PANCAKE DAY!

Today is Shrove Tuesday, pancake day. It's traditionally the day to clear out the cupboards of anything that will ruin fasting and use it to have a feast today. Ready for the begining of lent tomorrow, Ash Wednesday.
In our household of six I have brought in the tradition of my own childhood home of eating pancakes with golden syrup. Not just any golden syrup - Lyle's Golden Syrup. I know others don't taste the same because I've tried Tesco's.

Hubby still prefers to eat his pancakes with the traditional sugar and lemon and may have one with about a teaspoon of golden syrup. the rest of us tuck into our golden syrup pancakes with a dessertspoon dollop of the golden syrup on a 'straight from the pan' pancake. Has to be hot so the syrup can melt. It's just right so that when you cut into it, the syrup oozes out of the top. I make up the batter in a large jug, pour out just enough for one pancake and then as I turn it over I will yell that one is ready. By the time that person has skidded into the kitchen and got a plate it is at its perfectional readiness. I suppose doing them this way means that we all don't eat them together, but as I make more, they are all being eaten at various stages although I always end up eating mine standing up. A neccesary addition to a pancake with golden syrup is a hot mug of tea.

The picture of the Golden syrup tin teapot is from the Tea pottery in Leyburn, Yorkshire, http://www.teapottery.co.uk/ Worth a visit if you're ever in Yorkshire. It also has a cafe. They actually make the tea pots there, you can watch them painting each teapot, very fascinating. I don't think you're supposed to use the teapots , they are collectibles. We would have bought this one, but our home isn't particularly display friendly. It would end up getting chipped or left in its box which would be pointless having it hidden away.

Back to the golden syrup -I don't throw away golden syrup tins if I can help it and they do special ones with 'perfect for pancakes' and 'Happy Birthday'

We don't just have pancakes on Shrove Tuesday either, why eat something so scrummy just once a year. they are nice when there's a glut of milk or the date is about to run out.

But today we will have a special bumper dinner of pancakes. Sweet pancakes for pudding and savoury pancakes for dinner. That means minced beef with a little gravy, chopped carrots and onion inside the pancake. Gravy poured on the top and cauliflower and broccoli on the side. For the veggie daughter it will be a cheese and broccoli filled pancake.