Stir-Up Sunday
Christmas Pudding Sunday
Take Turns Wishing Upon the Annual Christmas Pudding
About Stir-Up Sunday
Stir-Up Sunday invites the family to gather awkwardly around a massive bowl of inedible swamp crust and stir it. Well, not quite. The centerpiece of this day is the Christmas pudding, a dessert as dense with history as it is with dried fruit. Each family member takes a turn stirring the mixture—harder than it sounds!—while making a wish for the year ahead. Though the pudding won’t be eaten until Christmas Day (and its taste may not win over everyone at the table), the tradition itself is what makes the day special. You can stick with classic recipes or invent something fresh, as long as your family joins you. Stir-Up Sunday is about creating memories and the implied obligation to taste your own handiwork come Christmas.
Ways to observe
(A) Low effort
Gather everyone in the kitchen to stir a simple batter, pudding or otherwise, and have each person make a wish as they take their turn.
(B) Recommended
If a Christmas pudding feels too daunting, make a simpler family recipe—cookies, a cake, or even a big pot of soup—together. The key is participation: everyone stirs, wishes are made, and the result is shared. Pair the cooking session with holiday music and festive cheer.
(C) High effort
Go all-in on the traditional Christmas pudding. Assemble the ingredients (suet, dried fruits, spices) and let the family take turns stirring. Be sure to incorporate traditional elements, like hiding a small charm in the pudding for good luck or having everyone stir from east to west in honor of the Magi.
Inspiration
It is a truth universally acknowledged that no Christmas pudding has ever been—or will ever be—an object of genuine culinary affection. English puddings are an abomination: dense, boozy, speckled with mystery fruit, and occasionally studded with coins. But of course, the pudding is only the excuse. The real purpose of Stir-Up Sunday is to bring everyone into the kitchen under the guise of tradition, to stir something heavy and ancestral while making wishes you won’t remember and jokes you’ve told for years. The holiday traces back to the Anglican Church, whose collect for the final Sunday before Advent begins, “Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord…”—a spiritual prompt that conveniently doubled as a reminder to get your pudding going if you wanted it ready by Christmas. Over time, the liturgical blended with the domestic, and families began turning the act of stirring into a fun tradition, with each person taking a turn and secretly hoping not to be the one who finds the thimble. (Why a thimble? I have no idea.) Though the pudding may not be beloved, the gesture is.
Adornments
Watch
Pieces of April (2003)
April, the punky black-sheep daughter, attempts to host Thanksgiving in her tiny New York apartment with a temperamental oven and zero experience. Her neighbors pitch in, lending pans and cooking advice, turning a potential disaster into a quirky community effort.
Big Night (1996)
This cult classic follows two Italian brothers in 1950s New Jersey who pin all their hopes on one grand feast. They prepare a magnificent multi-course dinner—including a show-stopping timpano pasta dome—with almost religious devotion.
Listen
Stir It Up by Bob Marley & The Wailers
Smooth, soulful reggae to sway to while you take turns stirring the pot. This classic track wasn’t written for Christmas, but its easygoing warmth transforms the kitchen into an island of calm amid holiday bustle.
Fruitcake by The Superions
Embrace some irreverent holiday humor with this quirky, synth-pop ode to the season’s most maligned dessert. Performed by Fred Schneider (of B-52’s fame) and his band.
Read
Sweet Invention: A History of Dessert by Michael Krondl
Krondl’s book explores how desserts evolved across cultures, and it’s packed with stories behind the sweets we associate with celebrations. You’ll travel from ancient honey cakes and Persian baklava to European Christmas confections, discovering how treats like Yule logs and sugarplums became holiday staples.
Pride and Pudding: The History of British Puddings, Savoury and Sweet by Regula Ysewijn
A beautifully illustrated exploration of Britain’s long love affair with puddings, from humble suet puddings to elegant plum puddings and comforting bread-and-butter puddings. Ysewijn dives into centuries of recipes and rituals, tracing how Christmas pudding emerged as a festive staple.