Fat Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras & Shrove Tuesday, and the day before Ash Wednesday, is today! It is the one day of the year you are allowed, no, encouraged to eat fattening foods! YEE HAW! It is a common practice to eat pancakes on this day, but we are more of a waffle type of family. I even made them from scratch (does Bisquick count?) For toppings, we had a choice of regular syrup, blueberry syrup, and butter. I also made a few with mini-chocolate chips in them, and sprinkled powdered sugar on them when they were done. YUMMY!
Here is bit of information as to why pancakes are so popular -
The reason that pancakes are associated with the day preceding Lent is that the 40 days of Lent form a period of liturgical fasting, during which only the plainest foodstuffs may be eaten. Therefore, rich ingredients such as eggs, milk, sugar and flour are disposed of immediately prior to the commencement of the fast. Pancakes and doughnuts were therefore an efficient way of using up these perishable goods, besides providing a minor celebratory feast prior to the fast itself [2].While the restrictions we have now are more lenient, we still have some. Here is a snippet from the Fish Eaters' site, from their article titled Lent Overview -
According to the 1983 Code of Canon Law, the rule for the universal Church during Lent is abstain on all Fridays (inside or outside of Lent) and to both fast and abstain on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
(SNIP)
On those days of fasting an abstinence, meatless soup is traditional (see recipes). Sundays, of course, are always free of fasting and abstinence; even in the heart of Lent, Sundays are about the glorious Resurrection. This pattern of fasting and abstinence ends after the Vigil Mass of Holy Saturday.
I told myself to not hold back today, to eat all the chocolate I wanted to, but I didn't want to! I betcha tomorrow I will be craving it! LOL! Why is it we always want what we cannot have?
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