If you are the sort of person who views garnishes with
suspicion — that they are being used to hide some deprecation of the food they
are meant to enhance, say — then you might be on to something.
The word garnish
comes to us from the Proto-Germanic term warnejan,
which lead to the Old High German warnon,
“to take heed” and from which we have the English warning. The stem of the proto-Germanic word lead to the Old French
garniss, or garnir in the 14th century, meaning “to provide,
furnish, fortify or reinforce.”
To garnish, or embellish a dish in the culinary sense dates
from 1700, and comes to us English via the sense of outfitting oneself with
arms for war.
If you have a lot of time on your hands, you might want to
explore some extreme garnishing by turning two innocent apples into turkeys. Be
sure to use plenty of lemon juice so they don’t turn brown halfway through!
Garnishing: A Feast
For Your Eyes, Francis Talyn Lynch, 1987
Also from this book: Cabbage Christmas Tree, Carrot Fishing Net
