‘ Tis the Season to Bake & You Can’ t Resist Me, I’m the Gingerbread Cake!
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By Chrystal Savage
ingerbread is a delight of the holiday season, around the world as well as locally. From cookies to houses to ornaments and more, the spice-scented dessert is versatile. Though believed to have originated in Greece in the third century BCE, the classic gingerbread man associated with children’s tales and the Christmas season was purportedly invented by Queen Elizabeth I in 16th-cen-
Destination Oneonta’s Virtual Gingerbread Competition is Nov. 1 through Dec. 9.
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THE DAILY STAR e Holiday Guide 2020
tury England. In the same era, the gingerbread house emerged in Germany. It wasn’t until the publication of Hansel and Gretel, however, that decorating gingerbread became holiday tradition. During this time, gingerbread pastries were taking off in the American colonies, except during the New England witch trials of the late 17th century, as it was widely believed that witches used gingerbread men in the same manner as voodoo dolls.
