Why Do People Eat Gingerbread Cookies During Christmas? And 4 Tips To Bake A Tasty One - La Levain (2024)

FAQs

Why do people eat gingerbread during Christmas? ›

Many also decorated their Christmas trees with gingerbread men or houses, leading to an increase in their popularity. Others however, believe gingerbread was eaten due to the calming influence of ginger – a key ingredient amidst the festive feasting!

In the late 17th century, gingerbread became associated with Christmas. Russian bakers prepared gingerbread men and women, usually as replicas of those people attending parties. Gingerbread houses were introduced about 200 years later, when the Grimm brothers wrote Hansel and Gretel. A new holiday tradition was born.

One theory holds that since the "men" are really more toddler-shaped than adult, they came to represent the baby Jesus at Christmas. And the spices involved are sometimes thought to represent the exotic gifts of the Magi.

Only on the most important holiday could families afford treats like these, which led to a baking bonanza to prepare for Christmas. And unlike pies or cakes, cookies could be easily shared and given to friends and neighbors. Our modern Christmas cookies date back to these medieval gifts.

Today, the ultimate Christmas gingerbread incarnation is of course the gingerbread house. It has been suggested that these edible structures originated in Germany between the 16th and 18th centuries. The trend for gingerbread houses must have spread to Britain at some point during the nineteenth century.

By the 15th century, ginger was found in kitchens throughout Europe, lending dishes exotic and aromatic flavors. One of the spice's most popular uses, to make beloved holiday treats, has its roots in 16th century Europe, where traditions around gingerbread houses and cookies first developed.

Peanut Butter Blossoms are America's favorite Christmas cookie, based both on total number of pageviews from the U.S. population as a whole, and number of states that ranked it as their top cookie (which is six, by the way).

Gingerbread's delightful combination of flavours and spices isn't just a treat for the taste buds; it's also a potential boon for your health. From its anti-inflammatory properties to its digestive benefits, gingerbread offers an unexpected array of advantages that can complement a well-rounded diet.

Originally, the term gingerbread (from Latin zingiber via Old French gingebras) referred to preserved ginger. It then referred to a confection made with honey and spices. Gingerbread is often used to translate the French term pain d'épices ( lit.

Gingerbread takes shape

After creating a paste of breadcrumbs, honey, and ginger, and rolling the mixture out, the monks often carved biblical scenes or images of saints before baking it. They then used these gingerbread treats as a way to feed the hungry and offer some religious teaching at the same time.

What are some interesting facts about gingerbread? ›

Originally gingerbread was made with honey and breadcrumbs

One of the earliest English recipes for gingerbread, written down in the fifteenth century, didn't actually contain any ginger! Instead bread crumbs or 'gratyd brede' were mixed with boiled honey and formed into a stiff paste with saffron and pepper.

An early form of gingerbread can be traced to the ancient Greeks and Egyptians who used it for ceremonial purposes. Gingerbread made an appearance in Europe when 11th-century Crusaders brought back ginger from the Middle East for the aristocrats' cooks to experiment with.

The practice of putting out cookies for Santa began in the 1930s during the Great Depression, when parents were trying to instill a sense of thankfulness in their children. Leaving goodies, perhaps in a sweet cookie jar, continues to be a way of sharing the holiday bounty.

“Oh yes! He eats ALL of them!”. The only time of the year Santa is allowed to eat cookies is on Christmas Eve, so he really takes advantage of it! Which means that all cookies are most welcome on the night of his big trip, but we can confirm Santa's favorite cookies are definitely chocolate chip!

Also called Amish sugar cookies or Nazareth sugar cookies, the modern sugar cookie was created by the Moravians, who settled in the Nazareth area from Germany during the mid-18th century. Pennsylvania adopted the Nazareth sugar cookie as the official state cookie in 2001.

Prince Albert was German and brought the Christmas tree tradition to England when he married Queen Victoria. Common people needed something to decorate their trees with, and often used a variety of edibles including gingerbread. Everything Queen Victoria did was emulated, and her palace décor was no exception.

Lebkuchen - pronounced LAYB-kue-chn - and sometimes called Pfefferkuchen is a German baked Christmas treat somewhat resembling gingerbread. Soft, moist and nutty German gingerbread was invented by medieval monks in Franconia, Germany in the 13th century.

Gingerbread makes the perfect year round gift.

Along with gingerbread, simple sugar cookies are another staple on Christmas dessert trays. This tradition started in the 1700s, when German settlers in Pennsylvania brought over the traditional unleavened, easy-to-store treat from Europe.