Serve up some knowledge and some delicious food at your Thanksgiving dinner!

Pair these interesting Thanksgiving fun facts with this delicious sweet potato recipe and you’ll delight trivia nerds and foodies alike!

Fun Facts

  1. When President Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863, it was largely due to the efforts of a newspaper editor by the name of Sarah Josepha Hale. However, Thanksgiving isn’t Hale’s only claim to fame; she also wrote the popular nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb.”
  2. The first Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade took place in 1924. While the first parade didn’t have the extravagant floats and giant balloons that we’ve come to know and love, it did feature animals from the Central Park Zoo.
  3. The first Thanksgiving was held in 1621 and had fifty pilgrims and ninety Wampanoag Indians in attendance. Interestingly, turkey wasn’t even on the menu for this first feast.  Instead, guests most likely feasted on deer, venison, ducks, geese, oyster, lobsters, eel, and fish.
  4. Thanksgiving was almost a fast instead of a feast. The pilgrims originally intended to give thanks for their first harvest by praying and abstaining from food.  It was only when the Wampanoag Indians joined the festivities that the fast turned into a three-day feast instead!

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Honey and Cinnamon

Ingredients

  • 4 sweet potatoes
  • ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • ¼ cup honey
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • Salt (to taste)
  • Black pepper (to taste)

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 375° F.
  2. Peel and cut the sweet potatoes into 1-inch cubes.
  3. Lay the sweet potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Drizzle the oil, honey, cinnamon, salt, and pepper over the potatoes and toss to coat evenly.
  4. Roast potatoes for 25 to 30 minutes or until tender.
  5. Remove sweet potatoes from oven and transfer them to a serving platter. Drizzle with a little more olive oil and they’re ready to serve!

Try out these fun facts and this delicious side dish to impress all your Thanksgiving guests this year.  We at Randy Jones Insurance Services want to wish everyone a truly happy Thanksgiving.  Turn to us for assistance with all your insurance needs.  Located in Pleasanton, California, contact us to get started today.