I HOPE you’re enjoying your pancakes today. It’s amazing what pleasures can be had from a simple mix of flour, butter, milk and eggs.

At one time these ingredients would have been considered luxuries. It is to our shame today that for some families they still are. More of that later.

Pancake Tuesday is the plumper sibling to Ash Wednesday – ‘remember man that thou art dust’, and all that.

Traditionally people would use up ingredients considered too rich for Lent, and that’s where pancakes come into their own.

Sophie Clarke: Closure of historic Co Antrim business signals the cost of convenience

Sadly, many of us have lost the art of making our own, even though it’s relatively easy.

But the supermarkets, always on the look-out for a quick buck, are happy to fill the void.

At my local supermarket I can buy sweet pancakes, cheesy ones, blueberry ones, cookies and cream-flavoured confections, pancakes flavoured with honey, maple syrup, Sicilian lemons, and there’s even gluten-free for those allergic to wheat.

This day is celebrated across the Christian world, and to be honest, flipping pancakes is among the least excessive ways of marking it.

The French-speaking world really knows how to party. Mardi Gras means ‘Fat Tuesday’, and boy do they let........

© The Irish News