Trivia
- Carrots belong to the parsley family.
- Carrots help prevent night blindness associated with deficiency in vitamin A.
- During the 15th century the English gentlewomen often wore carrot leaves to accessorise their hats.
- During the 17th century it is said that cows fed carrots would produce the richest milk and created butter that was the most yellow. Butter makers using milk from less fortunate cows coloured their butter with carrot juice.

Picking Carrots
Carrots are available year-round. Purchase carrots with a smooth firm surface. Avoid carrots that are dry and cracked. Younger carrots will be more tender. Remove and green tops and store in the refrigerator. Do not store near apples. Older carrots should be peeled.

Nutrient Value
Excellent source of beta carotene.
Good source of dietary fibre and potassium.

source: The Produce Bin

The traditional dish for Maslennitsa are big round hot pan-cakes, with butter. Pancakes symbolise the sun. The more butter (or honey, cavier, other delicious things) which was put on the pancake, the hotter the sun was expected to be in the coming summer. Nowadays it is celebrated at the end of February as a merry festival with dances, songs, national costumes, attractions for children, hot tea and pancakes served outdoors.

source: Maslyanitsa in Russia

I suspect that the making and eating of pancakes has always been much the same... a noisy, stimulating, exhilarating, greedy, happy time. Pancakes just seem to affect people that way. So it's not too surprising that two happy events for people, pancakes and festivals, are often linked together. Perhaps the best known one is Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day, which heralds the beginning of fasting in Lent. On this day (so the historians say) there were feasts of pancakes to use up the supplies of fat, butter and eggs... foods that were forbidden during austere Lent.

In England there are several celebrations on this day but perhaps the best known one is the Pancake Day Race at Olney in Buckinghamshire which has been held since 1445. The race came about when a woman cooking pancakes heard the shriving bell summoning her to confession. She ran to church wearing her apron and still holding her frying pan, and thus without knowing it, started a tradition that has lasted for over five hundred years.

According to the current rules, only women wearing a dress, no slacks or jeans, an apron and a hat or scarf, may take part in the race. Each contestant has a frying pan containing a hot, cooking pancake. She must toss it three times during the race that starts at the market square at 11.55am. The first woman to complete the winding 375-metre course (the record is 63 seconds set in 1967) and arrive at the church, serve her pancake to the bellringer and be kissed by him, is the winner.

She also receives a prayer book from the vicar.
On the same day at 11 a.m. at Westminster School in London, a verger from the Abbey leads a procession of eager boys into the playground of the school for the Annual Pancake Grease.
The school cook, who must be something of an athlete to manage it, tosses a huge pancake over a five metre high bar and the boys frantically scramble for a piece. The scholar who emerges from the scrum with the largest piece receives a cash bonus from the Dean. The cook also gets a reward.
Across the Channel in France the main ceremonial day, for pancake eating is Candlemas on the 2nd of February. This holy day is six weeks after Christmas and is the day that Christ was presented at the temple by his mother. During this festival, French children wear masks and demand pancakes and fritters. In various parts of the country, there are different customs. In Province, if you hold a coin in your left hand while you toss a pancake, you'll be rich. And in Brie the first pancake (which is never very good anyway) is always given to the hen that laid the eggs that made the pancake. And it's always regarded as bad luck to let a pancake fall on the floor while tossing it.
Legend has it that Napoleon, who liked to make and eat them with Josephine, blamed the failure of his Russian campaign on one he had dropped years before at Malmaison during Candlemas.
Pancakes are the traditional treat of the Jewish Hanukkah festival. They are fried in oil to commemorate the oil found by the Maccabeans when they recaptured Jerusalem from the Syrians, two thousand years ago. The one day's supply of oil for the temple lamps burned miraculously for one week. And, tradition says, the wives of the soldiers hurriedly cooked pancakes behind the lines for their warring husbands.
Large or small, fat or wafer thin and made with a wide range of flours, pancakes are given different names by different peoples. There are Hungarian palacsinta, Chinese egg rolls, Jewish blintzes, Russian blini, Italian cannelloni, Swedish plattar, Mexican tortillas, American hotcakes, German pfannkucken, Norwegian lefser, Austrian nockerin, Welsh crempog and Australian pikelets: but undoubtedly the most famous of them all is the great French crepe.

from Pancake and Crepe Cookery by Diana Daisy, published by Ure Smith
source: The Pancake Parlour

The origin of the race may be "shrouded in the mists of time," explained Rev. Nigel Pond, "but the accepted story is that the first dash took place before the shriving service in 1445."

The midday service prepares the congregation for the rigors of Lent, the great fast. In the fifteenth century, the fast was strictly adhered to. People wouldn't eat rich foods or cakes. They used up all the remaining ingredients in their winter stores, like eggs and butter, in meals prepared before the service.

source: WorldandI.com

It all started in 1950 from a magazine picture of the Olney women racing each other to the church. Liberal Jaycee President R.J. Leete contacted the Rev. Ronald Collins, Vicar of St. Peter and St. Paul's church in Olney, challenging their women to race against women of Liberal. The Vicar replied, "The Race is On!"

Rev. Collins explained that the race was an over 500-year-old tradition, dating back to 1445. A woman engrossed in using up cooking fats (forbidden during Lent) was making pancakes. Hearing the church bells ring calling everyone to the shriving service, she grabbed her head scarf (required in church) and ran to the church, skillet and pancake in hand and still apron-clad. In following years, neighbors got into the act and it became a race to see who could reach the church first and collect a "Kiss of Peace" from the verger (bell-ringer), along with the blessing: "The Peace of the Lord be always with you." The kiss is still the traditional prize in both races.

Following the centuries-old tradition, rules were laid out and the first race held February 21, 1950. A runner must flip her pancake at the starting signal, and again after crossing the finish line, to prove she still has her pancake Winning scores have traded back and forth between the two towns. The record time was set in 2001 when three-time race winner Lisa Spillman ran the 415-yard S-shaped course in 58.1 seconds. Prior to this, the record was 58.5 seconds set by Liberal's Sheila Turner in 1975. That record was also shared with Liberal's Christina Wilbers in 1997, and Olney's Natalie Thomas in 1998.

Some women run to win, others just to compete in the famous race that receives worldwide media coverage.

source: PancakeDay.com

The date of Mardi Gras varies from year to year, always falling between February 3 and March 9. Although Mardi Gras refers to a specific day, the term often encompasses a much longer period of celebrations leading up to Mardi Gras Day. The Carnival season is marked by spectacular parades featuring floats, pageants, elaborate costumes, masked balls, and dancing in the streets.

Some scholars have noted similarities between modern Mardi Gras celebrations and Lupercalia, a fertility festival held each February in ancient Rome. However, modern Carnival traditions developed in Europe during the Middle Ages (5th century to the 15th century) as part of the ritual calendar of the Roman Catholic Church.

Today pre-Lenten Carnivals are celebrated predominantly in Roman Catholic communities in Europe and the Americas. Cities famous for their celebrations include Nice, France; Cologne, Germany; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. New Orleans, Louisiana, holds the most famous Mardi Gras celebration in the United States. Residents of New Orleans have been celebrating Mardi Gras since the 18th century. Mobile, Alabama, has a lesser known but equally old Mardi Gras tradition. Mardi Gras is informally observed in many North American cities, usually invoking the spirit of the New Orleans festivities.

source:
"Mardi Gras," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2004
http://encarta.msn.com/ © 1997-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved

More than a Day
Based on its instant popularity, the day grew into a week and now Pancake Week is the perfect time for families across the nation to unite in the kitchen and to batter up a warm and hearty stack of steamy pancakes.

Beyond Breakfast
Some places in England serve pancakes as a traditional Christmas Eve dish. The Japanese serve pancakes with minced oysters in batter or dipped in hot chilli sauce. In China, pancakes are served as side dishes, stuffed with meat, bean sprouts and other vegetables. Finland's armed forces eat pancakes every Thursday after a starter of pea soup. In Belgium, pancakes with milk and honey were traditionally served to the bride and groom as their wedding breakfast. Truly everyone, all over the world flips for flapjacks!

Flipping for Flapjacks
Ralf Laue of Germany holds the Guinness Book of World Records' title for Fastest Pancake Tosser in the world! Laue flipped one flapjack 416 times in two minutes. On February 19, 1985, Jan Strickland of Australia ran, with skillet and pancake in hand, and flipped her way into the Guinness Book of World Records by completing the Annual 420-Yard Pancake Race, held in Melbourne, Australia, in 59.5 seconds.

Through the Years
Since 1445, the town of Olney, England holds its annual pancake race on Shrove Tuesday. Legend has it that on Shrove Tuesday, an Olney townswoman was so engrossed in making her pancakes, that she forgot the time until she heard the church bells ringing for the shriving service. She raced to the church in her apron, while still carrying her skillet and pancake. Every Shrove Tuesday since then, the women of Olney similarly don their aprons and race through the streets with their skillets and pancakes. This race started the custom of holding pancake races to celebrate Pancake Day.

source: Aunt Jemima

Sorry, we cannot claim lychees to be native to Thailand. They are originally from the "Middle Kingdom" and have been grown in the southern regions of China for over 4,000 years. Cultivation, in Thailand, began over 100 years ago so orchards have been established and matured over several generations. As you drive around the countryside, you will probably see the surging ranks of dark green bushes spread across the fields these are lychees and come in three varieties Gim Jeng, Hong Huay and Ow Hia which reflect their Chinese ancestry. The lychee bush is very demanding of its environment. Prior to flowering, a short cold spell is most important followed by a hot growing season. Rich, damp, slightly acid soil is essential and, as the bush blossoms and fruits set, the farmers will labour mightily to irrigate the crop to juicy perfection. The requisite growing conditions are found here in Northern Thailand especially around the Lychee Festival cities.

Lychees are best eaten within four days of picking; the fruit has an outer, thin-shelled skin (red changing to brown as the fruit ripens) which, when peeled away, reveals white, succulent flesh of a grape-like texture. A hard seed is at the core of the fruit. Like citrus fruits and black currants, lychees are high in vitamin "C" (five grape-sized fruit are enough for your daily needs) and also natural sugars. It is this natural and refreshing sweetness, combined with the firm texture "bite" that makes lychees so "more-ish".

As an added bonus (if you care to accept it), lychees are associated with romance along with the rose, they are looked upon as a special gift between lovers and a suggestion that marriage may be in the air. Indeed, some Thai companies are producing a tea infusion which has the fragrance of lychees and rose petals. It certainly makes an alternative to Russian Caravan or English Breakfast.

Fresh lychees are exceedingly good with vanilla ice cream or, as a variation, try them with a glass of red wine or port. Likewise, a combination of blue cheese with lychees will give you a new taste sensation which is very suited to the European palate.

This month is high season for the lychee fruit so do try them fresh and then experiment with some combinations to decide which you like best. The canned lychees you may be accustomed to at home just don't compare This year Lychee Festivals are held in Mae Jai District, Payao Province 10-12 May; Muang District, Chiang Rai Province 17-23 May; Fang District, Chiangmai Province 20 May.

General information
Fruit in the same family as longan. Originally from China, has many types. Cultivated mostly in the North. Test cultivation is being carried out in Samutsakorn. Seasons April - June. Nutritional value (100 g.) Contains vitamin C and potassium. Selection and preservation Select red fruit, not dusky black, tight skin and not cracked, not rotten, fresh calyx and not dry skin. Can be kept for 2 days, at a temperature 5-8 degrees Celsius, in the refrigerator, by wrapping with plastic. Cooking Lychee floats in syrup and juice.

source: Thailand Travel and Tourism Guide

A yam is large root vegetable that looks like a tube. People often confuse a yam with a sweet potato. Yams come from Africa while sweet potatoes are from Asia. Yams can be stored for 2 months in dark and cool areas. They can also be dried and turned into flour for longer storage. Interestingly, Yams are associated with Thanksgiving in the United States. When you have yams at your Thanksgiving dinner, think about the villagers in Ghana and Nigeria. They too are giving thanks... especially for this special food.

source: FamilyCulture.com

While at the festival, you'll sample a range of cranberry products and admire the work of the local crafts people and artisans. There are more than 1,200 booths covering more than three miles.

During the three-day festival, more than 125,000 people from across the country and the globe attend the small town of Warrens to celebrate the Cranberry.

source: The Warrens Cranberry Festival Official Site

source: Japan File

Because of the vitamin C content of cranberries, captains of the early sailing ships supplied their sailors with cranberries to prevent scurvy.

source: HiCards

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