Pastry birds

The celebration of St. Gregory's Day (12th March) in Slovenia belongs to the spring season, when the days get longer and the nights get shorter. Spring begins in March, in which St. Gregor celebrates his name day, the day the birds get married. On this day, mothers from Prekmurje would set up cakes for their children on fences or trees, as the children believed that the birds were getting married and that there were cakes leftover from the birds’ guests. Birds of bread were also baked for the same purpose. "Ftičeki" were also placed on children's tables by mothers because it was a happy day, the birds were starting to sing. In Razkrižje, mothers baked cakes on Valentine's Day (14th February) because the "birds" were getting married. Baking "ftičeki" is present and widespread even today in Turnišče and its surrounding (bilingual) villages and are made on other occasions too.