When people think of Thanksgiving, most remember the story of the Pilgrims and the Indians at Plymouth Rock.  The Pilgrims first arrived in America on December 11, 1620, not prepared for the winter they were to face.  Out of the 102 who arrived on the Mayflower, forty-six of the people died during the first few months.  Despite the devastation, they had a good harvest, partly in thanks to the Indians who lived nearby. 

They had a traditional British Harvest Feast in thanks to God for surviving and the blessings of provisions that would see them through the winter.  In contrast to our modern Thanksgiving menu, they actually had more meat than vegetables, including venison, fish and wild foul, which may or may not have actually been turkey.  They probably didn’t have much in the way of desserts, as they didn’t have a lot of flour or sugar on hand.  They probably had some fruits and corn.  Instead of pumpkin pie, they probably had boiled pumpkin.  The first Thanksgiving feast lasted for three days.  Read more...