TV dinners were invented thanks to Thanksgiving leftovers, and 22 other delicious Thanksgiving food facts

Did you know that Thanksgiving might be the origin of your favorite Swanson microwave meal?

In 1953, the Swanson TV dinner company apparently had 260 tons of frozen turkey leftover after Thanksgiving. So they packaged them into trays with peas and potatoes, which evolved into the TV dinners America knows and loves today.

That's just one of the 23 facts about Thanksgiving food in this week's video from our sister site, Mental Floss. Other facts in the video, hosted by author John Green, include that the average American eats 16 pounds of turkey a year, and only male turkeys make that signature gobbling sound. --Meghan DeMaria

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