Newfies & Pancake Day

Lent/Facebook-Free: Day 4


Since I was raised in Newfoundland (sadly, I can't claim being born there, but as a Montreal Canadiens fan, I don't like to be reminded of my birth in the city of the Maple Leafs, thank you kindly!) I was raised with all the fun Newfie traditions that we still follow even after moving to Nova Scotia eighteen years ago. One of these is Pancake Night, as it's called by most Newfies. It's also known as Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Tuesday, Mardi Gras, which translates to "Fat Tuesday" (thanks to Steph for pointing out this tidbit to me!), or Pancake Day. Here's an excerpt from a website describing Newfie customs about the origins of Shrove Tuesday:

...[Shrove Tuesday] was a time to use up as many as possible of the foods banned during Lent: meat products in particular, including butter and eggs. Pancakes were a simple way to use these foods, and ones that could entertain the family. 

The real entertainment comes from the surprises cooked into the pancakes. A little bit of fortune-telling fun added to a religious practise makes Pancake Night fairly unique among Canadians. Trinkets to symbolize fortunes that have been included in pancakes are:

Nail - carpentry
String - fisherman
Button - bachelorhood
Wedding ring - will soon marry
Thimble - seamstress/tailor
Nickel - wealth
Penny - poverty

If a boy receives a trinket symbolizing a trade, his fortune is that he will enter that trade. If a girl receives it, she will marry someone of that trade.

With all the Newfies currently living in Nova Scotia and other parts of Canada, I'm genuinely surprised that a lot of maritimers seem unaware of this tradition. That fact merited a blog post at the very least, and I'm quite happy to share it here.

My mother, determined Newfie she is about holding to traditions whether late or not, decided to have Pancake Night yesterday. On Shrove Tuesday, myself and my younger brothers were volunteering at our church to serve at the Pancake Supper, where we ate for free afterwards. Here's how to do Pancake Night, Newfie style! :)

Boil the coins first to clean them

First, you need small change. Quarters, dimes, nickels, even loonies. Even though there's lots of options for trinkets, we've just always used coins, and really, who doesn't love getting money in their food, especially kids? Bring the coins to a boil in a pot of water, and boil for several minutes to sterilize them. Drain and set aside to let them cool.

Coins in the batter!

Prepare your pancake batter- we like to make pancakes from scratch from my mother's Newfie cookbook and almanac, the recipe of which I've included- and pour into a skillet or grill on medium-low heat. Add a few coins to each pancake. They'll sink a bit into the batter, but if the coins still show partially, just use a butterknife to spread batter over them. When bubbles appear in the batter, flip over to cook for a minute or two more.

Cut SMALL pieces as you eat! :)

Presto! Newfie pancakes! If you're serving them to small children, cut their pancakes into small pieces for them, and definitely don't leave them unattended. You'll definitely want to rinse your pancake coins in soap and water before you put them back in your wallet :P


Pancakes
So easy, there's really nothing to it. And this recipe comes from a lady in Newfoundland.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 salt
3 T sugar
1 egg
3 T butter, melted
1/4 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 c. milk

Directions:

1. Mix dry ingredients.

2. Beat egg, add milk.

3. Make a well in center of dry ingredients. Add egg and milk mixture.

4. Add melted butter and vanilla.

5. Mix only enough to make mixture smooth. Fry on hot grill.

For healthy addition of flavour, you could add mashed bananas. Delicious.
 

Oh, and Steph, my next blog post will definitely be about The Book of Negroes, which I'll likely post sometime on Monday or Tuesday. :)

This blog post was written with the help of:

Newfoundland Calendar Customs

About Foods of the Season