simnel n 1: a crisp bread of fine white flour 2: a fruitcake (sometimes covered with almond paste) eaten at mid-Lent or Easter or Christmas
Simnel \Sim"nel\, n. [OF. simenel cake or bread of wheat flour, LL. simenellus wheat bread, fr. L. simila the finest wheat flour. Cf. {Semolina}.] 1. A kind of cake made of fine flour; a cracknel. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] Not common bread, but vastel bread, or simnels. --Fuller. [1913 Webster] 2. A kind of rich plum cake, eaten especially on Mid-Lent Sunday. [Eng.] --Herrick. [1913 Webster]