National Pretzel Day

If you'd like a pretzel, come on over, I'd be happy to share.
And the dish on the right is gluten-free pretzels for my friends Jenn and Donna.

Today is National Pretzel Day. I’m all for any holiday that involves food, so as you can see, I’m gearing up to celebrate this one.

Now I know my fans are waiting for me to share more of my wisdom with them, so here are some facts about pretzels you probably didn’t know. (If any of these little known bits of trivia should show up in a $500,000 question when you’re on Millionaire, I do accept gratuities.)

A sort of pretzel was first fashioned by monks in Medieval Times to reward kids who learned their prayers—the dough was twisted to resemble a child’s arms in prayer. They gave the treat the Latin name “pretiola” which means “little reward.”

Well, everyone loves a treat, so the pretiola started to spread across Europe and when it reached Germany they renamed it the “bretzel.”  They also changed the shape to form three holes to represent the Christian Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit and started a tradition of eating pretzels during Good Friday dinner. The bretzel was said to bring luck, prosperity and spiritual wholeness. (Wow, all that in one food and low cholesterol, too!)

The phrase “tying the knot” originated with the Swiss who incorporate the pretzel in wedding ceremonies with the loops signifying everlasting love.

So now you’re an expert on pretzel history. Oh—one last thing for my Human Sidekick who’s a real fan of Swing music. In the 1920s they invented a Swing Dance step called the “Pretzel.” You can find people demonstrating it on YouTube. And now I better go make sure she isn’t trying it, I’d hate to try to get her untangled if she ties herself into a loop or two . . .