Happy Paczki Day! (Oh, and belated Presidents Day)
It may be Mardi Gras or Carnival elsewhere in the world, but in Detroit, it's Paczki Day!
Wikipedia article on packzi
Paczki (Polish pronunciation [ˈpɔnt͡ʂki]) are traditional Polish doughnuts (the word paczek is roughly translated as doughnut). Paczki is the plural form of the Polish word paczek ['p?nt????k], though many English speakers use paczki as singular and paczkis as plural. In English, the common pronunciations PAWNCH-kee or PONCH-kee[1] imitate the Polish pronunciation, but some speakers pronounce the word as POONCH-kee, PUNCH-kee or PANCH-kee. The word "paczek" derives as a diminutive from the Polish word pak ("plant bud"), evoking its shape.
A pączek is a deep-fried piece of dough shaped into a flattened sphere and filled with confiture or other sweet filling. Pączki are usually covered with powdered sugar, icing or bits of dried orange zest. A small amount of grain alcohol (traditionally, Spiritus) is added to the dough before cooking; as it evaporates, it prevents the absorption of oil deep into the dough.
Although they look like bismarcks or jelly doughnuts, pączki are made from especially rich dough containing eggs, fats, sugar and sometimes milk. They feature a variety of fruit and creme fillings and can be glazed, or covered with granulated or powdered sugar. Powidła (stewed plum jam) and wild rose hip jam are traditional fillings, but many others are used as well, including strawberry, Bavarian cream, blueberry, custard, raspberry and apple.
Pączki have been known in Poland at least since the Middle Ages. Jędrzej Kitowicz has described that during the reign of August III, under the influence of French cooks who came to Poland, pączki dough was improved, so that pączki became lighter, spongier, and more resilient.
In Poland, paczki are eaten especially on Fat Thursday (the last Thursday before Lent). Many Polish Americans celebrate Paczki Day on Fat Tuesday (the day before Ash Wednesday). Traditionally, the reason for making paczki was to use up all the lard, sugar, eggs and fruit in the house, because they were forbidden to be consumed due to Catholic fasting practices during Lent.
In the large Polish community of Chicago, and other large cities across the Midwest, Paczki Day is celebrated annually by immigrants and locals alike. In Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Milwaukee, South Bend, and Windsor, Paczki Day is more commonly celebrated on Fat Tuesday instead of Fat Thursday. Chicago celebrates the festival on both Fat Thursday and Fat Tuesday, due to its sizable Polish population.
In Hamtramck, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, there is an annual Paczki Day (Shrove Tuesday) Parade, which has gained a devoted following. In Garfield Heights, Ohio, the police reported that one year 3,000 people waited in line for paczki on Paczki Day. The Paczki Day celebrations in some areas are even larger than many celebrations for St. Patrick's Day.
Oh, yes, let's not forget Presidents Day in all this.
Wired: Tech Presidents Day: George, Tom and Abe
By Randy Alfred
Wired.com marks Presidents Day weekend with brief vignettes of three of our techiest presidents: Washington steered national policy toward an embrace of science, Jefferson made a significant contribution to paleontology, and Lincoln devised and patented a gimmick for lifting stranded boats.
sissyhiyah and underlankers don't despair; I will get to your memes!