Flipping hell, it’s Pancake Day!

Today is Shrove Tuesday, better known as Pancake Day to the less pious of us.

Although it has its roots in Christian traditions, Shrove Tuesday is often marked in modern times by people making and eating the humble pancake.

The thin, flat cake made of batter and fried in a frying pan is as popular as it is easy to make, and we know several of you will be frying and flipping in your kitchens today.

Newbury used to host a pancake race every year in the Market Place to mark the occasion.

It was organised by Soroptimist International Newbury & District and residents would wear fancy dress and race each other across the cobbled square while flipping pancakes.

The whimsical event would also see the mayor of Newbury toss pancakes from the Town Hall balcony to people who would attempt to catch them below.

This originally began more than 100 years ago when pancakes were thrown from the tower of St Nicholas Church to hungry children below.

Would you like to see the return of this bizarre but beloved event?

The arrival of Pancake Day will always stir up the age-old debate.

Are pancakes better when they are thick like American hotcakes or thin like French crêpes?

Personally, I prefer the thick kind. Although the thin ones are nice, you can’t beat a proper stack of thick pancakes that really have some substance to them.

For those who want to learn how to make the thick kind, first you have to add a bit of baking powder to the typical mix of milk, flour and eggs.

The real trick to achieve the thickness is to separate the egg yolks from the whites, and then whisk up the whites along with a pinch of salt.

Once stiff peaks form and your whites look like foam, fold this into the rest of your batter.

Another debate that often comes to the fore is which pancake topping is the best. Are you a traditional lemon and sugar enjoyer? Or a new-fangled chocolate spread and banana fan?

Maybe you’re even someone who likes them savoury and has them as part of a fried breakfast. Often seen as a rogue choice, what I’ll say to the naysayers is don’t knock it until you try it!

Anyway, pancakes are now synonymous with the Christian celebration of Shrove Tuesday. But how did this strange tradition come to be?

Shrove Tuesday marks the beginning of the Christian festival of Lent.

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday (tomorrow) and it is traditionally a time of fasting and sacrifice as it echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan.

The tradition of making pancakes on Shrove Tuesday began as families would use up all the ingredients in their cupboards before beginning Lent the following day.

Lent has now become known as a time where people test their willpower and give up something – often an unhealthy food or habit – before Easter.

Lent ends with the celebration of Easter which culminates on Easter Sunday, the most important day in the Christian calendar which marks the moment Jesus was reborn after being crucified by the Romans on the cross.

Funnily enough, Easter Sunday is another Christian celebration that has now become intrinsically linked with the consumption of yummy food.

I can’t wait to tuck into some chocolate on April 20!