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The First Thanksgiving
by Mason Gray
_________________________________________________________________
Like most of Americans, I was taught in school that the Puritans
held
the First Thanksgiving in 1621, as they held a feast after their
first
harvest. Little did I know that the Pilgrims were not the first to
feast for Thanksgiving. In fact, the beginning of the real First
Thanksgiving began in 1598, nearly a quarter of a century before
the
Mayflower sailed from England. If you will allow, I would like to
tell
the story of the First Thanksgiving in America.
In 1581, Spaniards came through the "Pass of the North" (
Presently El
Paso) to organize Missions and set up mining operations in what is
now
New Mexico. The Spanish Conquistadors found the area to have been
inhabited for centuries by various Indian tribes.
Juan de Onate, a gallant conquistador, was the first successful
colonizer of the Southwest. He was a silver miner and the
wealthiest
man in Mexico at the time. De Onate was the son of a wealthy
conquistador Zacatecas, Mexico. He married Isabel de Tolosa
Cortez,
who was the granddaughter of Hernan Cortez and great grand
daughter of
Moctezuma. In January of 1598, Onate and his followers left the
Santa
Barbara frontier settlement in Chihuahua to colonize a new
settlement
close to the now city of Santa Fa. The expedition consisted of 600
people of all types - soldiers, priests, Africans and Indians. 130
of
these men also brought along their families. All of their
possessions
were packed into 83 ox-drawn wooden-wheeled wagons and carts, and
included 7000-8000 horses, oxen, sheep, goats and cattle, formed a
four-mile long procession through the desert.
These colonists began their journey from Santa Barbara, Mexico,
south
of Chihuahua and carved a new and shorter trail through the desert
north of El Paso. (Previous explorers had followed the Rio Concho
to
its junction with the Rio Grande toward present day El Paso.)
After plodding through the torturous desert for more than four
months,
often forced to eat roots and berries, drink water from the
occasional
water holes or from cactus and other plants, these weary and
ragged
colonists arrived at the banks of the Rio Grande on April 20,
1598.
What a sight it was! A beautiful river, thriving with fish below
and
ducks and geese above. "They drank and drank again, finally laying
their waterlogged bodies beside the stream like four wretches
stretched upon some tavern floor." (Villagra, "History of New
Mexico",
1960)
For ten days they swam in the deep cool waters of the Rio Grande,
rested in the shade of the giant cottonwoods, hunted, fished and
ate
as they had not eaten in months.
On April 30, Don Juan ordered all to put on their best clothes and
to
gather for the first Thanksgiving by colonist, in what is now the
United States. He memorialized the occasion with the first
theatrical
play in America, "La Toma, The Taking." This is to signify the
taking
of the new found land for Spain. To celebrate their safe arrival,
they
held a huge feast and mass. This marks the real First Thanksgiving
of
the nation.
As you begin to celebrate your traditional Thanksgiving, the
Jalapeno
Caf would like to share some tantalizing recipes that are typical
of
a southwestern Thanksgiving.
Basic Tamales
This is a simplified recipe for tamales but they still should have
a
fairly authentic taste.
24 dried corn husks
1 cup lard
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups masa harina mix
1 1/2 cups warm pork or poultry broth filling (Turkey in Green
Mole
Sauce or Pork in Red Tomato Sauce)
To soak corn husks, cover with warm water; weigh down. Let soak at
least 3 hours or overnight.
For tamale dough: Beat lard and salt until fluffy. Slowly beat in
masa
harina mix alternately with broth until very light and fluffy.
To assemble tamales: Drain corn husks, pat dry. Spread 2
tablespoons
dough on center of husks forming a 3 x 2-inch rectangle and
spreading
completely to right edge.
Spoon 1 tablespoon filling (recipes below) lengthwise down center
of
rectangle.
To enclose tamales, turn right side over to center of filling;
fold
left side over filling, allowing plain part of husk to wrap around
filling. Fold top end down over bottom end. Secure ends by tying a
string around center of tamale.
To steam tamales, place a rack 2 inches above gently boiling water
in
steamer or 4-quart Dutch oven. Stack tamales, folded side down, on
rack. Cover, steam about 2 hours or until done. To test for
doneness,
remove one tamale from center and one from side of steamer. Open
husks; tamales should be firm and come away easily from husk.
Makes
24.
2 choices for fillings follow:
Pork in red tomato sauce
2 large ripe tomatoes
2 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lard
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 fresh jalapenos, seeded and chopped
2 cups shredded cooked pork
Broil tomatoes until charred on all sides; cool. Place in blender
container with garlic and salt; blend until smooth. Heat lard in
heavy
10-inch skillet. Add onion; saut until tender. Add tomato puree
and
chilies. Continue cooking over medium heat about 5 minutes.
Add pork; continue cooking over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes or
until
mixture is thick. Makes about 2 1/2 cups pork filling.
Turkey in green mole sauce
3/4 cup turkey or chicken broth
1/2 cup toasted sesame seeds
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 cup canned, drained, chopped tomatillos
1/4 cup chopped onion
4 serrano chilies, seeded and chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 garlic cloves
2 sprigs fresh coriander
1/8 cup lard
2 cups shredded, cooked turkey or chicken
Place broth, sesame seed, cumin and pepper in blender container.
Blend
until smooth, set aside. Place tomatillos, onions, chilies, salt,
garlic and coriander in blender, blend until smooth.
Heat 1/8-cup lard in heavy 10-inch skillet; add tomato puree. Cook
over high heat about 10 minutes or until reduced, stirring
occasionally.
Reduce heat. Gradually stir in sesame seed mixture. Do not boil.
Add
turkey; continue cooking over low heat 5 to 10 minutes or until
mixture is thick. Makes about 2 1/2 cups.
Note: To use fresh tomatillos, remove papery husks; rinse. Place
in
saucepan, cover with water. Simmer about 10 minutes, or until
tender.
Drain.
_________________________________________________________________
On Mon, 27 Nov 2000 [log in to unmask] wrote:
> Histarchers:
>
> The following two URLs for news stories came to me from Got CALICHE?, which
> Anita sometimes forwards on to us.
> I thought you Massachusetts and Virginia folks who think you have the
> (shared) monopoly on First Thanksgivings
> might want to see what those of us in New Mexico think of your claims.
>
> (Please note that each URL has a line break in it, so you can't just click
> and there you are. Make sure you have
> the whole thing before telling the list that you can't get there.)
>
> http://www.borderlandnews.com/stories/neighborhoods/lowervalley/20001121-624
> 82.shtml El Paso has an opportunity to develop an historical re-enactment
> of the thanksgiving feast of the Spanish conquistador Don Juan de Oņate and
> his followers April 4, 1598. Theirs was the story of trailblazing the great
> Chihuahuan desert. They nearly perished in the sand dunes of Samalayuca.
> Here on the banks of the Rio Grande they recuperated under shady trees,
> gave thanks to God and moved on to settle New Mexico.
>
> http://www.borderlandnews.com/stories/neighborhoods/lowervalley/20001121-624
> 83.shtml Gaspar Perez de Villagrá, chronicler of the Oņate expedition,
> recounts in his "History of New Mexico" how happy the band of colonists
> were when they arrived on the banks of the "Rio del Norte" in 1598. On May
> 1, 1598, guided by Indians, the expedition moved upstream and crossed into
> what is now the United States.
>
> Cathy Spude
> [log in to unmask]
>
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