Kalamazoo Bakeries Prepare Traditional Paczki for Fat Tuesday

Don’t miss Michigan’s beloved Fat Tuesday tradition. Pączki season is here, and local bakeries are already prepping this classic Polish treat.

Here's where to find delicious paczki in and around Kalamazoo:

First, what are pączki?

While they may look like ordinary donuts, traditional Polish pączki (pączek for singular) are made from an especially rich dough loaded with eggs, fat, and sugar. Who knew it was possible to make indulgent donuts even more decadent?

Pronounced "poonch-key", most of us I typically associate pączki with Fat Tuesday, however in Poland it's tradition to consume pączki on Fat Thursday which is, "the last Thursday prior to Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent." This year Fat Thursday falls on February 12, 2026.

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When I made my Meijer run on February 3rd I didn't notice any paczki in the bakery section yet, but it can only be a matter of time before piles and stacks of those red boxes appear.

Meijer Paczki - Lauren G/TSM

No doubt you'll also start to see the polish delicacy filling the cases at your local bakery, such as Sarkozy Bakery in Kalamazoo, which is about to make its first trial pączki run of the season, sharing on social media:

On Fat Tuesday, 2/17, we make THOUSANDS of pączki. There's a lot of pressure to get a beloved product perfected when you only make it once a year, and at that scale. So, every year, we do a practice run! Gives us a chance to remind ourselves of the processes, and make any necessary changes for the big day.

Sarkozy Bakery will be making hundreds of practice pączki on Saturday, February 7 and will be offering them to the public at a discount of 25% off. Hours for Saturdays are 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Find more information here.

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Gallery Credit: Brad Carpenter

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Source: Kalamazoo Bakeries Prepare For Fat Tuesday With Fresh Paczki

Filed Under: Michigan, Lent, Kalamazoo

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