40 days to Easter: Shrove Tuesday (Pancake Day)

Notes: "On the day before Ash Wednesday, Christians traditionally would go to their confessor to be shriven. After being absolved (shrove), they would mark the day by indulging in -- for the last time before Easter -- richer foods given up for Lent, such as eggs, fats, sugar, milk, meat and fish. With the addition of some flour, a batch of pancakes made a thrifty catchall for a household's pre-Lenten store of sugar, milk and eggs. As for pancake races, legend has it that a 15th-century woman was frying pancakes when she heard the tolling of the shriving bell. Off she raced to confession -- apron, pan, pancakes and all". [Text of entire article.]