It’s a damp and chilly morning as I head off to my local branch of Warsaw’s excellent Cieślikowski bakery chain to pick up as many of their delicious pączki as I can lay my hands on. I am expecting a queue so I have a book with me to read while I wait patiently to be served. At home, my family is eagerly awaiting the goodies. But when I get to the store, surprise surprise – there is no queue. I am later than usual, and have missed the commuter rush, but the shelves are bare of pączki, so I may have to wait for another delivery, fresh from the off-site ovens. But no, one of the staff comes from the back room with three trays of the things and starts re-stacking the shelves. There are plenty for everyone. The one person ahead of me picks up her order, two trays with several wrapped packages that contain I estimate 100 pączki – for the office I assume. I am served next, and order my paltry – but still delicious – 10, pay for them and head home happily. Donut Day today has arrived again and my supplies are in.

Donut Day is the popular name for the delightful Polish festival known as TŁUSTY CZWARTEK – in English, Fat Thursday. It falls on the third Thursday in February, or the last Thursday before the start of the Lenten season, when the days are getting longer. It’s light before 7 a.m. and remains so until about 6 p.m. and the traditional long cold winter is coming to an end. Tradition says it’s time to celebrate this by eating as many pączki as possible, before having to give up all the good stuff for 40 days according to Catholic tenets, and with their usual enthusiasm Poles tuck in with gusto. The goodies are baked on an industrial scale in bakeries the length and breadth of the country rather than in your own kitchen, but it remains possibly the most popular feast day here. I heard from an English mate of mine this morning, telling me his wife (like mine, a Polish lady) had gone out early and bought 48 pączki for the family of four, and he was at that moment enjoying three, warmed, with his breakfast coffee. I like his style!

Pączki are Polish donuts. They are not the rings with a hole in the middle, deep fried and sprinkled with sugar powder or iced with a variety of flavours (mainly chocolate and vanilla) and sprinkled with chocolate chips, so beloved by Homer Simpson – although these are also available and widely enjoyed too. Nothing like Dunkin’ Donuts at all. Pączki are fat and filling and stuffed with jam or marmalade and baked in a hot oven, then lightly iced or covered in powdered sugar. Served warm, you bite into them and there is an exquisite explosion of sweetness in the mouth….truly scrumptious. I’ve eaten similar donuts in a variety of places from a number of bakeries and patisseries, and none can compare with Cieślikowski’s. They are just superb. Sold all the year round, they are a favourite treat for Polish families everywhere, and the Donut Day festival is a fitting tribute to Polish tradition. I love it.

So today – Happy Donut Day, everybody!