Word of the Day

: January 2, 2008

syllabub

noun SILL-uh-bub

What It Means

: milk or cream that is curdled with an acid beverage (as wine or cider) and often sweetened and served as a drink or topping or thickened with gelatin and served as a dessert

syllabub in Context

On special occasions, grandma would serve syllabub for dessert.

Did You Know?

Syllabub's a concoction whose name has had almost as many variations as there are versions of how to make it: "solybubbe," "sullabub," "sullibib," "sellibub," "sallibube," "sillie bube," "sillybob" -- even "sillibucke" and "silly-bauk" in some dialects. There are theories about the word's origins, but no one knows for sure where the name came from. (There's no connection to "silly," as far as we know, though imbibing it might make one act that way.) We do know that both the name "syllabub" and the concoction itself go back to at least the 16th century. Today, we're more likely to encounter "syllabub" in a historical novel than on the menu at a local drinking spot, at least in the United States, but those fortunate enough to taste the drink/dessert often give it rave reviews.