Shrove Tuesday is the day before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday, the name Shrove coming from the old middle English word 'Shriven', meaning to go to confession to say sorry for the wrong things you've done. Lent always starts on a Wednesday, so people went to confessions on the day before. At first this day was named Shriven Tuesday, but later became known as Shrove Tuesday.
The popular name for Shrove tuesday is Pancake Day, and this comes from the custom of using up all the fattening ingredients in the house prior to the commencement of Lent, so that people were ready to fast during the Lenten period. The fattening ingredients that most people had in their houses in those days were eggs and milk, and a very simple recipe to use up these ingredients was to combine them with some flour and make pancakes!
In other countries Shrove Tuesday is known as 'Mardi Gras'. This means 'Fat Tuesday' in French and also comes from the idea of using up food before Lent. Many towns in the UK organise Pancake Races, and often these will feature the staff of local restaurants and hotels dressed in their uniforms.
A favourite thing for many children is to 'help mum' in the kitchen, especially when it comes to tossing the pancakes in the pan so that they cook on both sides evenly. Often, due to poor judgement or heavy pans, or simply a little mischief, the pancakes end up on the floor or even on the ceiling! Whatever happens, it's usually a good moment of fun!
Made from batter and cooked to perfection in a little cooking oil, the pancake's ingredients symbolise the following:
Eggs >>>> Creation
Flour >>>> The staff of life
Salt >>>> Wholesomeness
Milk >>>> Purity
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