Editing Gingerbread (section)

=== England and Scotland ===
[[File:GingerbreadCake.jpg|thumb|Gingerbread cake]]
In England, gingerbread may refer to a cake or a type of [[biscuit]] made with ginger. In the biscuit form, it commonly takes the form of a [[gingerbread man]]. Gingerbread men were first attributed to the court of Queen [[Elizabeth I of England|Elizabeth I]], who served the figurines to foreign dignitaries.<ref>[[Donald F. Lach]] (2010). "Asia in the Making of Europe, Volume II: A Century of Wonder. Book 3: The Scholarly Disciplines, Volume 2". p. 442. University of Chicago Press</ref> Today, however, they are generally served around Christmas. Gingerbread was a traditional confectionery sold at popular fairs, often given as a treat or token of affection to children and lovers "sweethearts" and known as a "fairing" of gingerbread – the name retained now only by [[Cornish fairings]]. This crisp brittle type of gingerbread is now represented by the popular commercial version called the [[ginger nut]] biscuit.{{Cn|date=March 2025}}

"Parliament cake" or "Parlies", a very spicy ginger [[shortbread]], were eaten (in the same way as salty snacks with beer), with whisky, rum or brandy, during midday breaks, by the members of the original (pre-1707) [[Parliament Square, Edinburgh|Scottish Parliament]], in a secret backroom (''[[But and ben|ben]] the hoose''),<ref>{{cite web |title=Ben – definition and meaning |url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/ben |website=Collins English Dictionary |access-date=22 March 2021 |language=en}}</ref> at a tavern and shop in Bristo Street in [[Edinburgh]]'s [[Potterrow]], behind the university, run by a Mrs Flockhart, [[Pseudonym|AKA]] ''Luckie Fykie'', the landlady who is thought to be the inspiration for Mrs Flockhart in [[Walter Scott]]'s [[Waverley (novel)|''Waverley'']].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vIQBAAAAYAAJ&q=Luckie+Fykie&pg=PA290|title=Traditions of Edinburgh|first=Robert|last=Chambers|date=October 27, 1825|publisher=W. & C. Tait|via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Spear |first1=Shirley |title=Shirley Spear's Scottish flavours: iced gingerbread for Hallowe'en |url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/life_style/15626299.iced-gingerbread-is-it-is-the-perfect-treat-for-halloween-guisers-shirley-spear/ |access-date=21 March 2021 |work=[[Herald Scotland]] |language=en |quote=Parlies, or Parliament cakes, were once baked and sold on Edinburgh's streets as far back as the 1800s, earning their name from their popularity among the judges, lawyers and businessmen who enjoyed one of these thick, crunchy, ginger biscuits with a whisky, rum or brandy at midday. Perhaps the hot ginger flavour helped to keep out the cold as they walked around Parliament Square in solemn discussion about the day’s business and politics. Eaten with a stiff drink, this must have been the original shivery bite.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Chambers |first1=Robert |author1-link=Robert Chambers (publisher, born 1802) |title=Traditions of Edinburgh |date=1825 |publisher=W. & C. Tait |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vIQBAAAAYAAJ&q=Luckie%20Fykie&pg=PA290 |access-date=21 March 2021 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Wynn |first1=Suzanne |title=Gingerbread Recipes |url=http://www.campaignforrealfarming.org/2017/05/gingerbread-recipes/ |website=The Campaign for Real Farming |access-date=21 March 2021 |date=2017-05-09 |quote=The old hard style of Gingerbread was known in Edinburgh as Parliament cake.  The judges, lawyers and men of Parliament Square would meet for a midday break of whisky, rum or brandy accompanied by a salver of ginger biscuits or parties. Very strongly ginger-flavoured, to match the strong drink, the recipe appears in Meg Dodds (1826)...:  'With two pounds of the best flour dried, mix thoroughly one pound of good brown sugar and a quarter pound of ground ginger.  Melt a pound of fresh butter, add to it one of treacle, boil this, and pour it on the flour, work up a paste as hot as your hands will bear it, and roll out in very large cakes, the sixth of an inch thick or less; mark it in squares with a knife or paper-cutter, and fire in a slow oven.  Separate the squares while soft, and they will soon get crisp.' |archive-date=2021-10-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211026090353/https://www.campaignforrealfarming.org/2017/05/gingerbread-recipes/ |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="jamieson-parliament-cake">{{cite book |last1=Jamieson |first1=John |title=An etymological dictionary of the Scottish language|date=1841|publisher=Andrew Shortrede |location=Edinburgh |page=191 |edition=2nd |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c4VHAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA191 |access-date=10 May 2018}}</ref><ref>''The Oxford Companion to Food'', Alan Davidson. Oxford University Press, 2014 [https://books.google.com/books?id=bIIeBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA349&dq=%22parliament+cake%22+scotland&hl=en]</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Appleby-Donald |first1=Eli |title=Parlies or Parliament Cake – an old fashioned Scottish biscuit – The kitchen garden with Eli & Kate |url=https://www.eliapplebydonald.co.uk/blog/parlies-or-parliament-cake-an-old-fashioned-scottish-biscuit/ |website=The kitchen garden with Eli & Kate |access-date=21 March 2021 |quote=Parlies or parliament cakes (to give them their Sunday name) were the creation of Mrs Flockhart (locally known as Luckie Fykie) of Potterrow here in Edinburgh. She had a little general grocer shop and tavern (which incidentally is no longer there because the student union is now there) which was allegedly visited by esteemed gentlemen of the Scottish Parliament, including the father of Sir Walter Scott, allegedly. The story says that these gentlemen would visit the shop but head through the shop into the back rooms (or ''[[But and ben|ben]] the hoose'' as we would say), where they would drink whisky and eat parliament cake.  Mrs Flockhart’s parlies are described as crisp square cakes and she apparently offered round “snaps”.  So my version is not exactly accurate to hers, as mine are round, but they are tasty treats all the same. If you wanted to make yours square, you could roll the dough and cut it into squares. |archive-date=2 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302181515/https://www.eliapplebydonald.co.uk/blog/parlies-or-parliament-cake-an-old-fashioned-scottish-biscuit/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> The recipe is mentioned in [[Christian Isobel Johnstone]]'s ''The Cook and Housewife's Manual'' (also known as [[Meg Dod]]'s Cookery)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Johnstone |first1=Christian Isobel |title=The Cook and Housewife's Manual, by Margaret Dods |date=1826 |url=https://archive.org/details/cookandhousewif00johngoog |access-date=21 March 2021 |language=English}}</ref> (1826) published under the pseudonym of "Mrs. Margaret Dods, of the Cleikum Inn, Saint Ronan's", evoking the character of Margaret Dods, the hostess of the Cleikum Inn in [[Walter Scott|Walter Scott's]] novel ''[[Saint Ronan's Well]]'' (1823). It was immensely popular, and in which, she used characters Scott's to give commentary on preparing national specialties.<ref>{{cite web |title=Johnstone, Isobel (1781–1857) |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/johnstone-isobel-1781-1857 |website=Encyclopedia.com |access-date=22 March 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Christian Isobel Johnstone |url=https://www.scottishwomenwritersontheweb.net/christian-isobel-johnstone-1 |website=Scottish Women Writers on the Web |access-date=22 March 2021 |archive-date=18 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200818135843/https://www.scottishwomenwritersontheweb.net/christian-isobel-johnstone-1 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[Parkin (cake)|Parkin]] is a form of soft gingerbread cake made with oatmeal and treacle which is popular in northern England, originating in [[Yorkshire]].{{Cn|date=March 2025}}