Healthier Choices Mgmt Corp (HCMC)

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PUDDING

the proof is in the pudding—or the best way to determine the value of something is to experience it firsthand.

As is often the case with idioms, this one was originally meant quite literally. According to the Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs, the earliest known written reference to the phrase comes from English antiquarian William Camden’s 1623 volume Remains Concerning Britain; and similar maxims (though not necessarily pudding-specific) date as far back as the 1300s. During those centuries, pudding wasn’t the gloopy dessert that Americans eat today—it was a hodge-podge of minced meat, spices, cereal, and sometimes blood, all crammed into a sausage-like animal casing and steamed or boiled. Since preservative techniques were rudimentary and food regulatory agencies didn’t exist, there was always a chance that a meat dish could sicken or even kill you. Unfortunately, as Merriam-Webster explains, the only way to find out if it was dangerous was to dig in.