Popover Pan (1895)

[Bapopik at AOL.COM]

   A "butter knife" is a great deal different that a "steak knife."
   A "champagne glass" is not a "shotglass" or a "pilsner glass."
   Here are entries in WEBSTER'S NEW WORLD DICTIONARY OF CULINARY ARTS for
the items mentioned:

_cake pan_  Variously shaped and sized containers for baking cake batter.

_cupcake pan_ (NO ENTRY--ed.)

_frying pan_  A round pan with a single long handle and low, sloping sides
and used to pan-fry foods; available with a nonstick surface and in 8-, 10-
and 12-in. diameters; also known as a skillet. (ILLUSTRATION)
("Frying pan" is in OED and is very, very old--ed.)

_gem pan_  A pan designed to make miniature muffins.

_peter pan_  (VERY FUNNY--ed.)

_pie pan; pie plate_  A round, 1- to 2-in.-deep glass or metal pan with
sloped sides used for baking pies.

_popover pan_  A heavy baking pan used for making popovers and Yorkshire
pudding; similar to a muffin pan but with deeper, tapered indentions that are
spaced farther apart.  (ILLUSTRATION)


   There are several things I'd think about for an OED entry:

1.  IS IT ALREADY IN AN EXISTING DICTIONARY?--I'm using food dictionaries.

2.  ARE THERE PLENTY OF CITATIONS FOR IT?--I'm giving the earliest citations
for these, but there are many, many more.

3.  IS IT DISTINCTIVE?--A champagne glass is distinctive.  A steak knife is
distinctive.  A cake pan is--well, what kind of cake are we talking about?
But I might want to enter it anyway because there are a gazillion hits.

4.  WHAT TYPE OF ENTRY ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?--"Cake pan" would be under
"cake."  A citation or two would be used, and that's it.  OED has always done
entries like this, although all of it is badly dated, as I've shown.

5.  WILL ANYONE CANCEL A SUBSCRIPTION IF WE, GOD FORBID, INCLUDE "PLETT
PAN"?--No.