by: Natalie Y. Moore, The Root

Before you slice into that sweet potato pie, douse those greens in hot sauce or cut a corner of macaroni and cheese this holiday season, consider what you may be missing.

African-American food historian Leni Sorensen says that the iconic images of soul food during Thanksgiving and Christmas represent a small slice of black American culinary customs. "There's a wide repertoire of food. Everybody understands the iconic list of greens and pork chops and corn bread and sweet potato pie. But that is only a minor list of all of the different foods that people eat within their own communities," says Sorensen, a researcher at Thomas Jefferson's Monticello.

In the late 19th century, geography factored in how people celebrated the yuletide season. During this time, African Americans lived mostly a rural existence, which translated into a farm-to-table lifestyle.

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