Today, most mishloach manot are comprised of processed snacks, candies and plastic noise makers (who has time to bake?), but up until fairly recently, they were a display of the sender’s baking abilities and included pastries and sweets native to the kitchens of various Jewish communities. Among Ladino-speaking Jews, the mishloach manot included, among other things, masapan – almond-based cookies; Shamaliya – strips of fried dough dipped in syrup (similar versions are also called “deblas” or “fazuelos” among North African Jews); and plumba (literally: dove) or polar – a sweet cake shaped like a nest, inside of which an egg was placed.
The word platikos (the name for mishloach manot in ladino – small plates) means, among other things, mishloach manot (literally translates to “sending of portions”). This saying “where saucers go, pitcher’s return” simply explains why you should not be stingy and it is worth investing in your mishloach manot (and giving in general), since the generosity is invaluable.