Lent/Facebook-Free: Day 15
For those of you who know, I've been in my home province of Newfoundland for a week now, visiting my grandparents, and generally taking advantage of all the yummy, Newfie goodness you can't get anywhere else, least of all in Nova Scotia. My laundry list of "Newfie" treats tends to include, but is definitely not limited to:
pineapple pop
Viennese sausages
cream crackers
cabbage rolls
onion rings from The Spud
Purity syrup
Ironically, as much I look forward to these, this time around I'm also trying to avoid eating too much of it (food diary, as much as I hate you, you do a good job of keeping me accountable). I have a tendency to gain weight when I go back home because Newfies are determined to fatten you up if you look like you're skin and bones, and I am decidedly not that!
Keeping my mind off the countless snacks I have available to me, thanks to daily trips to the local grocery, (yes, Mom, I pick up yogurt and fruit instead of chips and ice cream :P) is my knitting. Hard to believe, but I knit a dishcloth and started on my second sock after an imperfect attempt at the first, which I started last Saturday and finished on Tuesday. Even my grandmother was quite impressed, in spite of the fact that I knit tight and "it's th' dev'l's own job gettin' them stitches off" during my numerous mistakes the first time around. It's been satisfying to finish the first sock, and start the second on my own, knitting as far as the heel before asking for assistance from Nanny. We have a routine of knitting in the morning during "Let's Make A Deal" and "The Price is Right", and again in the evening during the Tim Horton's Brier curling. There's really nothing nicer than relaxing and being productive all at the same time.
I wish I had my camera cord so I could upload pictures to this blog while I'm here, and I'm kicking myself for it now. I'll add pictures to this post and any others I put up while in Newfoundland when I get back home next week.
P.S. If you're wondering why this post says Day 15 of Lent instead of Day 17, that's because Sundays are not counted in the forty days of Lent, since Sunday is already a holy day ;)
Friday, March 09, 2012
Saturday, February 25, 2012
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! :)
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.
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.
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
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
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Ash Wednesday. Lent/Facebook-Free: Day 1
I've come to the conclusion that I'm either crazy or my willpower is having delusions of grandeur... because I've decided to give up Facebook for the Lenten season.
Actually, I'm probably leaning more towards the crazy end of the balance.
Why do we give up something for Lent, anyway? Do we have to? Historically, the period of Lent had three varying purposes. Today, we know it best as an act of penitence and sacrifice. Lent is also related to baptism and renewal, which makes sense because it occurs leading up to the spring season when winter snows start to melt and nature begins to make way for summer. The link to the article at the bottom of the post also has some interesting tidbits and facts you probably didn't know about Lent- like the fact that is it quite likely that pretzels originated from the holiday!
Originally, I was going to give up chocolate. Then I realized that I'd be cheating myself out of the bag of Hershey's Kisses my parents gave me for Valentine's Day, which I'd put into two cocktail glasses and displayed on my bedside table. So conspicuously tempting, I didn't think I could REALLY give up the chocolate for forty days, seeing as that would encompass chocolate ice cream, Aero peppermint bars, and chocolate milk. Impossible!
It suddenly strikes me as slightly funny and insane for thinking I can do the same with Facebook. For how many people is it not an automatic reflex for you to sign in to your Facebook or Twitter account as soon as your computer's booted up? I admit to being as Facebook-hooked as much as the next person. I posted one last status before my self-imposed hiatus. Within minutes, I had horrified, disbelieving reactions in the comments below. I'm actually already feeling even more motivated to be able to give it up. I'm not eliminating my entire online presence (I'm just not strong enough for that!). Since I do use Facebook to keep in touch with long-distance friends and family, or to make plans over Facebook inboxes and chat, I've decided to continue using my Hotmail, which sadly enough is nearly obsolete with texting and Twitter now. I'm going to do weekly posts on this blog about my life without Facebook, and hope I'm not slowly going mental without it.
Thank God for recipes on Pinterest and chocolate, because now I can bake guilt-free all through Lent :)
This blog post was written with the help of:
Why Do Christians Give Up Something for Lent?
Actually, I'm probably leaning more towards the crazy end of the balance.
Why do we give up something for Lent, anyway? Do we have to? Historically, the period of Lent had three varying purposes. Today, we know it best as an act of penitence and sacrifice. Lent is also related to baptism and renewal, which makes sense because it occurs leading up to the spring season when winter snows start to melt and nature begins to make way for summer. The link to the article at the bottom of the post also has some interesting tidbits and facts you probably didn't know about Lent- like the fact that is it quite likely that pretzels originated from the holiday!
Originally, I was going to give up chocolate. Then I realized that I'd be cheating myself out of the bag of Hershey's Kisses my parents gave me for Valentine's Day, which I'd put into two cocktail glasses and displayed on my bedside table. So conspicuously tempting, I didn't think I could REALLY give up the chocolate for forty days, seeing as that would encompass chocolate ice cream, Aero peppermint bars, and chocolate milk. Impossible!
It suddenly strikes me as slightly funny and insane for thinking I can do the same with Facebook. For how many people is it not an automatic reflex for you to sign in to your Facebook or Twitter account as soon as your computer's booted up? I admit to being as Facebook-hooked as much as the next person. I posted one last status before my self-imposed hiatus. Within minutes, I had horrified, disbelieving reactions in the comments below. I'm actually already feeling even more motivated to be able to give it up. I'm not eliminating my entire online presence (I'm just not strong enough for that!). Since I do use Facebook to keep in touch with long-distance friends and family, or to make plans over Facebook inboxes and chat, I've decided to continue using my Hotmail, which sadly enough is nearly obsolete with texting and Twitter now. I'm going to do weekly posts on this blog about my life without Facebook, and hope I'm not slowly going mental without it.
Thank God for recipes on Pinterest and chocolate, because now I can bake guilt-free all through Lent :)
This blog post was written with the help of:
Why Do Christians Give Up Something for Lent?
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