Right now you're all like, "WTF kind of headline is that, AJ?"
And those of you who know me really well are like, "But you don't even like pretzels!"
Which isn't entirely true, by the way, I don't like crunchy pretzels but I'd sell a kidney on the black market for a good soft pretzel. Or pretzel bites with cheese. Mmmmmm......
The other day, I was enjoying some fine lunchtime eats at The Counter with my homegirl Andrea, and she mentioned something about the history of the pretzel. Please don't ask me why that came up in our conversation. I'm thinking it came out of the a burger bun discussion? Pretzel buns, maybe? But anyway, she said something about how pretzel's got their shape and it was adorable. I found this in the knower of all things, Wikipedia:
According to The History of Science and Technology, by Bryan Bunch and Alexander Hellemans, in 610 AD "...an Italian monk invents pretzels as a reward to children who learn their prayers. He calls the strips of baked dough, folded to resemble arms crossing the chest, 'pretiola' ("little rewards")".
That's right - they're little hugs!
I'm sorry, but how flippin' adorable is that?
Do you see it? I totally see it. Well, except for the pretzel bites. I just had to include that. Because cheese dip.
So I did some research. I just cannot find anything other than that very statement, copied and pasted on various blogs and websites, to support the story. There are other stories, though, that cite French Monastaries or Greek traditions as the basis for their invention.
And you know what else is adorable? While many people say the expression "tying the knot" comes from actually symbolically binding a newly married couple's wrists together or other literal type customs, some say the phrase got its start when pretzel dough was used to tie the knot between two prominent families. The Pretzel’s loops stood for everlasting love! I'm on #TeamPretzel.
I'm going with little hugs. Little hugs for all you!
P.S. I totally want one of these.
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