Originally posted by zippy-kat
And why are there 13 in a baker's dozen?
For taste-testing purposes?


baker's dozen, noun.

Thirteen (instead of twelve).
The term came into use during a period when there were heavy penalties for selling short weight.
Bakers would therefore supply an extra quantity of loaves to avoid the risk of a fine.

Bibliography
1 Ebenezer Brewer and Adrian Room.
Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable.
Cassell & Co, 16th edition, 1999.
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From: http://www.cenius.net/

My GranMom always kept a cookie jar full of *Fresh* plain cake donuts in her pantry. If the Baker himself had waited on Grammy, there were ALWAYS 13 in the bag! I once asked if he couldn't *count*? She said "No, that's his way of *thanking* me for being a good customer."
An poor ole #13 never made it into the cookie jar!