With Thanksgiving fast approaching, News 12's Danielle Campbell took a look back at what a colonial Thanksgiving looked like, Long Island style.

Diane Schwindt stirs up history at the Ketcham Inn in Center Moriches, using a hearth from the 1600s. She believes by cooking up history, we get a more authentic taste of Long Island's past.

"You can look at a building but once you put food in there and a fire going, it becomes alive, I think that is the difference," says Schwindt.

Schwindt gives classes at the Inn, teaching students how Long Islanders cooked back in time. Back then, it wasn't about the turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie.

"Back in the 1600s and 1700s, it was a whole different ballgame ... turkey didn't come in until the 1800s," says Schwindt.

 

She says because Long Islanders were walking distance from the water, seafood was a big part of their diet. Eel and venison were classic choices.

Schwindt says historical cooking gives you a sense of how hard it was to survive, which would have made Thanksgiving back then truly a day for thanks.

"It was a lot more humbling than it is today," Schwindt says. "I think during the time period they were truly thankful."