The exact date of Shrove Tuesday changes from year to year. But one thing stays the same — it’s always 47 days before Easter Sunday.
In the UK, Ireland, Australia and Canada, Shrove Tuesday has another name – Pancake Day!
A pancake is a thin, flat cake, made of batter and fried in a frying pan. A traditional English pancake is very thin and is served immediately. Lemon juice and caster sugar, syrup, bananas and other fruits are the usual toppings for pancakes.
Pancakes are being served at the Comrades Hall this morning from 10.30am – 12 noon.
£3 including your cup of tea/coffee 🙂
In aid of St. Andrew’s Church, Burstock.
The ingredients for pancakes are seen to symbolise four points of significance at this time of year:
- Eggs ~ Creation
- Flour ~ The staff of life
- Milk ~ Purity
- Salt ~ Wholesomeness
To make approximately 8 pancakes you will need:
- 2 Large eggs
- 8oz plain flour,
- 1 pint milk,
- Pinch of salt.
Mix all the ingredients together and whisk well. (Children can help but it can get messy!) Leave to stand for at least 30 minutes.
Heat a little oil in a frying pan, pour in enough batter to cover the base of the pan and let it cook until the base of the pancake has browned. Then shake the pan to loosen the pancake and flip the pancake over to brown the other side. Serve immediately.
Shrove Tuesday is a Christian festival celebrated in many countries across the globe. It is the traditional feast day before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday. This was to remember when Jesus went into the desert for 40 days to fast and pray. Lent is a period of around six weeks leading up to Easter. During Lent, Christians give up rich, tasty foods such as butter, eggs, sugar and fat (some Christians continue to do so). Shrove Tuesday was the last chance to eat them. Shrove is the past tense of the word shrive, which means to present oneself to a priest for confession, penance, and absolution. Anglo-Saxon Christians went to confession and were “shriven” (absolved from their sins). A bell would be rung to call people to confession. This came to be called the “Pancake Bell” and is still rung today.
Lent Lunches: 12.30 – 2pm at the Comrades Hall
Each Thursday from 3rd March – Thursday 7th April
£5 includes soup, bread, cheese pickle, tea and coffee and a warm welcome 🙂