schmoo torte
nounEtymology Invented in 1948 by a Winnipeg mother, Dora Zaslavsky, who started introducing her recipes via a catering business. The name is of unknown origin, though some claim it comes from shmoo (“fictional animal created by cartoonist Al Capp”).
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A Canadian dessert, a torte with layered whipped cream, caramel, and nuts.
- Glass display cases are filled with tempting delights — from schmoo torte and German chocolate cheesecake to English trifle and Key lime pie.1991 November 20, “Best of Winnipeg”, in The Winnipeg Sun, volume 11, number 273, Winnipeg, Man., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 12, column 3:
- It was even a favourite of Harry Belafonte, the multi-talented Jamaican-American singer, actor and activist. [Shannon] Aceman joked her baba was in love with him, following him on tour from show to show. “She started sending him schmoo tortes for he and his crew to appreciate after the show,” she said.2022 May 3, Katherine Dow, “'The most delicious melange of flavours': Inside schmoo torte's quintessentially Winnipeg origin story”, in CTV News, Toronto, Ont., archived from the original on 08 May 2025: