Something BIG is coming🐋

Hello there Florida Foodie friends,

It’s the man who stalks your inboxes every week until he can break a Gypsy’s curse and free himself. That’s right, it’s Thomas Mates.

As you probably surmised from the title, we are working on something pretty big.

[ADD YOUR BUSINESS TO THE FLORIDA FOODIE DIRECTORY]

The long and short of it is that we are planning on taking Florida Foodie on the road. Candace Campos and Lisa Bell, along with myself and our intrepid production team will be heading out in the community to shoot some new episodes.

Our first on-the-road episode will, hopefully, be coming out in the next couple of weeks. I’ll let you know more as it all comes together.

That being said, if you see us out and about, come over and say hi. Also, if you think there is a spot that would make for a great Florida Foodie episode, drop me a line and let me know.

OK, with that out of the way, let’s get into it.

Fun and fine dining🥂

There are a few Filipino restaurants around Central Florida but there are none quite like Kaya.

The restaurant offers “casual fine dining,” which essentially means that the food is of the highest quality, but you don’t need to dress up. There also might be karaoke, depending on what night you show up.

The restaurant is run by Jamilyn Bailey and Lordfer “Lo” Lalicon. Hear their conversation with Lisa Bell and Candace Campos on the latest Florida Foodie.

> You can listen to the episode here <

And you can also find every episode of Florida Foodie on YouTube, as well.

Small Bites🧈

Fighting food insecurity🥫: Food insecurity affects people in all walks of life, including college students. Valencia College has just expanded its food pantry to help students there. You can read all about it here.

Exotic food🍹: The 8th annual International Food and Drink Festival is returning on Sunday. If you have been looking for a way to expand your palate, this is the event for you. Here are all the details.

Fancy food🥐: Speaking of food festivals, Winter Park’s Cows ‘n Cabs is back again. The swanky event, which raises money for charity, features 45 different restaurants, along with cigars, drinks and music. If you want to hobnob with the hoi polloi, then click here to learn more about the event.

Free food🆓: Free food is the best food and we are giving away a year’s worth of free dinners. Click here to enter to win, but you have to be a News 6 Insider.

Something to try at home 🍽️

This week, we have an easy recipe — hummus. I honestly can’t remember if I have shared a hummus recipe with you all before. I feel like I have not, but we get new people all the time, so it’s the first time for someone.

In any case, everyone should know how to make hummus. It’s quick, easy and keeps for days in the fridge. It’s a good snack to have on hand.

Ingredients:

• 1 can of chickpeas, drained, rinsed, dried
• 1 tablespoon of tahini (available in most grocery stores)
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil, plus extra for serving
• paprika
• The juice of 1 lemon
• 1 cup water, ice cold
• salt & pepper

Step 1: Add your chickpeas to a food processor and pulse it two or three times until they look gravelly.

Step 2: Add your tahini, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice to the food processor and blitz on high.

Step 3: Once the mixture starts to look homogenous, start streaming in your ice water slowly. You likely will not use all of the water. Just keep streaming in your water until it looks smooth and silky.

Step 4: Once your hummus reaches the consistency you’re looking for, taste it for seasoning and salt and pepper to your liking.

Step 5: To serve, place your hummus in a bowl and finish it with an extra drizzle of olive oil over the top and a couple dashes of paprika.

This is a very basic hummus. If you want to add some extra flavor, feel free to throw in some roasted pepper or top it with a nice olive salad.

That’s it for today.

Please, send me your recipes so I can share them with everyone. My email is tmates@wkmg.com.

Don’t forget to send in your foodie pictures as well through our PinIt! program.

Also, please take the time to rate and review the Florida Foodie podcast.

- Thomas