Christmas Christmas Traditions Family celebrations Christmas dinner
The tradition came from the Middle Ages when the pudding was used to preserve some of the fruit from the Autumn until the mid-winter. A traditional pudding is baked six weeks before Christmas and is left tied up in a cloth, in a cool place. Stirring the pudding is sometimes a family tradition, with everyone making a wish as they stir. Traditionally a silver coin would be stirred into the pudding, to bring luck to the person who found it. Nowadays most coins cannot be used because they taste horrible and may be poisonous. Some families use old coins or silver charms. On Christmas Day the pudding must be boiled in a pot for several hours. When it is served, the cloth is cut off, brandy is poured onto the pudding, and is set on fire before it is carried to the table.