Jordan Beck | Daily Press Elmer’s County Market bakery employee Crissie Timonen rolls out dough for paczkis at the store’s bakery recently.

ESCANABA — Today is Fat Tuesday — a holiday many people in the area will enjoy by treating themselves to paczki.

A long-lasting Fat Tuesday tradition, paczki are a type of deep-fried pastry that originated in Poland. Paczki are similar to donuts; however, they are richer and heavier.

“They are not for the faint of heart,” Art Ziebell, bakery manager at Elmer’s County Market, said.

Bakery employee Suzanne Gapa said Elmer’s has cut down on paczki production slightly in 2020.

“We’re only making 5,000 this year,” she said.

She noted this was not the result of decreased demand.

“It’s very labor-intensive, because we still do it from scratch,” Gapa said.

The bakery also has to balance paczki production with the production of other baked goods it sells.

Elmer’s Fat Tuesday plans have not changed much in 2020. The bakery still makes its paczki from scratch, and it is continuing to offer them in the 12 flavors it has sold in the past.

“We’re big on being traditional,” Ziebell said.

Ziebell said those interested in buying paczki at Elmer’s should do so as soon as possible.

“We’re not in the business of selling them the next day,” he said.

The Donut Connection in Escanaba is also selling paczki made from scratch today. Owner Terri Skradski said her business started offering these treats for Fat Tuesday about 15 years ago.

“Since then, we’ve quadrupled in the amount of paczki that we sell,” she said.

The Donut Connection plans to make roughly 10,000 paczki in about a dozen flavors for Fat Tuesday this year.

“We have a good variety to choose from,” Skradski said.

While there are no major changes planned for Fat Tuesday at the Donut Connection this year, Skradski notified local paczki fans of something that could affect their plans for the holiday.

“We have new hours — we close at 6 p.m.,” she said.

In the past, the store has been open until 8:30 p.m.

According to Skradski, about 16 people are scheduled to work at the Donut Connection today. Some of these people are former employees who took the day off from their current jobs to help out.

“I have people coming back that used to work here years ago,” she said.

Skradski thanked her regular employees and those returning to the Donut Connection for their hard work today.

“I couldn’t do it without them,” she said.