On one of the Tuesdays in February or March (in different years differently), which usually coincides with "Fat" Tuesday, International Pancake Day is celebrated.
Fat Tuesday (English Shrove Tuesday (Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day); French Mardi gras (literally “fat Tuesday”, Pancake week); Polish Mięsopust (Meatopust)) is a carnival holiday, the eve of Ash Wednesday, marking the beginning of Lent. The Lithuanians - Uzgovenie, the Western Slavs - Myasopust, the Eastern Slavs have an analogue - Maslenitsa. Fat Tuesday or International Pancake Day this year fell on February 12th. In 2013, Maslenitsa among the Eastern Slavs will be celebrated from 11 to 17 March. These days there are carnival processions, booths, dance games, mummers 'and musicians' rounds. Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day is popular in the UK, Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and some states in the United States. On this day, the British bake neat pancakes. They are usually eaten traditionally - warm, sprinkled with sugar and poured with lemon juice. Traditionally, many English housewives compete for the right to take part in the "pancake race" - a 400-meter race among women carrying a hot pan with a pancake, which should be tossed at least twice as they run. 30 participants are selected for the race. The race starts at 11 a.m. when the church bells ring. The winner is the participant who manages to toss and turn the pancake in the pan the most times. In the English town of Albee, such a race has been held for 500 years already. It began with the fact that once during Lent one of the townspeople secretly fried pancakes in her kitchen. Suddenly there was a bell ringing. The poor hostess was so scared that, forgetting about everything in the world, she rushed to church ... right with a frying pan in her hands and pancakes crunching on it. It was in 1445
Pancake race
The winner is rewarded with a kiss from the bell ringer, honor and respect.
The pancakes that did not fall from the pans during the races are then eaten together by the spectators.
A similar tradition exists at Westminster School in London - a pancake baked with horsehair so that it does not fall apart is thrown in a pan, and then the students try to grab a larger piece.
For reference: in the West, thick pancakes are called pancakes, which in Russian is usually translated as pancakes. And thin pancakes are crepes.
In Italy, International Pancake Day is celebrated on 8 March. On this day, locals bake pancakes with a wide variety of fillings and not only eat them in large quantities, but also arrange real battles with them.
It is imperative to spend the cold, harsh winter and meet the tender spring with Shrovetide with fun, because in the old days it was believed that those who do not have fun on these days and do not see off the winter will live poorly and empty the whole coming year. But for those who celebrate the holiday properly, the year will become successful, all matters will argue, there will be abundance in the house, and all ailments will pass by. All Shrovetide days have their own traditions, foundations and names. We will talk about how the days of Shrovetide week are called, and how to traditionally celebrate Shrovetide.
Maslenitsa week got its name back in the distant Slavic times and has come down to us, preserving the most cheerful and colorful traditions. Today we celebrate it cheerfully with round dances, pancakes, songs, dances, snowball games and, of course, burning a stuffed carnival at the end of the week as a symbol of the outgoing winter.
We celebrate Shrovetide on seven bright, funny and mischievous days.
Pancake week days: names
- Meeting,
- Flirting,
- Gourmet,
- Revelry,
- Mother-in-law's evening
- Sister-in-law gatherings,
- Seeing off.
So, Shrovetide week by day:
Monday - Meeting
On this day, they erected a Maslenitsa effigy from rags and straw, and then, attached to a large log, sledged throughout the village and installed it on the highest snow slide, from which sledding and merry walks with songs and dances began. The scarecrow will not have the happiest fate - at the end of the week it will be burned in the square.
Tuesday - Flirting
The games started on Monday continued, but in addition to them, celebrating people dressed in colorful costumes and masks, played whole theatrical performances, to which all passers-by were invited, regardless of their social status and class. Noisy fairs and booths unfolded, platforms with various treats stood everywhere.
Wednesday - Gourmet
The day of the beginning of hospitable home feasts. On Wednesday, the mother-in-law invited the newly-made sons-in-law to visit, and the resourceful guys brought all their relatives with them. Guests were treated to pies, ruddy pancakes, freshly brewed home-brewed beer. Tents were set up everywhere, in which they sold nuts and gingerbread, hot sbiten (water with honey and herbs) and tea - from shiny samovars!
Thursday - revelry
This day was called "revelry", or the turning day. Wall-to-wall fistfights were held on Thursday. The hot men converged and took away their souls in a merry duel. The rules of the fight prohibited blows below the belt and to the back of the head. The fallen also received mercy.
Friday - Mother-in-law evening
Pancake Week Friday - Mother-in-law's evening. Many Maslenitsa traditions have set themselves the goal of helping single young men and women get married. There were also many customs related to young married couples. Now it's the son-in-law's turn to invite his beloved mother-in-law. The young treated the bride's parents with sweet honey pancakes and various delicacies, and they came to visit with gifts and jokes.
Saturday - Cousin's gatherings
On Saturday, the young wife invited her husband's sisters to the table. And here she had to do her best from the heart, because the invited relatives zealously appreciated the master's table and sometimes made snide remarks that it was not abundant enough. But all these were funny jokes, because sisters-in-law often became faithful girlfriends for daughters-in-law for many years.
Also, the Saturday of Pancake Week was a day of remembrance of the dead, a trip to churchyards. They treated the beggars so that they remembered the souls of the deceased relatives of the owners.
Sunday - farewell
Also this day is called "Forgiveness Sunday" and "Kissing Day". When they met, people asked each other for forgiveness for everything they had done in the past year, and exchanged kisses. At the cemetery, they asked for forgiveness from the deceased relatives, brought them refreshments. On Sunday, an effigy of Maslenitsa was burned - an image of the winter being seen off, they welcomed spring and asked for fertility to the fields, throwing pancakes into the fire with Maslenitsa. The last day before Lent, a bright and clean holiday.
Nowadays, we have preserved a few of the ancient traditions, but every year on Maslenitsa, pancakes are baked in all houses of the hostess, mother-in-law invite their beloved sons-in-law to visit, and children are happy to build a bright effigy of Maslenitsa so that on Sunday they can burn it on a hot fire in a nearby forest under merry dances. On Forgiveness Sunday, we call our friends and relatives, even the most distant ones, to ask them for forgiveness and congratulate them on the holiday. Not all traditions have remained, but we love Shrovetide no less than our distant ancestors.
Every gastronomic holiday great amount which are celebrated in different countries the world has its own history. Some of them are associated with religious practices, others with the agricultural traditions of each particular area. But there are those who owe their origin to some curious cases. A striking example of this is International Pancake Day, which translated into Russian means, which is celebrated annually in the American state of Kansas on the same day as.
Mardi Gras or "Fat Tuesday" is the last day of a noisy week of feasts and carnivals, after which Great Lent begins, preceding Easter. It usually falls in late February or early March. And on the same day since 1950, mass festivities have been held in Kansas in honor of International Day pancake. The Americans adopted this tradition from the British, or rather from the inhabitants of the English city of Albee, in which this holiday began to be celebrated back in the middle of the 15th century. It was here in 1445 that an event took place that prompted the local authorities to add another significant day to the Kansas calendars.
Pancake Day begins
A few days after the beginning of Lent, one of the local housewives decided to secretly fry pancakes for herself from the neighbors. Apparently she missed her favorite delicacy so much that even the strictest church ban on such food, which was in effect until Easter, did not stop her. And suddenly, in the midst of the process, she heard a bell ringing, which warned of the beginning of the church service. Out of fright and confusion, the woman grabbed a hot pan with a fried pancake from the stove and ran to the church, not forgetting to toss and turn the pancake on the run so that it would not burn. All passers-by who saw what was happening told their friends and relatives about this anecdotal incident. Therefore, soon the whole city learned about the magnificent race of this zealous hostess. As a result, the Albee administration decided to approve a holiday in honor of the dish loved by all the townspeople, but only to celebrate it on the eve of the beginning of Lent, that is, on “Fat Tuesday”.
Who and how celebrate the holiday
The main event International Pancake Day is the pancake race. Numerous housewives who want to take part in it begin to prepare for this significant event in a few months, training to run fast and at the same time turn a pancake in a pan. A couple of days before the start, a competent jury selects the 30 most dexterous applicants, who go to the start on Pancake Day. A special route is being developed for them, the final destination of which is the church. By tradition, apart from tracksuit all participants must wear a special “uniform” of a housewife - an apron and a kerchief. The running women are greeted by the townspeople lined up along the barriers, supporting them with shouts and applause. The winner is the hostess who reaches the church the fastest without dropping her pancake from the pan, and hands it to the bell ringer. The main prize is a kiss, which the bell ringer rewards the happy participant with. And all the pancakes that survived the race are handed out to the children present at the holiday.
There is a similar custom in London's Westminster School too. Here, the chefs bake a huge pancake with horsehair, which allows it to remain intact and not fall apart. Then, right in front of the enthusiastic students, they throw it up so that the children can grab the largest piece on the fly.
Similar relay races are also held in Kansas cities, but in addition to them, a huge number of various events are also organized. First of all, these are funny fairs with beautifully decorated tents, where housewives can buy everything to please their loved ones with delicious pancakes and other pastries. Here, many bakeries set up baking equipment and tables right in the open air to treat everyone to pancakes with different fillings. These can be so-called pancakes, that is, small, thick pancakes that resemble Russian pancakes, or crepes, that is, large, thin pancakes in which sweet, meat or fish fillings can be wrapped.
On this day, cafes and restaurants have a special menu that includes the most incredible varieties of pancakes, which are also sold at huge discounts. They also host all kinds of funny contests, the winners of which will receive the right to a free dinner or a club card as a gift. It does not do without master classes from chefs, who demonstrate their skills in making the finest lace pancakes to visitors and introduce them to different recipes for preparing fillings for this dish.
Festivities are held on the streets of the cities, performances of musical, singing and dancing groups are organized. Music and laughter are heard from everywhere, people gather in large companies, walk around the city and take an active part in entertainment events, which are carried out by animators. Many bakeries and pancake flour businesses arrange advertising campaigns with free tastings, fun quizzes and prizes.
Such a lively and cheerful atmosphere that prevails throughout Kansas on International Pancake Day cannot leave indifferent locals and tourists alike. Moreover, the next day comes the longest and strictest fast that many believers observe. So this holiday is their last opportunity to have a lot of fun and gorge on their favorite dishes before a long abstinence.
Surprisingly, the tradition of celebrating the International Pancake Day has not yet been introduced in Russia. Indeed, this dish occupies a very significant place in our traditional cuisine. In addition to the fact that Russians often cook it for breakfast and dinner, filling it with minced meat, liver or fish meat, sweet jams and preserves, caviar or other ingredients, pancakes are also one of the main table decorations in Maslenitsa week, and are also served as a must ceremonial dishes at the commemoration. So we encourage everyone who reads this article to join the Americans and British and have their Pancake Day.
How to celebrate International Pancake Day at home
On Monday morning, the men and children finished dressing up the stuffed Olive tree, and the hostesses baked simple pancakes. Probably everyone knows that when preparing pancake dough, kefir or milk is most often used. But, they also work great on water. The recipe is so simple that even the most inexperienced cook can master it.
Pancakes without milk
So, prepare the following ingredients according to the list:
- chicken eggs - 1 piece;
- water - 250 milliliters;
- soda - 0.5 teaspoon (you do not need to extinguish it);
- sugar - 3 tablespoons;
- flour - 1.5 cups.
How to make pancakes without milk
Beat the chicken egg into a deep saucepan or the most ordinary bowl. Add the specified amount of sugar to it immediately. Connect the mixer to the mains and beat the egg-sugar mixture at maximum speed.
Now pour in the water, which you heat to a slightly warm state ( this procedure is needed so that the soda reacts faster with the ingredients). Beat everything again for just a few seconds. It is enough that the ingredients are simply mixed.
Now add baking soda and add flour immediately. Turn on the mixer again and beat everything well. There should be no lumps, otherwise the pancakes after frying will not be attractive in appearance.
Heat the pan, you can grease it with a little butter or vegetable oil. Pour half a ladle of the prepared dough into a preheated pan. Bend the pan over one edge and then over the other to spread the dough evenly around the pan. Fry the pancake for 30 seconds on one side, then flip it over and fry another 15 seconds on the other.
These are the ruddy pancakes for Shrovetide. You can serve with absolutely any berry jam. I prefer to pour condensed milk on the pancakes before serving. It will also be very tasty if you fill them with topping, which is sold in stores with all sorts of flavors, from chocolate to caramel.
Pancakes with milk
Their recipe is also simple, and can be served with anything. 
Ingredients:
- milk - 600 ml.;
- granulated sugar- 1 tbsp. a spoon with a slide;
- salt - a pinch;
- eggs - 2 pcs.;
- flour - 300 g;
- vegetable oil - 2 tbsp. spoons in the dough + for frying.
Preparation
We take deep dishes. Beat eggs until smooth, add granulated sugar and salt. Pour milk to the egg mixture, pour sifted wheat flour. Mix thoroughly. We leave the dough alone for 15 - 20 minutes.
Pour the oil into the same bowl. Stir all the ingredients again. Put a frying pan on medium heat, grease it with a little oil. We scoop the dough with a ladle and carefully pour it into a hot frying pan. Fry pancakes on both sides until golden brown.
"Flirting" - the second day of Maslenitsa
In the evening, young girls wondered at their betrothed, so they served classic pancakes with different fillings on the table. It was believed that with what filling a girl would eat a pancake, with such a character she would be future husband... We bake yeast pancakes, and you decide how to stuff them yourself.
Yeast dough pancakes for stuffing
Ingredients:
- milk - 900 ml.;
- flour - 650 g;
- eggs - 2 pcs.;
- granulated sugar - 3 tbsp. spoons;
- salt - on the tip of a knife,
- butter - 50 g;
- dry yeast - 14 g.
Preparation
Cooking dough. In a deep bowl, mix the yeast with a glass of preheated milk, granulated sugar and a spoonful of flour. Set aside for 10 - 15 minutes. During this time, a fluffy "hat" should form in the bowl. Beat eggs in another container, grind with sugar and salt, pour in milk.
Melt the butter over low heat or in the microwave, add to the egg-milk mixture. Pour the dough, stir well. Add the sifted flour in portions. And mix everything again to avoid the formation of lumps. Fry in a preheated skillet on both sides for 1-2 minutes.
"Lakomka" - the third day of the Pancake Week
On this day, the mother-in-law invited her son-in-law to her home and treated him to sweet pancakes. We bake chocolate pancakes, they will definitely be to the liking of our son-in-law. 
Ingredients:
- milk - 800 ml.;
- flour - 360 g;
- egg - 4 pcs.;
- cocoa - 80 g;
- dark chocolate - 100 g;
- granulated sugar - 100 g;
- salt - a pinch.
Preparation
Break the chocolate into small pieces. Melt in a water bath, add 400 ml of milk, wait until the chocolate is completely dissolved in the milk. It is advisable not to bring this mixture to a boil.
Beat the eggs with sugar and salt, pour out the cocoa powder, pour out the remaining milk, mix well with a whisk or mixer.
Pour the milk-chocolate mixture to the eggs, stir, add the pre-sifted flour. Mix all the ingredients thoroughly until a not too liquid consistency is formed. We send the dough to the refrigerator for a couple of hours.
We take out the dough, pour the sunflower oil into it, proceed to frying the pancakes.
"Revelry" - the fourth day
So the turn of fun has come. We greeted spring with lark-shaped buns. On the streets, they organized comic fistfights, rode a hill, danced and treated them to pancakes until late in the evening. Let's make butter pancakes with kefir. 
Ingredients:
- kefir - 1 liter;
- boiled water - 1 glass;
- eggs - 4 pcs.;
- wheat flour - 2 cups;
- butter - 1 tbsp. a spoon;
- sour cream 15% - 1 tbsp. a spoon;
- granulated sugar - 1⁄2 cup;
- salt - 1 tsp;
- soda - 1/3 tsp.
Preparation
Stir kefir with granulated sugar, salt, sour cream and butter. We put to warm on a slow fire, until the sugar grains are completely dissolved. We make sure that the kefir does not boil. Cool the finished mass a little.
Beat eggs in a separate container, add sifted flour and soda, mix well. Pour out part of the cooled kefir mass and stir thoroughly in order to avoid the formation of lumps. Add the remaining kefir and water. Allow the finished batter to "rest" for 5 - 10 minutes.
Fry pancakes. Put the finished pancakes on top of each other, smearing with butter.
"Mother-in-law's gathering" - the fifth day of Maslenitsa
Now the son-in-law must invite his mother-in-law to visit, entertain and feed them with delicious pancakes. Cheese pancakes with herbs will be an excellent treat. 
Ingredients:
- milk - 3 glasses;
- flour - 2 cups;
- cheese - 300 g;
- sugar - 2 tsp;
- salt - 2 tsp;
- baking powder - 2 tsp;
- vegetable oil - 4 tbsp. spoons;
- fresh herbs (dill, onions) - a bunch.
Preparation
In milk at room temperature, stir the sugar, eggs and salt. Three cheese on a fine grater, add to the milk mixture, mix thoroughly so that the cheese does not come in a lump. Sift flour with baking powder (can be replaced with soda), add to a bowl of milk. Stir well. We wash the greens, remove excess moisture, finely chop, pour to the dough. We pour out the oil. Stir everything again. We bake pancakes in a preheated pan.
"Sister-in-law's gatherings" - the sixth day
This Saturday, the daughter-in-law invited the groom's relatives to her place and tried to demonstrate her talents. On the table were supposed to be chicly decorated dishes and unusual pancakes. And we can bake pancake rolls with salmon. 
Ingredients for the dough:
- kefir - 0.5 liters;
- water - 0.5 liters;
- flour - 500 g;
- eggs - 2 pcs.;
- granulated sugar - 4 tsp;
- salt - 1 tsp;
- soda - 1⁄2 tsp;
- vegetable oil - 4 tbsp. spoons.
For filling:
- salmon fillet - 200 g;
- curd cheese - 300 g;
- sour cream 15% - 2 tbsp. spoons.
Preparation
Mix in a deep bowl, kefir, boiled water, granulated sugar, salt and eggs. Pour soda into the wheat flour and pour in the resulting mixture in a thin stream. Stir thoroughly. We leave aside for 30 minutes. Let's start preparing the filling. We mix cheese and sour cream. Cut the fish fillet into strips.
The pancake dough "fit". Let's start frying. Cool the finished pancakes, grease with a sour cream-cheese mixture, put strips of fish in the center and wrap them in a roll. Cut into three parts. Decorate with fresh herbs.
"Forgiveness Sunday" - 8 day
So the Butter Week has come to an end. On this Sunday, everyone asks each other for forgiveness for their misdeeds, burns a scarecrow and sends the winter away. Let's surprise the guests and make a pancake cake with cottage cheese. 
Ingredients for the dough:
- flour - 350 g;
- granulated sugar - 40 g;
- vanillin - 0.5 tsp;
- eggs - 2 pcs.;
- milk - 1.5 cups;
- butter - 20 g;
- soda - 1⁄2 tsp;
- rock salt - on the edge of a knife.
For filling:
- granular cottage cheese - 400 g;
- cream 35% - 400 g;
- icing sugar - 150 g;
- cherry jam - 6 tbsp spoons.
Preparation
Add ghee, eggs, soda, granulated sugar, salt, vanillin and wheat flour to the milk. With a whisk, knead a slightly thick dough. We put it aside for an hour.
Let's take care of the filling, for this you need: rub the cottage cheese through a sieve, mix with 1⁄2 part of powdered sugar. Beat the cream until stable peaks, add the remaining powdered sugar, beat again until the sugar grains are completely dissolved. Mix cottage cheese and cream, grind with a fork until smooth.
Fry pancakes.
We connect the cake. We transfer one pancake to a flat dish, grease with a tablespoon of cream, evenly distributing the curd-creamy mass throughout the pancake. Cover with the next pancake and follow the same procedure.
Coat the fourth and eighth pancake with 3 tbsp. spoons of jam. We coat the pancakes until the cream runs out. Pancake cake with cottage cheese is ready. We send it to the refrigerator for a couple of hours so that it has time to soak.
I suggest you watch a video recipe with a chocolate pancake cake.
Let the Maslenitsa week be remembered for a long time, we hope that you will have time to cook and taste all our recipes.
International Pancake Day is celebrated on "Fat Tuesday", which ends with Catholics and Protestants "butter week". Officially, the first holiday took place in Kansas in 1950; the traditions of this holiday were brought to America by English settlers back in the 16th century, because the holiday has been held in the town of Albee in England for 500 years.
As the legend says, during Lent in the city of Albee, one of the townspeople, in violation of the regulations, fried pancakes. Suddenly she heard the ringing of church bells and, frightened of her sin, with a frying pan in her hands, on which she continued to fry a pancake, rushed into the church.
Since then, the descendants of the settlers have been organizing an annual pancake race. Women dress in the clothes of the time in long dresses and in aprons, they run a certain distance, trying to turn the pancake in the pan on the run. Only women participate in the holiday, any resident of the town over the age of 18, who must live in it for at least 3 months, can apply. Then there is a tough selection and out of a thousand applicants, only 30 women remain who will participate in the race. They need to run 400 meters from the market square to the church and not only overtake their rivals, but also be in time, on the run, toss a pancake on the frying pan. It is necessary not only to come running first, but also not to drop the pancake. Having come running to the church, the winner serves her pancake to the bell ringer. The winner of the race is not only recognized as the best hostess, but also receives a kiss from the bell ringer who rang the bells all the way.
After the end of the competition, the participants, representatives of the authorities, townspeople and tourists go to the parish church for the Maslenitsa service. At the same time, the participants put their frying pans with pancakes right around the font. After that, folk festivities with music and dancing begin. Tables are set right on the street, where the main dish is pancakes of various shapes and sizes.
