A bakery in Windsor has extra workers on duty to handle the high volume of paczki orders for Shrove Tuesday.
Staff at Blak's Bakery on Langlois Avenue near Erie Street, have been making the jelly-filled Polish desserts since last Thursday, and it's expected they will make 35,000 for the day that's also known as Fat Tuesday or Paczki Day.
Bakery owner Valerie Blak-Gill said they had to stop taking orders on Sunday.
"It's a big traditional thing. We have so many people who come in and get them and take them to work, because most people say, 'oh you're Polish, you have to bring paczki's in on Paczki Day,'" she said.
The day is so busy, Blak-Gill said she had to recruit some family members to help in the bakery.
"We have a full house. I have my sisters that came down from Toronto. I have a couple relatives in Windsor who take a day off their regular job to come here. I have some cousins that come here from London. We have a couple that come from the United States," she said.
Photo courtesy of Vanessa's Bakery & Deli's Facebook page
The largest paczki order placed at Blak's Bakery is for 112 dozen.
Blak-Gill explains that paczki's are much different than a jelly-filled donut.
"They are a lot richer. They have a lot more of fats in it, and eggs in it, and sugars in it," she said. "It's not the same as a regular donut because we make regular jelly donuts all year long."
Shrove Tuesday or Paczki Day is the traditional feast before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday.