Mardi Gras sales boost area bakeries

Robert Tomkavage, The Times-Tribune, Scranton, Pa.
·2 min read

Feb. 20—Barbour's Bakery buzzed Monday as owner Janet Price baked fastnachts, king cakes and paczki for Mardi Gras.

Interest in the sweet treats is strong at the Carbondale shop as customers indulge before fasting for Lent.

"My whole family is here and we're working around the clock," Price said. She estimates receiving at least 100 orders for cakes and said the business usually sells out of paczki.

The National Pastry Bake Shop in Scranton makes about 20 dozen doughnuts with apple, Boston creme, lemon and raspberry filling for Fat Tuesday and orders are piling in, said Candace Fox of National Bakery.

"They're really good sellers," Fox said. "They go quick when we have them."

Here are some terms to know if you're planning to celebrate this year:

Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras is French for Fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday and a time when Christians eat rich, fatty foods before Lent — 40 days of penitence and fasting leading up to Easter.

Paczki

—Pronounced "poonch-key," the fried doughnut-like pastry filled with jelly and sprinkled with powdered sugar is a staple of Fat Tuesday. Legend has it the extra-rich pastry got its start in Poland centuries ago when families were encouraged to use all their eggs, butter, sugar, and fruits before fasting for Lent.

Fastnacht

—After confessing their sins, German Christians would celebrate Fastnacht Day on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday, by making the sweet doughnuts as one last indulgence before Lent. The doughnuts were fried in lard to use up the animal fat, which was forbidden during Lent. The county's Pennsylvania Dutch carry on the tradition, making the doughnuts with potatoes, eggs, flour and sugar, then frying them in the lard. The German word Fastnacht means the night before the fast.

King cakes

—The ring-shaped cake topped with purple, green and gold frosting usually includes a small, plastic baby in the middle. The baby symbolizes luck and prosperity to whoever finds it in their slice.

Contact the writer: rtomkavage@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9131; @rtomkavage on Twitter.