Just before the winter ends the Medieval family would cook all the fat, cream, cheese and other wonderful food, in a final binge before the season of fasting for Lent. This last day of feast is called Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Tuesday, Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras. This is a feast day a celebration and also a time of misrule and bad behaviour, before the grim 40 days of Lent. It was also that period of the winter when fresh fruit and vegetables were the most difficult to find, the chickens were not laying and there was no milk from the cow. We are all waiting for Spring, hanging in there with hope and loving each new spark of life. So we eat the Pancake and tell the stories in the darkest time of Winter.
Sarah Lloyd-Winder - Storyteller 