Pancake Day

Today is Pancake Day! 

In the UK, Shrove Tuesday is also known as Pancake Day (or Pancake Tuesday) because it is the one day of the year when almost everyone eats a pancake.

Pancake Day is the last day before the period which Christians call Lent. It is celebrated the day before Ash Wednesday.

The name Shrove comes from the old word "shrive" which means to confess. On Shrove Tuesday, in the Middle Ages, people used to confess their sins so that they were forgiven before the season of Lent began. 

On Pancake Day, pancake races are held in villages and towns across the United Kingdom. The contestants, traditionally women, carry a frying pan and race to the finishing line tossing the pancakes as they go. As the pancakes are thin, skill is required to toss them successfully while running. The winner is the first to cross the line having tossed the pancake a certain number of times. 

Another local tradition, the Pancake Greaze, takes place every year at Westminster School in London. A pancake, reinforced with horsehair, is prepared in advance and on Shrove Tuesday tossed into the air "up School". The boys at the school then attempt to get as much of it as they can.



Słownictwo: 
pankcake - naleśnik
Christians - chrześcijanie
Lent - Wielki Post
Ash Wednesday - Środa Popielcowa
to confess - wyspowiadać się, wyznawać grzechy
the Middle Ages - średniowiecze
sins - grzechy
to forgive - wybaczyć
races - wyścigi
contestants - zawodnicy
to toss - podrzucać
to reinforce - wzmacniać
horsehair - końskie włosie

Ciekawe linki
Artykuł BBC:
Pancakes
Artykuł o Pancake Day:
Pancake Day
Artykuł po polsku o Pancake Day wraz z przepisami na naleśniki:
Brytyjski naleśnik na wtorek