The Proof Of The Pudding Is In The Eating
As a person who lives by metaphor and idiom, I love that English is a language rich with imagery, meaning, and metaphor, and when we want to express ourselves we can draw upon a catalog complete with beautifully turned phrases, drawing from the language’s Latin, French, and Germanic roots. I was reminded of this last night when presented the most beautiful piece of cheesecake I had ever seen (see featured photo). When I said this, the person giving it to me said, “Well, the proof is in the pudding.” Then he immediately said, “What does that mean, anyway, the proof is in the pudding?” Umm…let’s see. I believe this might be an idiom.
So I guess this phrase originated in 1605 as a proverb that went, “The proof of the pudding is in the eating.” That actually makes much more sense, don’t you think? At least now I don’t think I have to dig in pudding looking for a proof – I was having awful flashbacks from geometry class in high school.
I believe understanding this phrase is pretty simple: It doesn’t matter how fancy the decoration and presentation, the true test of a pudding is in how it tastes. In other words, success of something can only be judged by putting it to its intended use or experiencing in its final form. It’s all about results.
Byron's Babbles 
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