PANCAKE DAY

Tomorrow, February 16th, is Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day in Canada. I've eaten pancakes on this day for as long as I can remember.
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In the Christian calendar, Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent which leads up to Easter; and traditionally, there were certain foods that were not allowed during Lent (fat, butter and eggs). So, all of those items were indulged in on Shrove Tuesday as a sort-of last hurrah.
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Sounds good to me! (Well, the eating of pancakes does, at any rate. However, the giving up of fat, butter and eggs sounds somewhat bleak!!)
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As a child in Newfoundland, my Mom would "add" things to our pancakes -- and I'm not talking about blueberries or such!! My siblings and I would eagerly gather round the table and dig into the center of our pancake first to see what we'd find: if you found a toothpick, you'd marry (or make your living as) a carpenter; a screw meant a mechanic; a twist of thread meant a seamstress or tailor. But the pancake that we all hoped to get contained a nickel!! (it was the 60's, you know); this meant that this happy person would also find riches in their future!! Whoo Hoo!
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(Meanwhile, there were 4 others who had burst into tears and were now complaining loudly! It didn't take long for Mom to make sure that one person found a dime and the others each found a nickel.) I've continued this tradition with my own kids -- but with just one coin. (I'm a tough old broad -- I say let 'em weep! It builds character!)
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There are a few other changes I've made to my Mom's Pancake Day meal: I use a low fat sausage, I make healthier pancakes (and I like them to have texture and bite), and I have bananas & strawberries on top with a lot less maple syrup. One of our favorite pancakes recipes is this one.
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Multigrain Pancakes

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3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup unbleached flour

1/4 cup cornmeal

1/4 cup quick or rolled oats

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 large egg (beaten) and 1 large egg white

(beaten to soft peaks)

1/8 cup oil

1 cup buttermilk at room temp

(or 1 Tbsp white vinegar and enough milk to measure 1 cup total)

1 cup fat-free sour cream

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Combine all dry ingredients. Gently stir buttermilk & sour cream into egg mixture. Mix wet with dry until just combined.

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If you're having pancakes tomorrow, I hope you find lots of money in them! And I hope it's miracle money that you didn't put in there yourself! And that it's in a cheque form and has 5 figures or more!
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After all -- it's still Olympics season

AND I'm Canadian

-- I believe!

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Enjoy!