It’s the annual tradition that starts the countdown to Easter by testing our flipping skills.
Shrove Tuesday is the day before Lent begins and there’s nothing we like batter – sorry, better – than marking it by eating pancakes.
The day is known to many as Pancake Day, and in the UK, traditional toppings such as lemon and sugar still come out as the nation’s favourites ahead of things like chocolate spread or even ice cream.
How do people celebrate Pancake Day in other countries?
±«Óătv Bitesize takes a look at Pancake Day and its equivalents around the world.
Denmark
The Danish equivalent of Pancake Day is known as Fastelavn and actually takes place on the Sunday before Shrove Tuesday – seven weeks before Easter Sunday.
It’s an old tradition in Nordic countries and sees children dressing up in costumes to go trick-or-treating for money or a Fastelavnsboller – a sweet bun typically filled with jam or cream. Historically, they were made as a way of finishing dairy products before Lent began, when Christians would traditionally give up certain foodstuffs until Easter.
Children also play a game hitting barrels decorated with pictures of cats and filled with sweets, similar to a Mexican piñata. Whoever knocks the bottom section of the barrel off is declared the Cat Queen, while the person who takes off the final board of the barrel becomes the Cat King.
Lithuania
In Lithuania, the traditional Shrove Tuesday celebrations are known as Užgavėnės – a festival that marks the end of winter and the beginning of Lent.
At major celebrations in the country, an effigy of winter known as Morė is burnt while a staged battle takes place between Lašininis, who represents winter and Kanapinis, who represents spring – with Kanapinis always coming out on top.
Pancakes are on the menu on Užgavėnės – believed to be because their round shape symbolises the Sun. Toppings typically include sour cream, fruit sauces and even caviar – but you’re expected to have a big appetite on the day itself.
Lithuanians are encouraged to eat around a dozen meals on the day, in preparation for fasting which begins the following day.
USA
Mardi Gras is celebrated around the world on Shrove Tuesday. This French name means Fat Tuesday and the day again sees fatty foods consumed before Lent begins.
It’s probably best known in the US for the parades that take place in New Orleans, Louisiana.
One of the foods most associated with Mardi Gras is king cake. The New Orleans version is a mix of coffee cake and cinnamon roll and is typically decorated in yellow, green and purple icing – the colours of Mardi Gras. It has fruit and cream cheese fillings alongside another, less obvious addition – a small, plastic baby figurine that symbolises Jesus.
Finding the baby in your slice is said to mean you’re in for a year of good luck – but it’s not without its responsibilities too. If your piece of cake is accompanied by the figurine, you have to host the festivities the following year, and supply the cake too!
It's a tradition that dates back to the 1950s in Louisiana. Early European recipes for king cake added a dried bean, which was said to give good luck to whoever found it. McKenzie's, a bakery in New Orleans, were persuaded to add the figurines as they would be easier to find.
McKenzie's didn't originally intend the baby to represent anyone in particular, but it's widely considered in New Orleans today to be a symbol of Jesus. These days, the baby is typically placed outside or underneath the cake, rather than being baked into it, to keep everyone safe - but it's always worth double checking your slice thoroughly for anything inedible, just in case.
Poland
In Poland, the pre-Lent celebrations take place a little earlier than in the UK.
On the Thursday before Lent begins, people across the country take part in Tłusty Czwartek – which literally means Fat Thursday – by eating fatty, sugary food before abstaining in the run up to Easter.
The main item on the menu is Pączek – a large, fried doughnut filled with jam or marmalade and glazed with sugar. It’s believed that if you don’t eat any Pączki on the day, then you’ll have a year of bad luck.
Another treat thought to symbolise good fortune is Faworki – a pastry made in the shape of angel wings and covered in sugar.
This article was published in February 2022
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