I was certainly going to town on the fat on Fat Tuesday, what with paczki's and pancakes. What is a paczki I hear you cry from over the Atlantic Ocean? As much as they look like, and the word paczki actually translates from the Polish into doughnuts they differ in the batter used for frying them. They're often filled with yummy fillings like raspberry, strawberries or just covered in a glaze, but traditionally they were filled with plum and rose hip. They are a lot richer and a lot taster than your average doughnut for sure.
They are a bit of a big deal around these parts - as Polish immigrants moved into the region they brought their food and traditions with them. The city of Hamtramck is made up of a big Polish population and is the center for paczki and Fat Tuesday traditions. Due to the popularity they can be found in food stores too especially in areas across the US with similarly high Polish populations which is were I grabbed mine - filled with a yummy strawberry filling and I also had a "proper" paczki later that was filled with the most gooey and delicious lemon curd filling. Heavenly.
But being a mix of cultures these days, I'm all for having a traditional crepe pancakes (lately I've been always making American style pancakes so it was a welcome change) and gave me an excuse to get through some of the cappuccino ice cream that's a little strong tasting on it's own!
What did you eat for Fat Tuesday?