Birthday Celebration Party for Jesus

According to www.californiamall.com "Christmas is Britain's most popular holiday and is characterized by traditions which date back hundreds of years. Many Christmas customs which originated in Britain have been adopted in the United States." I come from an English background and one of the traditions I remember is a pudding made by an Aunt and was the main dessert. As I recall, I never tasted this pudding. It looked like mud to me and did not smell appetising. Following is the recipe and is a tradition from England. My great-great-great brought this recipe with him in 1876 when he migrated to the United States and became an indentured servant for 7 years near Chicago.

CHRISTMAS PUDDING

This pudding dates back to the late 19th century. This pudding should be made well in advance, but it is possible to make it on Christmas Eve.
8 oz. currants
8 oz. sultanas
8 oz. stoned raisins
8 oz. Barbados sugar
4 oz. grated beef suet
4 0z. fresh breadcrumbs
4 0z. ground almonds
4 0z. blanched almonds, chopped
4 oz. mixed candied peel
6 oz. cooked apple, peeled and finely chopped
8 oz. plain flour
Finely grated rind of 1 lemon
Finely grated rind of 1 orange
2 tbsp. lemon juice
3 fI. oz. stout
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 oz. ground minced spice
1/4 tsp. grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
5 tbsp. brandy

Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl with 2 tbsp. of the brandy. Pour the mixture into a greased 3 1/2 pint pudding basin and cover with a double layer of greased, greaseproof paper or aluminum foil--pleated in the middle to allow for expansion. Tie string under the rim and across the top to make a handle. Place a trivet in the base of a large saucepan. Lower the pudding into the saucepan and fill with enough boiling water to come two-thirds of the way up the sides of the basin. Pour in more boiling water if necessary.

When the Pudding is cooked, pour the remaining brandy over the surface and re-cover. To reheat, boil gently for 3-4 hours.

For our tradition one pudding was made without the brandy and one with the brandy. My Aunt would save about 1/2 of the brandy and 2 Aunts and my Mother would share the brandy in a little room off the kitchen of my Aunts house.