How Did Pumpkin Pie Become Associated With Thanksgiving and Where Did the Tradition Come From?

There was no pumpkin pie at the first Thanksgiving.

But because the plant’s season coincides with the celebration and because it was Native Americans who taught the Pilgrims the pumpkin’s value, the melon has become a traditional Thanksgiving dish.

At first pumpkin was customarily served stewed as a custard or sweet pudding and was presented in a hollowed-out pumpkin shell.

The first reference to pumpkin pie appeared in a book entitled The History of New England written by Edward Johnson in 1654.