PretzelPic of a pretzel seller on the street in Berlin. These pretzels were extra large and sold by a girl who epitomised the look of a German pretzel seller with her two braids, blonde hair and sweet Rapunzel look, like she just stepped out of a German fairytale.

Common around the southern part of Germany they are eaten as a snack, sometimes for breakfast and are made of simple ingredients: wheat flour, water, sugar & yeast along with large helpings of thick chunky bits of salt. The exact date and place of the origin of the pretzel is not known, but in 1111 the pretzel was an emblem on the bakers’ guilds in Southern Germany - only a short 896 years ago.

And did you know that within the Catholic church, pretzels are regarded as having religious significance and are particularly associated with Lent, fasting and prayers before Easter.

And in North America, fat bar goers eat lots of pretzels with beer, go the fatties!

Fat Tuesday's Menu

• Chocolate and strawberry pancakes with maple syrup
• Lemon and sugar pancakes
• Blueberry and strawberry pancakes with honey
• Strawberry and chocolate pancakes
• Spinach/veg and cheese pancakes
• Ham / cheese / spinach and mushroom pancakes

Kash flipped the pancakes, Neil brought the wine and the Scottish jokes, the batter chilled on the balcony, BH brought some tipsy banter and we mixed the batter sans whisk although someone went to other flats in the building asking for one - how neighbourly!

It took about 4 hours to make pancakes for all but they were delicious and it was good fun. Real pics to come as ours were more like crepes than the fluffy buttermilk ones in the pic above.

Now what are you giving up for Lent? Kash is giving up chips, crisps, biscuits and sweets (and she is doing the Three Peaks Challenge)- I am going for chocolate, crisps and biscuits and others at work were trying to figure out what they were going to give up today. Vicki said she was giving up -going out to eat- but she said that as we were at Dim T restaurant at lunch?! I guess she starts Lenten sacrifices a day later than most; and she said if she gets asked out on a date then she will have to break the rule again, and it doesn't count for breakfast or lunch!
Not a very religious bunch really.