In France and Belgium, the countdown to Lent sounds less like marching bands and more like batter hitting a hot pan. Crêpes sizzling in butter, sugar‑dusted fritters, and waffles piled high all grew out of the same pre‑Lent instinct: use up the last of the eggs, milk, and butter before the fast begins.
On Shrove Tuesday—known in many places as Mardi Gras—European families would clear their larders of rich ingredients that were once restricted during Lent, turning necessity into a delicious ritual.
Today we’re following that story across the Atlantic into French and Belgian kitchens, cooking three classics: paper‑thin crêpes, airy beignets, and crispy bugnes (also called “angel wings”). Together, they tell the tale of how people turned the “last egg” into a feast before the fast.
Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day, and the “Last Egg”
Before modern refrigeration and relaxed fasting rules, Lent in Catholic Europe could be serious business: no meat, and in many regions no eggs, butter, or milk for the duration.
Shrove Tuesday (from “to shrive,” to confess) was both a spiritual and practical moment—people went to confession and also used up ingredients that wouldn’t be allowed during the coming weeks.
In Britain and parts of Northern Europe, that logic became “Pancake Day.” In France and Belgium, it took the form of crêpes, beignets, waffles, and regional fritters like bugnes and pets‑de‑nonne (nun’s “puffs”).
Flour, eggs, milk, sugar, and fat were transformed into foods that felt like a celebration, even as they signaled that leaner days were coming.
When you flip a crêpe or dust a platter of bugnes with sugar, you’re participating in a long line of cooks who refused to let good ingredients—or a good story—go to waste.
Classic French Crêpes (Sweet or Savory)
Crêpes are the quintessential Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras dish in France: thin, flexible pancakes that can go from dessert to dinner with a change of filling.
The batter is simple and relies heavily on eggs and milk—exactly the ingredients older Lenten rules would restrict.
Ingredients (about 12 crêpes)
1 cup (125 g) all‑purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 ¼ cups (300 ml) milk (or half milk, half water)
2 tablespoons melted butter (plus more for the pan)
1 tablespoon sugar (optional, for sweet crêpes)½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional, for sweet crêpes)
Directions
Make the batter:
In a bowl, whisk flour, salt, and sugar (if using).
In another bowl, whisk eggs, milk, melted butter, and vanilla (if using).
Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry, whisking until smooth. If there are lumps, strain the batter.
Let rest 20–30 minutes; this relaxes the gluten and makes more tender crêpes.
Cook the crêpes
Heat a nonstick or well‑seasoned pan over medium; lightly brush with butter.
Pour in about ¼ cup of batter, swirling immediately to coat the bottom in a thin layer.
Cook 1–2 minutes until the edges look dry and lift easily; flip and cook 30–60 seconds more.
Stack cooked crêpes on a plate, covered with a clean towel.
Serve
Sweet options: sugar and lemon, jam, Nutella, honey, stewed fruit, or powdered sugar.
Savory options: grated cheese and ham, sautéed mushrooms, spinach and cheese, or eggs and herbs.
You can invite readers to make crêpes as a household ritual on the evening before they begin any kind of fast or spiritual reset, whether or not they formally celebrate Lent.
French Beignets (Home‑Style)
In New Orleans, beignets are famous, but they’re rooted in older French Carnival fritters: squares or shapes of yeast dough, fried and blanketed in powdered sugar.
They use flour, eggs, milk, and fat in exactly the way a pre‑Lent cook would have hoped.
Ingredients
½ cup (120 ml) warm milk
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 tablespoons sugar1 large egg
2 tablespoons melted butter or neutral oil
2 cups (250 g) all‑purpose flour (plus extra for dusting)
½ teaspoon salt
Neutral oil for frying
Powdered sugar, for dusting
Directions
Activate yeast
Mix warm milk, yeast, and 1 tablespoon sugar.
Let sit 5–10 minutes until foamy.
Make dough
Whisk in remaining sugar, egg, and melted butter.
Stir in flour and salt until a soft dough forms; knead briefly until smooth and slightly tacky.
Place in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled (about 1 hour).
Shape
Punch down dough and roll to about ¼ inch (0.5–0.7 cm) thick on a floured surface.
Cut into roughly 2‑inch (5 cm) squares or rectangles.
Fry
Heat oil to about 350°F/175°C in a deep pot.
Fry a few pieces at a time, turning once, until puffed and golden (2–3 minutes).
Drain on paper towels.ServeDust generously with powdered sugar while still warm.
These little pillows show how a humble dough can become a joyful “last hurrah” for butter and eggs before a season of restraint.
Bugnes (French “Angel Wing” Fritters)
Bugnes are a traditional Carnival fritter from regions like Lyon: thin strips of dough, twisted and fried until crisp, then sugared.
They’re closely related to other “angel wing” cookies across Europe and are classic pre‑Lent treats.
Ingredients
2 cups (250 g) all‑purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder (or a pinch of yeast if you prefer a longer rise)
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons melted butter2–3 tablespoons milk (as needed)
Zest of 1 lemon or orange (optional)
1–2 teaspoons rum or vanilla (optional traditional aroma)
Neutral oil for frying
Powdered sugar, for dusting
DIRECTIONS
Make dough
In a bowl, mix flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.
In another bowl, whisk eggs, melted butter, citrus zest, and rum/vanilla (if using).
Combine wet and dry ingredients, adding milk 1 tablespoon at a time until you get a soft but not sticky dough.
Knead briefly, form into a ball, wrap, and rest 30 minutes.
Shape
Roll dough very thin (2–3 mm) on a floured surface.
Cut into strips about 1 x 4 inches (2.5 x 10 cm).
Cut a slit in the center of each strip and gently pull one end through the slit to create a twist.
Fry
Heat oil to about 340–350°F/170–175°C.
Fry bugnes in batches until lightly golden and crisp, turning once.
Drain on paper towels.
Serve
Dust generously with powdered sugar.
Eat the same day for best crispness.
Bugnes are as much about texture as taste: the shattering crunch under sugar is a sensory counterpart to the richness of the ingredients you’re about to put away for a while.
From Butter and Eggs to Simpler Plates
When Ash Wednesday arrives, many Christians move from this butter‑and‑egg abundance to simpler fare: soups, bread, beans, and fish.
The contrast is the point. Crêpes and fritters aren’t there to make you feel guilty; they’re there to mark a turning of the page, to remind you that seasons change and that sometimes we choose to set good things aside for a higher purpose.
What does it mean, in our own kitchens, to feast with gratitude and then fast with intention?
Share your thoughts in the comments.
It's Nicky Lynn 