What is shmear?!
What is shmear?
I know that it has something to do with bagels but what is the origin of the word? I heard Ryan Seacrest discussing this question this morning on Kiis FM, LA. Different people called in with their thoughts but I didn't get to hear it all. So, what do you think?
Answers: schmear
[SHMEER]
Thought to have come from the Yiddish word shmirn ("to smear or grease"), the word schmear is used in the culinary world to describe a dab of something like mayonnaise or cream cheese that's spread on a roll, bagel, etc. More recently, cream cheese is combined with flavorings such as onions, garlic and bell peppers to create a spread that's commercially packaged as a "schmear." It is a Yiddish word. It means to spread something such as shmearing cream cheese on a bagel. It is basically cream cheese. They have it at Einstein's. It comes in a lot of varities.