What are the origins of Shrove Tuesday?
Shrove Tuesday refers to the day before Ash Wednesday and is the last day before the beginning of Lent in the Christian faith. Dates vary from year to year, but it usually falls in February, sometimes early March, in 2011, it falls on 8th March.
Shrove Tuesday comes from the ritual of shriving where Christians would confess their sins in order to receive absolution. The absolution would release them from the guilt and pain their sins have caused them. In other parts of the world, Shrove Tuesday is also known as "Pancake Day", "Fat Tuesday" and "Mardi Gras".
Pancake Day
Pancakes were made and eaten to use up rich food stuffs, like eggs, sugar, fat, and milk, the eating of which were prohibited during the forty days of Lent.
Pancake races have also formed part of Shrove Tuesday traditions and customs, they date back to at least the 1400’s and are practiced in villages and towns throughout the country.
Get flipping this Pancake Day with our easy to make pancakes.
Pancake Ingredients
110g/4oz plain flour, sifted
pinch of salt
2 eggs
200ml/7fl oz milk mixed with 75ml/3fl oz water
50g/2oz butter
Caster sugar
Lemon
Pancake Making Method
Sift together the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Then make a well in the middle of the flour and break the eggs into this. Now whisk together the flour and the eggs until everything is mixed well.
Add the milk and water mixture gradually, whisking whilst you do this. Once the batter is a smooth and creamy consistency, you are ready to make your pancakes.
You will need a shallow non-stick frying pan or pancake griddle pan to cook the pancakes. Warm the pan over a medium heat and melt a small amount of butter in it, making sure it covers the whole pan (you can use a piece of kitchen towel to help smear it around the pan).
Then add a ladleful of the batter mixture to the pan and tip the pan making sure the batter coats the base evenly. Cook the first side of the pancake for a minute or so and then flip it over (either using a palette knife, or by tossing the pancake) to cook the other side.
Once cooked slide from the pan onto a warm plate. If you are making a batch of pancakes, you can stack them by placing a piece of greaseproof paper between each one and keeping warm in the oven. Serve each pancake with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and a sprinkle of caster sugar.
Enjoy!
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