pancake day!

I would like to wish all of you a Happy Pancake Day! Pancake Day, you say? Yes!



My cousin, who is currently living in Ireland sent an email today telling us 'Staters about Pancake Day. The best I can describe it is like the Irish version of Mardi Gras.

Origionally called Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day is the Tuesday before Lent begins. Typically people who practice the religions who observe Lent repent on the first day of Lent (Ash Wednesday). The Tuesday before is the day of glutton and preparation for the looong 40 days ahead of them.

In order to get rid of the most fattening ingredients in the house (and at the time of its inception, they were eggs and milk) Irishmen would combine it with flour to make ... you guessed it, pancakes!

Much like the Mardi Gras festivities that still occur in the States, Pancake Day is still strong and proud. Towns and villages will still host festivals, kids typically eat pancakes at lunch, there are races and all sorts of excitement. Then, for the meal before they got to bed, the towns people will eat a heaping stack of pancakes with their tea (yum!)

some women participating in a pancake day race

Here are some facts about pancakes for you:

• Ralf Laue from Leipzig broke the world record by tossing a pancake 416 times in two minutes.
• Mike Cuzzacrea ran a marathon while continually tossing a pancake for three hours, two minutes and 27 seconds.
• The world's biggest pancake was cooked in Rochdale in 1994. It was an amazing 15 metres in diameter, weighed three tonnes and had an estimated two million calories

Traditional Irish pancakes are more like crepes than American pancakes. While we use maple syrup, the Irish prefer caster (superfine) sugar and lemon juice, and then rolled.

So pull out your griddle, fire it up, and enjoy some pancakes (be them Irish or American) and enjoy!