Native Americans showed the settlers how to cultivate the rocky New England soil and to maximize the relatively short growing season in order to grow corn and other vegetables. The settlers learned how to hunt and trap animals for meat and to sustain themselves.
A classic example is pancakes. The Native Americans taught the settlers how to prepare a simple mush made of cornmeal and water. To make it tastier, the women blended in some milk or cream and renamed it Hasty Pudding. Over time, rye or wheat flour and a dollop of molasses were added to the pudding, and it was steamed in a cloth. The result: the famous Boston Brown Bread. Eventually, the addition of a few eggs and a sprinkle of cinnamon, and heating this mixture in the oven, resulted in the birth of Indian pudding. All of these colonial recipes are derived from corn, a major staple during that period.