Prepare to feast🍗

Hey there Florida Foodie friends,

It is the ghost of Thanksgiving’s future, Thomas Mates.

[ADD YOUR BUSINESS TO THE FLORIDA FOODIE DIRECTORY]

As I have mentioned many, many times, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and it is finally here.

As you read this, I am likely in my kitchen prepping food for Thursday with my lovely wife. Fortunately, it will just be the two of us and we won’t have to wade through the dangerous waters of a family gathering.

For all of you who have to spend your holiday avoiding talking about politics with your uncle or keeping your mom away from the wine, I’m sorry. I hope the food is good at least.

Even growing up, my Thanksgivings were mostly spent with my nuclear family. We didn’t do big extended family meals. The one or two times that we did, it was always a disaster and we vowed to never do it again.

What I’m trying to say is that if you only see some members of your family once a year because they are largely intolerable, then maybe pick a different holiday — like Arbor Day. No one has ever had Arbor Day ruined for them.

We’re doing things a little differently this week. We don’t have a new episode of Florida Foodie. Our production team needed a little break in our recording schedule to deal with some of our other holiday projects, such as Angel Tree. So, we are going to have a little podcast hiatus, but don’t worry because new episodes will be back in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, you can also find every episode of Florida Foodie on YouTube.

OK, let’s get into it.

Cut down on food waste

The Too Good To Go app just recently launched in the Orlando area.

The app allows restaurants, grocery stores, bakeries or virtually any place that sells food to offer up “surprise bags” of their surplus food — basically, any food they would not otherwise be able to sell — for app users to purchase.

That means, you can get a bunch of food for cheap and keep it from ending up in a landfill. It’s a pretty neat idea.

Read all about it here.

Small Bites🍠

Thanksgiving helpline🦃: Preparing a Thanksgiving feast can be tricky. There are a lot of details to keep in mind and juggle multiple tasks. Fortunately, there are many people who are eager to help talk you through any cooking crisis you may have. Here is a list of hotlines you can call for help.

Holiday safety🍽️: After the feast comes the leftovers. I love Thanksgiving leftovers, but if they are not stored properly then they can be a breeding ground for nasty bacteria. Here are some tips on safely storing and reheating your leftovers, but you will need to sign up to be an Insider to read.

Florida food history🚰: Have you heard of the “Ginger Ale Spring?” Neither had I until very recently. It is an interesting part of the history of Florida’s food industry. You can learn all about it here, including why you should leave it alone.

New brunch spot🍳: There’s a new place in Brevard County to grab brunch and it opens Wednesday. Find out the details here.

Something to try at home 🍽️

Here is an incredibly simple recipe you can use this Thanksgiving. People either love or hate cranberry sauce. I generally think people are just repulsed by the stuff that comes from a can.

So, why not make your own? It is easier than you think and it tastes great.

This recipe takes about 15 minutes to make and comes from J. Kenji Lopez-Alt.

Ingredients:

• 1 12-ounce bag of fresh or frozen cranberries
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 strips zest and 2 tablespoons juice from 1 orange
• 1 cinnamon stick
• Pinch kosher salt

Step 1: Combine all of your ingredients in a saucepan.

Step 2: Bring the contents of the pan to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Stir occasionally until the berries start to pop. You can assist them by pressing them into the side of the pan. Simmer for about 10 minutes total or until the sauce reaches jam-like consistency.

Step 3: Let the sauce cool completely. If the sauce is too thick, add some water a tablespoon at a time until it reaches your desired consistency.

I told you it was simple. You can also add some additional flavors to this to give it an extra dimension, like some fresh ginger or even a little cayenne for a sweet and spicy kick.

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