Cultural customs for giving thanks celebrate gratefulness for the harvest from nature's bounty; cherished recipes, festive meals and seasonal treats are often a treasured way of showing appreciation. What heritage foodways symbolize gratitude for you? Share with us and hear how prevalent traditions originated and evolved to today's common practices.

1. Nov 18, 2021 - The 2nd in Lauren Swann’s “Seasonally Sumptuous” series!
“Cultural Foods of Gratitude”

2. Welcome!
The 2nd in the Seasonally Sumptuous series
a cultural foodways sharing space
Slide-Decks from October Autumn Cultural Foodways available on SlideShare
Intro Slides www.slideshare.net/LaurenSwann3/autumn-cultural-heritage
My presentation and discussion starters!
www.slideshare.net/LaurenSwann3/autumn-cultural-foodways

3. November 2021 is
National Native American Heritage Month
“It is estimated that about 60% of the current world food supply originated in North
America. When Europeans arrived, the Native Americans [it wasn’t ‘America’ when they
arrived!] had already developed new varieties of corn, beans, and squashes and had an
abundant supply of nutritious food. The foods of the Natives Peoples are widely
consumed and their culinary skills still enrich the diets of nearly all people of the
world today.”
from “Native American foods: History, culture, and influence on modern diets”.
Journal of Ethnic Foods Volume 3, Issue 3, September 2016, Pages 171-177
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352618116300750

4. https://modernfarmer.com/2016/11/pilgrims-no-idea-farm-luckily-native-americans/
“Until 1492, Europeans had never tried potatoes, cranberries, corn, or turkey.”
“Who Deserves Our Thanks For Truly American Food?” otherwords.org Nov 2013
My experience some 25 years ago - newspaper article assignment experience - truth
makes readers "uncomfortable"

6. “Native American Traditions of Giving Thanks”
Living On Earth
www.loe.org/shows/segments.html?programID=20-P13-00047&segmentID=4
Succotash -
traditional dish of corn, lima beans and other shell beans
Cranberries – but not the jellied sugared sauce variety
>>“The star of today’s traditional Thanksgiving dinner is usually a large roasted turkey,
but it’s unknown if the same dish would have been served during the 1600s. Fish and
crustaceans were bountiful at the time and would have formed part of the first
Thanksgiving dinner”<<

7. Pellagra resulted when corn was taken back to the “Old World” because Europeans weren’t using
the Native Peoples methods of treating it with alkaline or lime that releases Niacin (vitamin B3)
Corn became primarily an animal feed in “Old World” with some exceptions - polenta

8. Cornbread

9. How Native Peoples of the "Americas" got their
calcium before Europeans introduced dairying
• Clam, oyster, scallop and mussels – ground shells
• Chewed on or ground animal bones
• Juniper ash
• Lilypads?

10. Stuffing
Some culinary history references note that originally may
have helped bird retain juiciness
Ruth Miriam Siems (Feb 20, 1931 – Nov 13, 2005)
was the home economist who created Stove Top Stuffing.
Different notoriety had she been a male chef?
Now gourmet chefs say don’t cook in the bird!

11. Rutabagas and turnips - don't see much anymore except around
holiday season!

12. European cultures contributed to today's American Thanksgiving cuisine, history of –
Turkey, stuffing, cornbread, sweet potatoes, green-bean casserole – potatoes, cranberry
sauce, apple and pumpkin pies

13. Colorful table! - sweet potatoes, cranberries –
soft browns from the turkey and stuffing,
green from casserole.
My fond memories
- first taste of stuffing from the spoon, was hooked!
- savory aroma of poultry seasoning, broth, sauteed onions
• Desserts!
• Leftovers!

14. Head of the table carving!

15. • Thanksgiving - holiday - all about the food! nothing else, no gifts or other ritual; songs?