A flipping good time on Shrove Tuesday ...

 

Our year is punctuated by dates in our calendars - today is Shrove Tuesday,  the start of LENT & the time leading up to Easter. 

We always mark this time at home, often with friends, and everyone gets a chance to flip the thin pancakes. 

I always use the same simple recipe for thick or thin pancakes, just adding more milk to thin it down. 

Today I did some smaller, thick ones, some with blueberries in them, then thinned the batter to do a thin one for flipping each. 

I think it is a great thing to cook & flip your own thin pancake - it gives you a moment to think about what Lent means & the action connects you to it. The trick is  to make sure it is loose of the pan &  to tip the pan towards you as you flip.

These thin ones are always dusted with cinnamon sugar & rolled up. 

We had them with strawberries, blueberries, natural yoghurt, maple syrup & a dusting of cinnamon sugar.

I have a bit of a sweet tooth so am giving up chocolate for the 40 days of Lent. 

It is actually 46 days to Easter but Sundays are not counted. 

I hope you have had a flipping good time too. Thank you for stopping by, it is appreciated. 

Dee 🍚🧑‍🍳🥘

The importance of Mothering Sunday ...

 The UK celebrates Mothering Sunday in March, unlike Mothers Day across other countries when it is in May. Why is this? 

It is tied to LENT & traditionally falls on Laetare Sunday the 4th Sunday of Lent, half way through it where Lent promises were not followed on a Sunday. The date of Mothering Sunday, like Easter,  is not set, it depends on the lunar calendar. 

Mothering Sunday has religious roots. In the Middle Ages, Mothering Sunday was a day dedicated to the Virgin Mary, also known as Mother Mary. People were required to visit their main church where family members had been baptised, a return to their roots. 

In times past, children as young as 10 were often in service - working in large houses as housemaids, kitchen maids, stable hands, servants or tending the farms & gardens. They would live away from their families for long periods of time so Mothering Sunday was a unique opportunity to return home, meet up with their family, attend church together & spend precious time away from work. 

Flowers were often picked on the way to church as a gift for their Mother, or a small homemade gift was made to be given in appreciation. The tradition of giving flowers remains to this day with fresh of potted flowers sent or given as a gift. Because it is Spring, daffodils & other early woodland blooms have become synonymous with Mothering Sunday. 

Laetare Sunday is exactly 21 days before Easter Sunday so Mothering Sunday is tied to the religious observations of Christianity, even if it has (like Christmas & Easter) become more commercialised. 

However you observe it, I hope it is a peaceful Mothering Sunday. 

Thank you for stopping by, your visits are always welcome,

Dee 🪻🌸🌺🌷💐⛪️🔔

Are your Lent resolutions holding up?

Yesterday, a newpaper article on  Lent suggested that "On the 27th day of Lent, 34 per cent will indulge in what they vowed to sacrifice"

Did you give up anything at  shrove-tuesday when you ate your last pancake?

Like last year, I have given up chocolate in its bar form which is a hardship for me as I have a rather sweet tooth ...

But - 29 days into Lent & I am still sticking to it.

After a very busy weekend helping a friend move & downsize, I had the urge for something sweet so had a tiny sherry glass of the last of my Thornton's chocolate liqueur ....

 
I do not consider this to be chocolate per se so have not fallen off the Lent bandwagon & grabbed proper chocolate but it is hard ....

Did you give up anything for Lent? How is your resolve holding up?

Thanks for stopping by, have a good week
Dee ~♥~