cookies and related stuff

[victor steinbok]

Madeleine definition is interesting in that it mentions "decorated with
coconut and jam". That must be English tradition, as it certainly does not
come from the French.

Biscotti also has an entry, but under singular "biscotto"--something that is
rarely scene outside of Italian restaurant dessert menus.

It is also unclear because of the ambiguity of "cake" whether waffle n. a.
includes both the American breakfast variety (clearly in 1870 and 1893
quotations--basically a stamped pancake) and the cookie-like variety
(possibly in the 1809 and 1817 quotations).


a. A kind of batter-cake, baked in a waffle-iron, and eaten hot with butter
> or molasses.
> 1744 [see waffle frolic n. at Compounds 1]. 1794 [see waffle-iron n. at
> Compounds 2].
> 1809    A. Burr Private Jrnl. 26 Aug. (1903) I. 214   Everywhere, too, you
> get wafen; our wafles, and made and eaten in the same way.
> 1817    M. Birkbeck Notes Journey Amer. (1818) 64   Waffles (a soft hot
> cake of German extraction, covered with butter).
> 1870    D. Macrae Amer. at Home I. 291   The Americans are all fond of
> molasses; using them regularly at breakfast and supper to their buckwheat
> cakes and waffles.
> 1893    T. N. Page In Ole Virginia 221   He ordered waffles and hoe-cakes
> for breakfast.



Snickerdoodle has an entry as well.

Stroopwafel has no entry--which I actually don't have a problem with, except
that the etymology note on "waffle" mentions "<Dutch wafel", and that's
certainly a cookie, not a "cake" or "hot cake" or pancake. What made me
think of stroopwafel is the mention of molasses, as stroopwafel is a type of
"cake" split along the thin edge, with both halves then layered
with treacle and dried to a crisp. Treacle==stroop is related to molasses
but is different from "syrop". Hence the name. Belgian waffle has no entry
in OED. Dutch (origin, not name) wafel is very similar to American waffle in
shape and size, but is dryer and is a variety of cookies rather than
breakfast food. The rest of the world refers to pizzelle and filled/layers
wafers as "waffles" as well. BTW pizzelle is in the OED as both pasta and
cookie (this time described as "biscuit" rather than "cake").

Two other varieties that likely deserve a mention are "drop cookies" and
"bar cookies". Drop cookies appear in a quotation under "rolled"--specifying
that "rolled" in baking is the opposite of "drop[ed]". [Note that drop-scone
is mentioned as a variety under scone, along with other varieties. Also a
separate subentry under "dropped", only redirecting to "scone".]

1914    B. J. Austin Domest. Sci. II. 102   Drop cookies are easier to make
> than rolled cookies.



"Rolled" may be sufficient as is. "Drop-cake" is listed under "drop-". Bar
cookies are not mentioned at all. In fact, there is nothing under "bar" that
pertains to baked goods. Wiki lists 7 main varieties by type of preparation:
drop, refrigerator, rolled, molded, pressed, bar and sandwich. About.com
lists the same categories. Other sites add "no-bake" and "cookie-cutter",
but these are just variations on "molded" and "icebox/refrigerator".

VS-)


> On Sun, Aug 21, 2011 at 1:09 AM, Benjamin Barrett <gogaku at ix.netcom.com>wrote:


> "Black and white cookie" surely merits an entry as the meaning cannot be
> derived from the words alone.
>
> "Sugar cookie" is a subentry under sugar. "Madeleine" and "macaroon" are
> both listed.
>
> Benjamin Barrett
> Seattle, WA

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