Fat Thursday in Poland
Celebration of Fat Thursday is associated with the joy caused by the end of winter, and therefore also the end of fasting and hunger.
Celebrating Fat Thursday, consisting of celebrating or eating without any limits was to ensure wealth and prosperity as well as protection against hunger, misfortune and the lack of unfruitful crops. In the Christian tradition Fat Thursday clearly marks the last day of carnival fun, warning that fast is coming.
This tradition spread quickly as it is known that every holiday that allows you to eat and drink quickly gains supporters and the fat in the dishes was considered a symbol of prosperity. Fat Thursday is a day when people can eat a variety of sweet pastries with impunity, but the king of Fat Thursday are donuts.
It is estimated that in Poland on Fat Thursday, an average of 100 million donuts are eaten, which is 2.5 pieces of pączki per one Pole! According to research, Poles eat donuts twice a day, during the day at work and at home with the family. To prepare this number of sweets in bakeries, more than 2,500 tons of wheat flour, 500 tons of sugar, 500 tons of butter, about 25 million eggs and just over a million liters of milk are used. Impressive, isn’t it?