Because food is so vital to our lives, it’s natural for it to play a major role in our traditions and celebrations. For example, if you live in the United States, on every fourth Thursday in November you gather with your friends and family around a table loaded with all kinds of delicious foods. It’s Thanksgiving, the day that Americans remember the first settlers and give thanks for the joy in their lives.
As with other traditional holidays, there are certain foods that are closely associated with Thanksgiving: turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. These foods have been passed down through generations.
While some holiday customs, like those Christmas, vary from family to family, Thanksgiving usually revolves around the same traditional menu. This menu is based on the foods that the early settlers shared with the Native Americans when they celebrated the very first Thanksgiving in 1621.
Over time, though, people have made some changes to this menu. There are some foods that we eat today at Thanksgiving that might not have been at the original feast. While there’s no way to be certain exactly what was served at that first meal, historians have a good idea of what foods likely were there—and what weren’t.
Traditions don’t have to be complicated affairs. Have you ever gone camping and toasted marshmallows over a fire? Your parents did it when they were little, you do it now, and you’ll probably do it with your own kids. It’s a sweet, gooey way to share good times together.
Seafood like cod, eel, clams, and lobster
Wild game like turkey, goose, duck, partridge, and deer
Vegetables like beans, onions, lettuce, carrots, and peas
Fruit like pumpkins, plums, and grapes
Nuts like walnuts, acorns, and chestnuts
Ham. Although they brought pigs with them from England, the colonists probably didn’t kill them to eat.
Sweet potatoes and corn. The colonists would have had dried corn, but not fresh corn because it was autumn.
Cranberry sauce. The colonists had cranberries but didn’t have any sugar to make the sweet sauce.
Pumpkin pie. They probably ate stewed pumpkin instead.
Chicken & eggs. The colonists brought chickens with them from England, but may not have had any left by this time.
Milk. The colonists didn’t have cows in the New World yet.
Many cultures celebrate the day someone was born. For many of us, the main food event is, of course, the birthday cake. Topped with glowing candles and accompanied by the birthday song, the cake is presented to the person of honor.
During the Middle Ages, people in Germany started baking cakes for “Kinderfest,” celebrations honoring the birth of children. A candle in the center of each cake symbolized life. Today, we not only put candles on the cake, we also let the birthday person make a wish before blowing them out. If they blow them out in one breath, they get their wish.
Birthday food traditions in other countries include:
Weddings are another celebration involving traditional foods. In many cultures, weddings are times to bring out special foods and drinks, things that are normally too expensive to eat.
In Mexico, for example, they serve “Mexican Wedding Cakes,” which are sometimes referred to as “Mexican Wedding Cookies.” These little treats are made with butter, sugar, and nuts, ingredients that were once considered “luxuries.”
CHINESE DISH SERVED … WHAT IT REPRESENTS
Fowl, such as pigeon or quail… Peace
Duck or lobster … Happiness, since they’re red, the color of happiness
Sweet red bean Soup … 100 years of togetherness and a “sweet” life
Sea cucumber … Selflessness between the couple, since the word for sea cucumber sounds like the word for “good heart” in Chinese
Fish … Abundance, since the word for “fish” is similar to the word for “plentiful” in Chinese
7-Up … Happiness, since the word for “up” sounds like the word for “happiness” in Chinese
The beginning of a new year fills people with hope and optimism and inspires them to make changes in their lives. People in many countries eat traditional foods on New Year’s Day for good luck. In some countries, people eat 12 grapes at the beginning of the new year. They eat one grape per second, making a wish with each one. Each grape represents a month of the upcoming year, and the sweeter the grape, the better that month will be for you.
In the southern United States, black-eyed peas and collard greens are a traditional New Year’s dish. The peas represent coins and the greens represent paper money. So the more of these you eat, the more money you’ll make in the upcoming year!
In Denmark, people eat kale sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon because the kale looks like folded money. People in Germany, Austria, and Hungary eat pork because pigs symbolize progress. This is because pigs are always moving forward, pushing their snouts through the ground, like hard workers.
In ancient times, people believed that when someone died they would need food for their trip to the next life. So large banquets were held for the person. Today, food is still served at funerals, but mainly to provide comfort to the people who are mourning their loved ones.
In Amish communities in Pennsylvania, friends give “funeral pie” to the grieving family. They make this pie with raisins instead of fruit so it stays fresh longer, just in case the family doesn’t get around to eating it for a few days.
Depending on where you live in the United States, people eat everything from casseroles to pre-made sandwiches at funerals. Meanwhile, in Belgium, people eat pistolets, which resemble hard rolls, with butter and slices of cheese.
Of course, it’s not the food itself that matters as much as it is people coming together to support each other in a tough time. Food has always been an integral part of any gathering.
In ancient Egypt, people were buried with food. Egyptians thought it would feed the dead as they travelled to whatever the next world was.
Traditional doodh pak is a type of sweet rice pudding, made with saffron and almonds that have been ground into a paste. This simple version will give you a sense of what it’s like.
1 In a small saucepan, bring the milk to a boil. Rinse the rice with water until it runs clear, and then add it to the boiling milk.
2 Turn the heat down, and simmer the rice and milk until the rice is fully cooked. Stir frequently to prevent the rice from burning. When the rice is cooked, add the sugar.
3 Cook for another 5 minutes, and then add the raisins, cardamom, nutmeg, almonds, and pistachios.
4 Remove the doodh pak from the stove and serve hot or chilled.
In Mexico, kids celebrate their birthdays with piñatas filled with treats. While this cake isn’t a real piñata, it’s a cool look-alike. It takes a little effort to put together, but it’s worth it.
1 Make the cake according to the directions on the box. Pour it into the small cake pan and bake. If it makes enough for two cakes, either eat one plain or make two piñatas!
2 When the cake is cool, lift it out of the pan and place it on the cutting board. The metal mixing bowl, when flipped over, needs to fit completely over your cake. If necessary, cut the cake to fit your bowl.
3 Carefully cut a shallow “scoop” out of the center of the cake. Frost the cake except for the part you scooped out. Fill that with your piñata treasures.
4 Grease the inside of the metal mixing bowl with oil, and then put it in the freezer to chill for 10 minutes. Melt three-quarters of the chocolate chips in the microwave or over a double boiler.
5 Take the metal bowl out of the freezer. Pour the melted chocolate into the bowl and carefully swirl it around so that it coats the entire inside of the bowl, including the sides. Try to coat the entire bowl with the same thickness of chocolate. Then place the bowl back in the freezer to firm the chocolate up completely.
6 When the chocolate is hard, take the bowl out of the freezer. Place the bowl upside down over the cake.
7 Using a hot, damp towel, rub the outside of the bowl to release the chocolate “shell” inside, over the cake.
8 Melt the remaining chocolate chips. Use a toothpick and the melted chocolate chips to “glue” your edible decorations to the outside of the piñata. Let the chocolat harden.
9 You’re ready to party! You can use a toy hammer or the back of a serving spoon to crack open your piñata when everyone has gathered around.
