2021 Home For the Holidays

Page 8 2021 Home for the Holidays Lincoln Daily News November 24, 2021 referred to the turkey placed at the head of the table. So, why did people all assume her words were correct? According to Britannica, the Pilgrims did not see that first feast as the significant affair that we do. For the English a feast celebrating the harvest was a common thing, and no one saw it as anything extra special. In fact, the only account of that actual feast on record is that of Edward Winslow. In addition, Hale was an influencer. She was the one who first began trying to get Thanksgiving named as a national holiday. She did so to try and bring a new unity to the American people, as this was just prior to the Civil War, and unrest within the country troubled Hale, as it did others. Her work paid off in 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday or observance. Other opinions say that indeed turkey might well have been a part of that first meal. Though Winslow’s account is the only one of that first harvest feast, William Bradford another first-comer on the Mayflower did record in his journal “a great store of wild turkeys” in Plymouth. Another thing we do know about that first year in Plymouth is that flour was not a commodity the Pilgrims had access to in abundance. What flour they had was used sparingly. So, there is no evidence that there were pies, noodles, or even gravy. Flour would have been saved for making bread. Also, the Pilgrims and Indians alike did raise corn, and corn as a vegetable would have been served, and ground corn could have been used to make biscuits and puddings. In 2003, ‘New England Today’ visited Plimoth Patuxet (formerly known as Plymouth Plantation), a living history museum that documents the life and times of the Pilgrims. After conducting their research they reached out to writer Jane Walsh, and asked her to come up with some traditional first Thanksgiving recipes. Here are some of those “historically inspired” recipes: Chestnut Croquettes https://newengland.com/recipe/chestnut- croquettes Yield: Serves 6 Ingredients 2 cups hot mashed chestnuts 4 tablespoons butter 2 eggs salt and pepper 2 tablespoons minced onion 1 egg Breadcrumbs Continued n