Here's great breaking news! Tampa's very first Food Truck Rally is scheduled for September 24th from 11am-3pm at Hyde Park Presbyterian Church in South Tampa. I'm so glad to see the food truck scene emerging in the Bay area. So who's going to be there?  Wicked 'Wiches, 3 Ballers Traveling Bistro, Michelle Feado's Famous Deviled Crabs and Cubans, and more...and it's completely booked.  They're even offering free child care! I discovered it on Facebook at  http://www.facebook.com/TampaFoodTruckRally.

Hello my fine food friends! It’s Ann Kelly, and thanks to all of you have continued to keep me in the loop with the tastiest happenings in the Bay area.  My special thanks to Gina Melton, who sent me an email last week which you can always do yourself at ann.kelly@coxmg.com, to tell me about the first ever Tampa Food Swap. What’s a Food Swap? Exactly what I wanted to know! Well, Gina decided that we here in the Bay area needed to experience a Food Swap after she enjoyed similar events in Pasadena and L.A. Here’s what will happen on October 1^st in Anderson Park in Tampa from 10 am to noon; a “swapper” sets up a table with what they’re so proud of and ready to swap, and has a swap offer sheet for each one. The morning starts with a chance for everyone to walk around, talk and sample what’s up for swap. Then, you write what you’d like to swap on the offer sheet and the negotiations begin. What an incredible way to make new friends and find delicious new ways to enjoy life! Take equal parts of silent auction and village marketplace and add a very cool sense of open house – you have a food swap.

If you’re the kind of person that would appreciate a greater sense of community when it comes to the local food scene, this might be perfect for you. Gina is looking for items that are handmade, homegrown, and even foraged. If you’re a food blogger, chef, a farmer, home cook or baker, a foodie with a dream that just needs an outlet, this could be it.  Preregistration is required at www.tampafoodswap.com;  more info as well on Facebook and Twitter. I’m going as an observer this time, and I’m tremendously excited about the opportunity to connect even more with the food community and learn from all of you. Local is best, and we know what gems we have here. Why not show your best this October at the first annual Tampa Food Swap? If you’ll be joining the fun, please let me know and I’ll be happy to let others know. I'm especially interested in hearing from community farms, those who know how to forage and the best places to go, and once we start firing up the farmer's markets, which are the best. I'll make the grand tour of your best suggestions.

We also have another important event coming up in October- our Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk on October 22nd, and my thanks on that to Nataly and Dan Balk at the Singing Stone in Ybor City who have designed a beautiful piece of jewerly to refect our new theme of "Put On Your Pink Bra." I'll be joining them for a meeting at the Laughing Cat this Thursday evening at 7 pm. If you'd like to join their team please visit the online Ybor City Striders Team Page or Ybor City Striders Facebook Page. Nataly has worked hard to be a part of Making Strides for the first time, and since this year I'll be hosting the event in Tampa, let's show them the love and put together a magnificent team to represent Ybor! I'll also let you know how I enjoyed the food at The Laughing Cat, since this will be my first visit. I'm also happy to hear from all our teams and what you're doing to fund raise, so please don't be shy with your always creative fun and games; and for our first-time walkers, check back here in Kelly's Kitchen for advice on how to train from Debbie Voiles, Founder and Coach of Run Tampa, and a chance to win your own Rubbermaid FilterFresh Water Bottle to keep hydrated during those training walks and runs!

WORDS OF WISDON FROM KELLY'S KITCHEN:

 "Keep hope alive" - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr