Celebration Suggestion: Shrove Tuesday
and why weeknight hosting can be awesome
In an effort to encourage you to consider your own style of hospitality, I want to give occasional Celebration Suggestions … ideas for a party you maybe never would have thought of on your own. Whether you’re opening your home and inviting others in or celebrating with the people who live under your roof, when we take the time to make a day special and unique it opens up new opportunities for connection with the people we love.
I am Southern to my core, but in a Carolina way. Other Southerners will read that sentence and nod in understanding, even knowing the distinction of my long i- and o- sounds. What it also means, though, is that not being from Louisiana or a neighboring state, I am fairly clueless about Mardi Gras as a cultural phenomenon. It’s just a total blind spot for me. I love eating King Cake and gumbo and my children love sparkles and bead necklaces … but I’ve always felt ill-equipped to host or recommend any kind of true Mardi Gras party.
Mardi Gras is French for Fat Tuesday; Fat Tuesday, or Shrove Tuesday, is simply the day before Ash Wednesday. If you’re Catholic, a Protestant who follows the church calendar, or from Louisiana, you know already that Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a church season that is marked as a period of fasting and somberness. We’re not going to be throwing any Lent parties, y’all.
Before we fast, though, we feast. And that’s where Fat Tuesday comes in.
Historically, Fat Tuesday was “fat” because it was time to eat up all your rich, fatty foods before beginning the great fast of Lent. Often this meant combining your eggs, butter, and milk with flour to make pancakes (and don’t forget the bacon and sausage to go with it). Fat Tuesday is a unique feast in the church year in that it’s technically not on the liturgical calendar or formally recognized by the church at all. It’s a tradition that mostly sprouted up out fo the desire not to waste food, so this feast day is actually just good stewardship!1
Listen, a party with a theme that actually has its roots in frugality and also usually is coupled with sprinkles and really gaudy decor? Has anything ever been more meant for Holly Sharp? Even if you’re not particularly religious, celebrations are fun, and this could be a simple way to celebrate Mardi Gras if it’s a blind spot for you as it is for me.
This year Shrove Tuesday lands in one week, on March 4. I’m not really giving you enough time to throw an elaborate Mardi Gras party here. But one week is the perfect amount of leeway to call some neighbors or friends and say, “hey … wanna come over for pancakes next Tuesday?” If you’re new to simple hospitality, a week-night themed dinner is a good way to start dipping your toes in these fun waters.
But wait … did I lose you at week night? I sure hope not.
Week nights in my house are marked by homework, after-school music class, (occasional) sports, (frequent) play with cousins or neighbors, forced family fun, bedtime negotiations, and more. Week nights in my current life phase don’t scream, “hey, let’s have people over.” My house isn’t picked up, and my table won’t be set. This certainly can’t be the time to invite people over.
Except I think that mid week is exactly the time to invite people over. If I’m perfectly honest, when I walk into a friend’s house on a random day and I see a stack of books, an instrument by the front door, and a pile of legos being sorted, I feel relaxed. It helps me know that I am truly wanted and welcome there. I’m not advocating for living a hoarding lifestyle, but there is nothing crueler you can do to a friend than frantically clean up before they come, giving the impression that you are a magical creature whose home is always tidy.
Weeknight hosting is relaxed. Weeknight hosting is a time that no one thinks twice if you pull out the paper plates. Weeknight hosting is always short because everyone has school or work the next day. Weeknights are when we show up just as we are, fresh off of work or carpool and we get to both accept and be accepted no matter what our day held. Weeknight hosting means you get to be the hero because you just took dinner plans off of someone else’s plate!
My guess is that you can find lots of great templates out there if you want to really go all out with your Mardi Gras celebration this weekend. And if that’s exciting for you, please do it! What a fun party … I hope that next year you’ll invite me! But if you’re not up for that, you can still celebrate. A simple party for an otherwise-ordinary Tuesday sounds like a great way to jump into more every-day celebrations.
Whatever you do, make sure you eat … Fat Tuesday is, after all, truly all about the food! Below are three ideas for a Shrove Tuesday gathering.
Elaborate Pancake Party
Gather the griddles! Designate 2-3 folks as official pancake flippers … they man the griddles and serve the flapjacks while they’re hot. Have a buffet line with bacon, sausage, whipped cream, berries, syrups, fruit compotes, chocolate chips, and nuts. While you feast, share with others about your most memorably decadent meal. If you are observing a lenten fast, you can also share what you’ve chosen to fast from and why.
Pancake Showdown
Whose pancakes are actually the best? Folks can bring their homemade mixes or their favorite box mixes … but there will be a winner! Feast and compare, but be prepared to crown the winner with a neck full of Mardi Gras beads! While you enjoy some friendly competition, share with your friends about a memorable competition from childhood. Have you observed lent before? Tell about your past experiences with lent and how they shape the way you’re approaching the season this year.
Simple Breakfast Feast
Leave the griddles in storage! Make sheet pan pancakes by simply pouring your pancake batter into a greased baking sheet and baking at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Cut into squares and enjoy! If you want to lean into the decadence, you can top them with sprinkles, chocolate chips, and/or berries before baking. Share with your friends about the most extravagant feast you’ve ever had and the simplest one. Talk about what you hope to learn during lent in 2025.
Have you ever celebrated Shrove Tuesday? How does hosting on a weeknight make you feel? What’s your favorite pancake recipe? I’d love to hear from you!
Favorite Pancakes from around the Internet
Naptime Kitchen taught us all about sheet pan pancakes
The Pioneer Woman makes a mean sour cream pancake
My girl Deb Perelman never steers me wrong. Don’t miss her pancake archives.
Party Decor, if you’re into that kind of thing
Every Mardi Gras party needs beads
DIY masks could be fun for any kids you’re entertaining
The official colors of Mardi Gras are purple, green, & gold. Go wild at Dollar Tree and lean into that!
Looking to consider Lent?
At its nature, the lenten season isn’t something we celebrate per say, but it is something to commemorate, consider, and observe. There are a lot of great resources to follow throughout the season of Lent that can help you better understand this season if you’re interested in an ongoing practice or just deeper understanding.
Reliving the Passion, by Walter Wangerin, Jr. Probably the first guide I ever used for lent, and still the one I return to the most. With simple daily readings, it guides you slowly through scripture covering the days leading up to Easter.
Lent: The Season of Repentance and Renewal, by Esau McCaulley. A part of the Fullness of Time series, I read this book two years ago during lent. It really made me wish I could take a class from Dr. McCaulley!
Jesus Storybook Bible Lent Guide. Sally Lloyd-Jones never fails us, and she has put together a lent guide for families to use in conjunction with her wonderful children’s Bible.
none of these links are sponsored or affiliated … just stuff I found interesting.
Sacred Seasons: A family guide to center your year around Jesus. by Danielle Hitchen