Fasnacht Day

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Unless you're familiar with Pennsylvania Dutch customs, you might not know exactly what Fasnacht Day is. Although my German is really not that good, I was able to figure out a translation when I first heard the term 'fasnacht' but still . . . what's the deal? 'Fasnacht' translates as 'fasting night' and once you realize that it happens on Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras, maybe that part of it will make sense!

Fasnacht Day is a Pennsylvania Dutch tradition, and it means enjoying rich foods before the Lenten season of fasting begins. Fasnachts are doughnuts, and around here they are a special treat that many people enjoy, whether or not they observe Lent. 

Shrove Tuesday may also be called Pancake Day, especially in England. Instead of doughnuts, thin pancakes are the favorite food, and in some towns they hold pancake races where people race while tossing or flipping a pancake in a pan. Goodness, I can't even toss a pancake successfully while standing still!

Probably the name most familiar to us is Mardi Gras, which is French for Fat Tuesday. Again, the idea is the same - feasting and revelry before the austerity of Lent begins. Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans are famous, of course, as is Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. There's a lot more to the history of New Orleans style Mardi Gras - more than I'll include here, but you can read about it at the Mardi Gras New Orleans website.

Food and fun aside, what are Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday all about? 'Shrove' is an old English word that is the past tense of 'shrive', and that means to go to confession. So as far back as about AD1000, Christians would be shriven to prepare for Lent. But eventually Shrove Tuesday became more a day for feasting and for getting rid of the foods that wouldn't be allowed during the Lenten season fast - eggs, sugar, and leavened flour. What to make with those ingredients? Pancakes or doughnuts or other sweet baked goods!

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, and is mostly observed by Catholics, Episcopalians, and Lutherans, although many Christians of all backgrounds observe it in some way. It's not mentioned in the Bible, so it's not a Biblical observance that we are commanded to keep, but it can be a valuable time of reflection and fasting for Christians that feel led to participate. 

At our place? I'm planning on breakfast for dinner tonight - pancakes and bacon. And really only because I needed help with meal planning and that's a pretty quick meal that I can put together on one of our busiest days of the week. And of course I'll pick up some fasnachts to enjoy with our coffee today too!

This is a very simple version of King Cake that can be enjoyed for Mardi Gras. Just choose gold, green, and purple colored sugar instead of the candy confetti I used. King Cake traditionally has a small plastic baby hidden inside, and whoever finds it in their slice must provide the next cake.

King Cake

2 cans refrigerated crescent rolls

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup raisins

3/4 cup pecans (I used about 1/2 cup)

1 tsp cinnamon

3/4 cup brown sugar

1-1/2 cups icing sugar

milk

Soak the raisins in hot water for awhile to plump them up, then drain well. Mix all the filling ingredients (cream cheese, raisins, pecans, cinnamon, brown sugar) together in a food processor until raisins and pecans are well chopped and the consistency is smooth. (I 'chopped' the raisins in the blender, and ground up the pecans in a coffee grinder because I don't have a food processor) Open the crescent rolls and overlap them in a ring on a pizza stone. (If you've ever been to a Pampered Chef party, you'll know exactly how that's supposed to work!) Spoon the filling along the center of the ring, then fold the dough over and seal as best you can. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, until golden brown. Mix the icing sugar with a little milk, a teaspoon at a time, until you have an icing that is easy to stir but not runny. Pour over the cake after it has cooled a bit. Decorate by sprinkling colored sugar on top.

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