[Sca-cooks] Gilded gingerbread query
Johnna Holloway
johnna at sitka.engin.umich.edu
Thu Jan 4 14:02:31 PST 2007
Seems to date from the 18th19th centuries
OED says under gingerbread*
*
(1766) *Smollett* /Trav./ Let. xxx. II. 104 "Yet the rooms are too
small, and too much decorated with carving and gilding, which is a
kind of gingerbread work. "
(1840) *R. H. Dana* /Bef. Mast/ xxii. 66 "There was no foolish
gilding and gingerbread work to take the eye of landsmen and
passengers. "
(1844) *Tupper* /Heart/ xiii. 135 "His distant relative's good
feeling..served indeed to gild the future, but did not avail to
gingerbread the present. "
Another quote is found under ship-shape
(1840) *R. H. Dana* /Bef. Mast/ xxii, "There was no foolish gilding
and gingerbread work,..but everything was `ship-shape'. "
You might suggest to your correspondent to check out House on the Hill
for gingerbread molds. They sell powdered dusts and paints for coloring
the finished cookies.http://www.houseonthehill.net/
Johnnae
David Friedman wrote:
> A corespondent put this question to me and wanted me to post it to the list:
> ---
> I wanted to ask if you could perhaps shed any light on the origin of
> the phrase "to gild the gingerbread?" and whether, to your knowledge,
> gold leaf is still much used as food decoration?
>
>
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