The month of February is marching along. Fat Tuesday is only a couple of days away, so it’s time for the sweet treat that everyone looks forward to each year: Pączki!

Who doesn’t love that fluffy, melt-in-your-mouth dough that envelopes sweet fruit jelly, luscious Bavarian Crème or cheese filling?

Celebrate Fat Tuesday with traditional Polish pączki from your local Strack & Van Til Bakery. These Polish jelly doughnuts are fresh and delicious and made from scratch in-store by the Doughnut Crew at all of locations.

“Our freshly made pączki come in the most popular flavors, including strawberry, cheese, Bavarian Crème, cherry, apricot, apple, lemon, raspberry and prune. Pick up a four-pack for just $3.99, as shown in our weekly ad,” says Bakery Director Tim Calderone. “Pączki are also available in six-count packages and individually, and you can find them in all of our Strack & Van Til bakeries through Fat Tuesday.”

This month, Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, Lutherans, and Methodists will begin to observe the Lenten fast. But before they do, they also celebrate Fat Tuesday, which falls on Feb.16 this year.

Fat Tuesday, also known as Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras, is the day before Ash Wednesday. It is said that on Fat Tuesday, people eat anything they want in preparation for fasting during Lent. During this fast time, it is also common to give up something enjoyable, so Fat Tuesday is the time to indulge. Pączki are a favorite way to satisfy that opportunity.

According to tradition, pączki were made to use up a household’s eggs, sugar, lard and fruit, because religious fasting practices did not allow the consumption of these items during Lent.

In Poland, pączki are typically eaten on Fat Thursday, the Thursday before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. In North America, Pączki Day is celebrated on Fat Tuesday, with paczki enjoyed by the Polish community as well as others.

“The pączki from the Strack & Van Til Bakery Department are some of the very best you will find,” Calderone says. “Be sure to pick up your pączki in time for Fat Tuesday.”

In addition to pączki, you’ll find a wide array of sweet and tasty doughnuts, plain and masterfully decorated. Stop in while they’re baking and enjoy the enticing aroma.

Offering the freshest, scratch-made-in-store pączki is just another way that Strack & Van Til goes above and beyond for customers.

Pick up a pack of pączki and indulge. You “donut” want to miss them!