Dan Lepard's stir-up Sunday recipes

Homemade mincemeat This Sunday is the day when all obsessive cake makers and preservers will be busily stirring up their mincemeat and plum puddings for Christmas. Though the big day is too far away really to think about, this preparation means that no matter what extremes the government throws at us in the meantime, we'll still have pies and pudding to eat on the day. 500g dried fruit – heavy on the currants and raisins About 3 dessert apples, peeled, cored and finely diced 150g mixed peel (it pays to splash out on the best-quality peel you can find), finely diced Zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon The juice of ½ lemon ¾ tsp each ground cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon 150g dark soft brown sugar 125ml brandy or rum, plus more to top up 75g suet, if you like Put everything in a big bowl and stir until thoroughly mixed through. The tradition is that everyone in the family, plus any stray friends who have wandered in to watch the ceremony, should now give the mix a stir, starting with mum and finishing with the littlest. Have ready some large, clean jars, sterilised in a hot oven for 20 minutes and cooled. Spoon in the mixture so that it's well packed in and just 2cm from the top. Pop on the lids and keep somewhere cool, then each week add a few tablespoons of brandy to make it really potent. Stout plum pudding 100g dark muscovado sugar 300g chopped dried fruit (heavy on prunes and figs) 1 tsp mixed spice Grated zest of 1 orange and 50ml juice 75ml stout or porter 2 egg yolks 50g plain flour 75g chopped walnuts 50g suet or melted butter 50g soft breadcrumbs Put the sugar, fruit and spice in a bowl. Stir in the other ingredients in order (as with the mincemeat, give everyone a turn). Spoon into a buttered pudding basin, seal with foil and string, and simmer for three hours. Store in a cool place; do not break the seal. On Christmas day, simmer for another three hours.