs

4 oz shredded suet

2 oz darkest brown sugar you can get

12 oz mix of raisins, currants and sultanas, to keep darkness use more raisins

2 large eggs

1 tbsp black treacle

1 small wine glass brandy

2 fl oz beer (optional)

Method

Soak the fruit in the brandy overnight. The next day, put all the ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir very well. You want it to be moist and dark, don’t be afraid to experiment with amounts! Prepare your 2 pint pudding basin by buttering it and then put your mixture in it. Cover the basin with tin foil and put it into your slow cooker. Fill slow cooker with water to about two thirds up the side of the basin. Cook in slow cooker for 10 hours on high. You want it as moist and dark in colour as possible. Take basin out of slow cooker and leave it to cool, keeping the tin foil on. Keep somewhere cool until you want to serve it. When serving, put back into the slow cooker with boiling water two thirds up the side of the basin. Cook on high for 4 hours, keeping it covered. This will maintain the moistness. Serve with cream, brandy butter or whatever you prefer!