Celebrate the Harvest This Thanksgiving

The real history of Thanksgiving isn’t quite as simple as Squanto feeding the pilgrims of Plymouth Colony. Throughout early American history, colonists declared thanksgiving celebrations to mark safe landings in the New World, political and military successes as well as successful harvests. Thanksgiving Day didn’t become a national holiday until 1863 when President Lincoln proclaimed a day of thanks, not for the harvest but for the stability of society in spite of the Civil War.

Despite the history, the simple story we should be teaching to our kids is that Thanksgiving is a day to be thankful for the harvest—the local harvest that takes place right near our homes. We should be thankful not just for the delicious food on our tables but for all the benefits that local growers contribute to our lives and our country. The health of our nation and each one of us rests on the wellbeing of small family farms. When those prosper, our environment, economy and families all share in the good fortune.

Ninety-seven percent of Americans serve turkey as the centerpiece of their Thanksgiving meal, and although there are scores of recipes for roasting a whole turkey, there really isn’t as much variation as you might expect. The variety on our tables comes from the stuffing and vegetable side dishes, where local produce really shines. If you live in the Northeast, you will find kale, leeks, Brussels sprouts, rutabagas and, of course, fresh cranberries at your local markets. In the Plains states, parsnips, potatoes and pumpkins should be abundant. Southwesterners can include chilies, bell peppers, corn and cauliflower in their menus and those in the Pacific Northwest will have garlic, chard, celery root, apples and quince at their disposal.

For most of us, tradition is key to the Thanksgiving Day menu. We make our stuffing the way our mothers did. We want Aunt Edna’s casserole to be the same as it was last year. If you aren’t ready to change your whole tradition, just change a few things. Take the Consumers Union Local Food Challenge and simply find one local (or organic) ingredient, to build into your meal. Or buy a few items and bring a new dish to try on the family.; see below for links to more recipe ideas.

"Making Your Holiday Meals Last"
"No More Canned Cranberries"