Don't forget the pancakes

I keep wanting to write a long and interesting post about food seasons and the approach of Lent and all that. But urgh, it's a flat and dreary month and I can't get the whatsits together. So here are thoughts in brief...

We took the Christmas decs down at long last the weekend (it needs to be a clear day to get it done) before Candlemas, and immediately launched into what I'm calling Pancake Season.

We've had a few different types so far, although I haven't quite devoted myself to it as enthusiastically as I'd hoped I would:

• English-style thin pancakes filled with finely chopped fried mushrooms
• Banana drop scones/American-style breakfast pancakes (these are a big hit and freeze well for low-faff fancy breakfasts)
• Buckwheat galettes filled with good things like comté and bacon

The Thursday before the start of Lent is a day for ramping up the carnival proceedings, so tonight we'll have Reibekuchen aka grated potato pancakes, traditional German Karneval food for eating outdoors. The German carnival season (aka Fasching) starts -- in the very Catholic Rhineland at least -- back in Autumn. On 11 November, in fact, which always strikes an odd note for a Brit. That's where I first met Reibeckuchen: scalding hot fatty potato discs, served in little cardboard trays with apple sauce. There's nothing better on a cold, foggy Rhineland evening. 

Today's also Fat Thursday (Tłusty Czwartek) in Poland, a day for doughnuts. Marvellous Liz fried some in her deep fat fryer, and we wolfed those down double quick.

Tomorrow I continue with plans for Kaiserschmarrn -- Austrian fluffy pancakes cut up into a mess and served with boozy raisins. Not a carnival thing (that's doughnuts again), but pancakey. Maybe some more galettes with garlic mushrooms this time. And then English pancakes with lemon and sugar (and jam and who knows what else) on Tues.

I might as well plug some historical pancake recipes from work, if you fancy something different and rich.

Keep on, keeping on everyone!