The Feast Before the Fast: Fasnacht Day Approaching, are you ready?

Fasnacht (Fastnacht, Faasnacht) Day. Shrove Tuesday. Mardi Gras. Fat Tuesday.

The Tuesday before lent has many regional names depending on religious beliefs and ethnicities.

While many of the traditions remain the same, one thing holds constant: the feast before the fasting period of Lent.

While many have abandoned the traditional practices of making homemade fastnachts for the faster version of buying doughnuts from the grocery store or other doughnut-producing businesses, few still hold tight to the traditions of their home and heritage.

Doug Madenford, a local German teacher and expert on Pennsylvania Dutch culture and heritage, maintains two very active YouTube pages: Ask A PA Dutchman and Your PA Dutch Minute. The video linked below discusses the origins and heritage behind the faasnacht.

My original teachings behind the fasnacht, as I spell it, are that it was a way to use up the rest of the fat and oil that was gathered for cooking and baking from the winter season. Then, making a dough from flour, sugar, potatoes, yeast, and other spices, frying the little dough balls in the fat and oil reserves (mmmm…lard) as a way to begin the Lenten Fast in the Christian home.

I’ve been known to pick up a small box of fasnachts from the grocery store and a can of chocolate frosting just to feel a bit closer to my heritage.

Not many bakeries make the traditional fasnachts up in these parts of the state, but if you are interested in some authentic tastes, Deb’s Cross Fork Inn in Cross Fork is making and selling fasnachts with all proceeds going to Kettle Creek Hose Company. Orders are due by March 1 (but late orders are accepted until Monday, March 3) and can be placed by calling Deb’s at 570-923-1619. The pick-up date is Tuesday, March 4 from 12 PM to 4 PM. She has them available in glazed, powdered, or cinnamon sugar with the option of ordering an assortment of each.

Another hot spot for fresh fasnachts are at Nan’s Donuts in Loganton, next to Scenic Ridge Foods.

Don’t forget the Weis Markets in Lock Haven and Mill Hall.

While other churches and organizations may be selling fasnachts as well, these are only the ones I was able to find while quickly browsing social media and my general knowledge of doughnuts in the area.

So this Tuesday eat to your heart’s content and don’t forget to fast.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_cVoh2ed9Q