A traditional fried pastry or doughnut, particularly a Pennsylvania Dutch or German-American treat eaten around the time of Lent.
From German 'Fastnacht,' literally 'fasting night' or 'the night before fasting' ('fast' + 'nacht'), referring to Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras when people ate rich foods before Lenten fasting began.
It's deliciously ironic that fastnachts are fried, sugary doughnuts eaten right before people fast—they're humanity's joyful rebellion against coming deprivation, a food tradition born from religious calendars!
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