The weeks rolled on in a haze of frantic activity and darkening winter nights. It was time for Pudding Club round three and Granny Ruth was still keen to take the helm this time around. Eve had offered to have Maisy to stay overnight, so the three Swinton ladies could steer the festive proceedings together.
Ruth was ready fifteen minutes before the start time, eager with all her ingredients set out neatly on the counter for her hands-on ‘Stir-up Sunday’ session (on a Thursday evening, of course, to fit in with the club night.) Rachel had put out yet more posters and flyers, and they’d had a fabulous editorial piece on Primrose Farm and the Pudding Pantry’s journey so far – with a special mention of the new Pudding Club and its Christmas Pudding night – in the Gazette again, so Rachel and Jill were hoping that there could be a further boost to club numbers.
First to arrive were Denise and Christine, and they’d encouraged two more from the local WI to come along – they’d heard about the antics of a certain Vanessa Palmer-Pilkington at the last session and, now that she was definitely not coming back, thought it an ideal time to join in. They were introduced as Eileen and Judith. Brenda from the Deli had made it along too.
Then a young woman shyly approached the barn door. ‘Ah, excuse me, is this the right place for the Pudding Club?’
‘Absolutely,’ welcomed Jill, ‘Come on in. I’m Jill, and what’s your name, pet?’
‘Alice.’
‘That’s a pretty name. And do you live nearby?’ She hadn’t seen her before.
‘Just down in Kirkton. We only moved in a few weeks ago.’
‘Oh, that’s lovely. You’ll find it’s a friendly little village. And coming along here’s a good place to start; it’ll give you chance to meet a few people.’
‘And eat lots of pudding, of course.’ Rachel smiled. ‘Hello Alice, nice to meet you. I’m Rachel, Jill’s daughter, we run the Pantry together.’
‘It’s gorgeous in here,’ said Alice, as she looked around her.
The wood-burning stove was lit, the Christmas tree was looking gorgeously festive in the far corner, with a string of extra fairy lights now hanging along the top of the refrigerated display counter twinkling away softly.
‘Thank you,’ answered Rachel, with a warm smile.
‘I’ve always loved baking,’ Alice commented, then she seemed to go a little shy again as the two young mums, Hannah and Kirsty, came in through the doors.
‘Hiya.’
‘Hello, all. We’re so looking forward to our Christmas Pudding session.’
Granny Ruth beamed at the head of the table, ready to take control of the evening.
Daniel was next to stroll in. ‘Sorry, I know I’m cutting it fine, had to stay a bit late on my shift at the care home. Staff illness.’
‘Ah, well at least you made it,’ Jill said brightly.
They waited a few more minutes to give anyone else a chance to arrive, but there was no Frank this week, as he’d had a bit of a cold and wasn’t feeling like coming out on a chilly evening, saying that he’d buy a Christmas Pudding from them soon. The couple from Alnwick were back; they were looking forward to some Christmas Pudding tips and a bit of inspiration. And Charlotte whizzed in at the end, telling them all about her crazy day at school – she hadn’t even managed supper – so it was going to be Christmas pudding for tea for her. Rachel laughed and said she’d make hers an extra-large portion. The group took up their seats, a grand total of twelve. Not bad at all.
Rachel was glad to see the young mums were chatting with Alice. She caught a little of the conversation as she started getting the hot drinks ready, hearing Alice say that she had a baby boy. Kirsty mentioned the local playgroup being good, and it was nice to see Alice being made to feel welcome. It was always difficult being the new one.
After serving out teas and coffees, Rachel stood up at one end of the table and rapped a spoon to get the group’s attention. ‘Okay, well it looks like we’re all here. A big warm welcome to the Pudding Club or should I say the Christmas Pudding Club. There are a few newcomers tonight, so if we briefly go around the table and say our names, that’d be great.’
Introductions were made, then Rachel added, ‘Well, tonight, I’m handing over to my wonderful Granny Ruth, as she has far more experience in Christmas Pudding making than me, and she has a very special family recipe that she’d like to share with you all.’
There was a small round of applause and Ruth stood proudly at the head of the table, ready to start cooking.
‘Well, hello everybody, lovely to see you all. I have to confess I feel a little like Mary Berry standing here with all my ingredients. I’ve been around a while too, like the fabulous Mary, though I don’t think my hair is quite as coiffed or my bakes quite so amazing.’
A ripple of laughter swept through the room.
‘I have eaten my fair share of Christmas Puddings in my time,’ Ruth continued, ‘and this particular one was handed down from my mother with a tweak or two added of my own. I’ll go through it step by step, but my granddaughter, Rachel here, has typed up the recipe for you, so you needn’t worry about remembering every detail, as you’ll have it to take away with you.’ Granny smiled. ‘Now then, being brought up near to the Scottish Borders, this recipe has a nip or two of whisky through it and a lovely touch of warming orange – ideal for a chilly winter’s night.’
‘Ooh, sounds lovely,’ commented Eileen from the WI.
‘Do we get to taste it?’ asked Hannah.
‘Of course, there’s one I made earlier.’ Ruth was now in Blue Peter presenter mode. ‘Well, two in fact. I didn’t think you’d want to wait the three hours or so until this one steams, and then wait another week to let the flavours work through.’
‘Ooh, great.’
‘Can’t wait.’
‘That’s good news; my tummy’s rumbling with you just talking about it,’ said Charlotte.
‘Now then, before we start on the cooking and tasting, I want to tell you a little about the traditions of “Stir-up Sunday”.’
Rachel went around topping up everyone’s tea and coffee cups, while Granny Ruth chatted away confidently. It was lovely to see the old lady so relaxed in front of the group – she was a natural.
‘So, does anyone know how and why it was named?’
‘Well, I know it’s traditionally the last Sunday before Advent,’ said Denise.
‘That’s right, pet. Our good old home cooks spent the Sunday before Advent stirring up their Christmas Puddings. There’s actually a phrase that was used in the Anglican church service on that day: “Stir up, we beseech thee, O lord, the wills of thy faithful people.” Well, being busy Mams and all, I reckon the women churchgoers that day were busy planning how to get ahead with their Christmas cooking, and thinking of the never-ending “to do” list we all have this time of year, while they were in church.’
‘Hah, yes.’
There were nods of agreement and empathy from around the room; the build-up to Christmas was always a hectic time.
‘So, as soon as they left the church, they’d be cracking on with their Christmas preparations and mixing and stirring their figgy puddings and suchlike, so “stir up” stuck in their minds. And Stir-up Sunday it became!’
‘Hah, yes. That must have been it,’ said Brenda.
‘Mind you, if Vanessa was here, Stir-up Sunday might mean something else indeed,’ added Denise, obviously fed-up with that dratted woman’s antics.
The group were smiling away, smitten with Granny’s raconteur style, and more than happy that meddling Vanessa had kept her promise to stay away.
‘Now then,’ Ruth continued, ‘we used to have a tradition at home where everyone in the household would take a turn at stirring the pudding, for a bit of extra luck. Does anyone else do that?’
‘Oh yes,’ answered Christine. ‘My old mam used to do that. I remember standing on a stool to give the mix a stir as a little girl. I still get my granddaughter to do that now, in fact.’
‘Aw, that’s sweet.’
‘And my Nana always insisted that we stir from west to east,’ said Pamela, ‘to echo the journey made by the wise men.’
‘Any other traditions or memories of Christmas pudding making from the group?’ asked Ruth.
‘Well, we always put a sixpence in the mix,’ said Daniel. ‘My ma made a lovely pudding.’
‘Yes, we did that! It was considered lucky for whoever found it. We do that still, but it’s a pound coin nowadays,’ added Brenda.
‘Hah, we used to do that, back in the day when I was little,’ said Jill with a chuckle, ‘That was until Auntie Hilda choked on it one year. If it wasn’t for Uncle Henry and his Heimlich manoeuvre, it might have been a very unlucky sixpence indeed! We never put them in after that!’
‘Ooh, well we’ll have to be careful. Don’t want any trips to A & E over Christmas,’ said Brenda, pulling a worried face.
‘Right, shall we make a start and I’ll tell you all the ingredients I have here?’ Granny proceeded with her best Mary Berry impression. All the fruit items were listed and tipped into the big bowl, with a generous splash of whisky and the juice and finely grated rind of an orange no less. The mixing bowl was then passed around the table for ‘stirring up’. Everyone took a turn, and it was a lovely tradition to be following to make the first ever Pudding Club Christmas Pudding.
There was a conversation about which other alcohols might be used in the mix, the favourite being brandy, with the group interested in tasting how the whisky and orange combination would turn out.
‘Well, generally, I like to give these puddings a good few weeks to stand to really enhance all the flavours, but I do have those samples I made last week for you to try in a minute, so it’ll give you a good idea on the taste.’
Jill, in the meanwhile, had beaten the butter, sugar, eggs and flour together, and then the fruit mix was added to that, for another stirring session. The smells wafting from the bowl were delicious.
‘Just the aroma says Christmas, doesn’t it,’ said Ruth, sniffing the air.
‘This is like “pass the pudding” – I love it,’ smiled Alice, who looked very happy within the group, which was heart-warming for Rachel to see.
‘Now then, I have my pudding basin ready, greased lightly, with a circle of baking parchment in the bottom, so it doesn’t stick.’ Granny Ruth took up again. ‘Spoon the mixture in, like so, and cover with more greaseproof or baking paper and a layer of foil and then tie that on securely with string.’
‘Oh, and my top tip at this point,’ added Jill, ‘is to make a strip of folded foil that you put under the basin, like so, and bring up around the sides so you can use it as a handle to lift the pudding in and out with.’
‘Genius, Jill,’ Daniel grinned.
‘So, this’ll need to steam for around … Oh excuse me.’ Ruth was then rattled by her tickly cough for a short while. She moved politely away from the group, as Rachel got her a seat and a glass of water.
‘Just bear with us a second,’ said Jill.
‘No worries at all,’ said Brenda, speaking for the group.
They all chatted between themselves for a minute or two, until Ruth came back over, with her apologies. ‘So, you’ll need to steam the pudding for around three hours. Leave to cool, and it’ll keep in a fridge or a cool place for up to four weeks, or you can freeze ahead.’
‘That’s a great recipe, thank you.’
‘Oh, hang on, I haven’t quite finished yet, there’s a walnut sauce to make to go with it.’ Ruth went through the method for this, with a nip of whisky, orange juice and cranberries, as well as the delightful walnuts. It all turned into a syrupy sauce, which Jill warmed on the stove in the kitchen area behind the counter. ‘This is my own personal tweak, and makes a great topping for the pudding.’
Granny had one of the puds she’d made earlier warming through in another pan. She carefully turned that out to great effect on to a white dish, adding a hearty drizzle of the nutty, fruity sauce, and fresh holly leaves to decorate.
The crowd gave a round of applause.
‘Wonderful, Ruth,’ said Jill.
‘Thank you, Granny, it looks and smells amazing,’ said Rachel. ‘Are you okay, now?’ she added as an aside.
‘Of course, pet. Just that silly cough. I’m fine now.’
Spoons and dessert bowls were at the ready for the moment of truth – the tasting. Ruth was holding her breath.
‘The proof of the pudding, Granny!’ said Rachel, as they were all about to dive in.
There was a second or two of silence, and then lots of ‘Mmms’ followed by ‘Divine.’ ‘Love the rich fruit and spice flavours.’ And a comment from Charlotte, ‘Ahh, I’m in pudding heaven right now.’
Ruth grinned widely, looking somewhat relieved. ‘Thank you, and thanks for being such a lovely audience.’
‘You were a superstar, Granny. I reckon the BBC will soon be on the case looking for a new baking queen.’ Rachel grinned.
‘Don’t be daft, pet.’ She batted the idea away, but she was still beaming broadly.
‘A natural,’ added Daniel warmly.
As the club night came to an end, Daniel and Jill chatted as the group were beginning to gather coats, hats and scarves ready for the journey home.
‘Jill has some of her own special Christmas puds on the counter for sale, and I do believe Granny Ruth’s Whisky and Orange will soon be featuring in the Pudding Pantry selection too. Thanks for coming everyone, and next time we meet will be the last session before Christmas, so it’s all about easy Christmas bakes and cakes, ideal for the family and any last-minute extra guests,’ said Rachel to the departing crowd.
‘That sounds great, thank you.’
‘Lovely night.’
‘Brilliant.’
‘I’m definitely going to try Granny Ruth’s recipe out.’
‘See you soon then, everyone.’
There was a scraping of chairs. The barn door opened and a draught of chill November air came blasting in as the club members drifted out in small groups, still chatting away. The two young mums gave a cheery wave as they left, with Alice by their side, sharing tips on weaning.
‘Pureed apple and pear, that was always popular with my two,’ Rachel overheard Kirsty saying. ‘You can freeze any extra you make too.’
‘Thanks, I might start with that soon. He’s nearly six months now.’
‘Yeah, that’s about the right time,’ added Hannah.
A new friendship group within the club was forming. It was so lovely to see the Pudding Club putting a smile on people’s faces.
Daniel was the last to head off, saying his goodbyes to Ruth and Jill. Rachel spotted a warm smile pass between him and her mum. Now what was that about? Rachel couldn’t dwell on it for long, preoccupied with seeing people out of the door, but this was something she’d come back to later …
Oh, wasn’t it lovely to see baking bringing everyone together? The Pudding Club seemed to have just the right ingredients.