Friday 28 November 2008

A SLIGHTLY HOMEMADE CHRISTMAS PUDDING GARDENERS WORLD


Hurray! It's the end of Friday night GW as we know it, and consequently I saw fit to celebrate by arranging the return of everybody's* favourite substitute gardening feature. 

As some of you who are jolly well-organised may know, it's Stir Up Sunday time, and just the right moment to go to Waitrose and get in one of those special panicky rages when you realise someone else just took the last packet of Atora. Happy days. 

 Anyway, if you have actually managed to lay your hands on a packet, of which you will only ever utilise a tiny fraction leaving the rest to moulder on the kitchen shelf till this time next year, take note from their website that those with a surfeit of allotment spinach in '09 could try also rustling up a "green pudding". Sounds healthy. And disgusting. 

(On a sidenote, I never would have believed that a Frenchman invented suet - I thought it was one of those products you just couldn't buy there. We need Fat Rascal for testimony purposes here. Or maybe we could ask Olives and Artichokes, currently doing a very nice version of winter in the South of France.) 

And if you are actually hoping to pick some early manifestations of Christmas spirit I have to say my advice would be to head to Colleen's where she is cleaning out her recipe book cupboard, making cakes, walking along beaches and generally just being very seasonal. It makes me actually feel calmer just to read her blog. And stir up, everyone, richly bearing the fruit of good works!



*Um, well, one person. 

13 comments:

VP said...

If it's just one person that likes SHGW, then you must be talking about me! (But shurely shome mishtake - Ed.)

This has totally brightened up my afternoon and I'm in severe danger of missing my deadline for my allotment seed order as a result. As Threadspider and I have decided to share the spoils this year, that could spell trouble ;)

Zoƫ said...

Suet never molds in cupboards here, it gets turned into dumplings, with cheese or herbs , or just masses of black pepper to accompany a stew of some description - pure comfort food!

Also, spotted dick , jam roly poly ... need I go on?

wanders of salivating

Anonymous said...

I told her I wanted some more as well - she's just being modest - she's like that
Anonjandoesanyonewantsomecatsmother

emmat said...

"wanders off salivating" has just made me get the giggles

HappyMouffetard said...

I thought that Stir Up Sunday was some mad imagining from The Archers, where people who spend too much time with cows (possibly called Elvis) took the opportunity to incant around the village mixing bowl.

Is this a common phenomenon, or have you escaped from Ambridge, Emma?

VP said...

My Aunty Janet lives in the REAL Ambridge. They have a pub called The Bull too. Some of the things she's been involved in on the Parish Council have found their way into the storylines from time to time

emmat said...

I don't know whether this confirms or denies your archers' theory: Stir Up Sunday is something I know from the pages of Delia Smith's Christmas book.

It refers to the collect in the Book of Common Prayer for the Sunday before Advent: "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; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

Alex Johnson said...

As children in the playground are often wont to recite at this time of year:

"Stir up, we beseech thee, the pudding in the pot.
And when we get home we'll eat the lot."

HappyMouffetard said...

VP - would that be Inkberrow?
Alex - you obviously have a better class of playground banter than we do round here! They know some words beginning with 'b' but not beseech.

Anonymous said...

Bloody Hell, I go out for a day and when I come back you have written seven posts.
What is this? Some kind of record attempt or have you finished the three racy novels, one small Encyclopaedia and A Teach Yourself Tae Kwon Do manual that you were supposed to write during November ?
I adore a Sprout.

VP said...

HM - Inkberrow it is :)

colleen said...

And for those who can't get hold of Atora, I have a neat recipe for a fat free prune rich Christmas pudding. Stirring tomorrow.

emmat said...

fat free christmas pudding? But I get so much joy out of seeing all those good ingredients swimming in a sea of beef juice

I have finished the three novels, but not the Tae Kwon Do encyclopedia. I'm meant to be doing it RIGHT NOW. Instead I'm pondering VP's totally brilliant RHS post, and the fact that i've just found out that Frank Ronan is a COWBOY!!!!!
!!!!!
!!!