Good King Stanislas and the Forty Thieves: Difference between revisions
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So which of these multiple meanings gave rise to ''"baba"'', the bundt cake? Did the cake use to resemble a [https://www.google.com/search?q=baby+kamienne&tbm=isch pagan stone idol,] which is also called ''"baba"'' in Polish? Or does the cake's name come from its resemblance to a peasant woman's long pleated skirt? Or perhaps it comes from the fact that it's always been old women who were most experienced in the tricky art of yeast-cake baking? | So which of these multiple meanings gave rise to ''"baba"'', the bundt cake? Did the cake use to resemble a [https://www.google.com/search?q=baby+kamienne&tbm=isch pagan stone idol,] which is also called ''"baba"'' in Polish? Or does the cake's name come from its resemblance to a peasant woman's long pleated skirt? Or perhaps it comes from the fact that it's always been old women who were most experienced in the tricky art of yeast-cake baking? | ||
[[File:Michał Elwiro Andriolli, Kłopoty wielkanocne.jpg|thumb|These ''baby'' (women) let a man into the kitchen and now their ''baba'' (cake) has flopped.]] | |||
After all, baking a beautiful, tall, airy ''baba'' was one of the most demanding tasks Polish home cooks ever had to face. Great care was needed to prevent the cake from sinking or browning a little too much. A housewife who aimed for the perfect ''baba'' had to start by choosing the best ingredients – high-quality wheat flour, good beer yeast and fresh butter. The oven had to be heated as much as possible, so that it could keep a constant temperature for a long time. The moulds had to be perfectly clean before being filled with dough and popped into the oven. Then came the almost magical practices whose goal was to prevent the ''baba'' from "catching a cold" and falling. Doors and windows were sealed to avoid draughts, women walked on their toes and talked in whispers when close to the oven, and finally, the ''baba'' was gently placed on down pillows for cooling. And, of course, no men were allowed in the kitchen; the baking of a ''baba'' was a ''baby''-only affair.<ref>{{Cyt | After all, baking a beautiful, tall, airy ''baba'' was one of the most demanding tasks Polish home cooks ever had to face. Great care was needed to prevent the cake from sinking or browning a little too much. A housewife who aimed for the perfect ''baba'' had to start by choosing the best ingredients – high-quality wheat flour, good beer yeast and fresh butter. The oven had to be heated as much as possible, so that it could keep a constant temperature for a long time. The moulds had to be perfectly clean before being filled with dough and popped into the oven. Then came the almost magical practices whose goal was to prevent the ''baba'' from "catching a cold" and falling. Doors and windows were sealed to avoid draughts, women walked on their toes and talked in whispers when close to the oven, and finally, the ''baba'' was gently placed on down pillows for cooling. And, of course, no men were allowed in the kitchen; the baking of a ''baba'' was a ''baby''-only affair.<ref>{{Cyt | ||
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}}</ref> | }}</ref> | ||
In any case, the word ''"baba"'' was used in the sense of "bundt cake" at least as early as the 17th century | In any case, the word ''"baba"'' was used in the sense of "bundt cake" at least as early as the 17th century,<ref>{{Cyt | ||
| inni = ed. Włodzimierz Gruszczyński | | inni = ed. Włodzimierz Gruszczyński | ||
| tytuł = Elektroniczny słownik języka polskiego XVII i XVIII wieku | | tytuł = Elektroniczny słownik języka polskiego XVII i XVIII wieku | ||
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| wydawca = Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN | | wydawca = Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN | ||
| miejsce = Warszawa | | miejsce = Warszawa | ||
}}</ref> | }}</ref> so it's hard to guess why Stanislas would have had to reinvent the word from Ali Baba. | ||
== From Stohrer to Savarin == | == From Stohrer to Savarin == | ||