The Influencer: Cultivating Culinary Interest

​Food, Fun & Faraway Places, 
Kelly Stilwell’s Goal is to Bring Food & Travel Together 

​​As important as a mentor may be to cultivating a culinary career, the impact and importance of social media can’t be overlooked.  Many of us enjoy seeing photos of beautiful food, exquisite presentations, and finding recipes via social media – from Instagram to TikTok. Kelly Stilwell, the creator of Food, Fun & Faraway Places, has made a livelihood from her travels, food discoveries, and recipes. She is an influencer to home chefs, foodies, and her followers, who often live vicariously through Kelly’s posts and international travels.

GK: What is the biggest misconception about influencing and use of social media?

People think I am always on vacation! They don’t realize what I do on trips, how I could be in my room posting on Instagram at one o’clock in the morning if I’m in a different time zone than my readers in the U.S. They see a dozen or so photos in an article, but I probably took 200 of that destination to get the 12 they see.

I don’t think the average person understands the amount of work that goes into the job. They think it’s simply a matter of going on a trip and posting to social media. It’s taken me 12 years to build my followers to over 350,000, and that’s why I’m invited to work with so many travel brands. I also must keep up with trends and changes on each social channel. It’s a tremendous amount of work.

GK: How do you gauge success in what you do? 

My success comes in two forms; happy readers/followers and clients who are pleased with my work. If my readers and followers are growing and visiting Food, Fun & Faraway Places, I know I’m doing something right. I have a couple of analytics programs that help me track those statistics. When clients are pleased with the way I’ve showcased their products or destinations, I know they will tell others and I’ll continue to have those opportunities to travel.

GK: How much time per week do you spend working your channels?

Just the social editing and posting aspect of the business takes about 15-20 hours per week.GK: What is the balance of breakdown of the content you post - travel/food/recipes?

I post two food/recipe articles for every one travel article. I’d like to increase that this year, but the travel articles take a lot more time between SEO, research, and editing photos. I can easily spend 4-5 days on a travel article versus 1-2 days on a recipe. I currently have more than 25 articles I still want to write from trips I took in 2023. 

GK: Do you take all your own photos?

Most of the travel photos are mine. On a rare occasion, I might use a stock image if my photo didn’t turn out well and I want to include a particular historic or popular site. For recipes, I do have a handful of recipe developers who create recipes for me. It can take days to create, test, and photograph a single recipe, and I just can’t find the time to do it all.

GK: Are your recipes original or derived from things you’ve tried or places you’ve visited? Do you test them via trial and error?  Who has the final pronouncement on the success of a recipe? 

I have a bit of everything as far as recipes go. I may see a recipe that has a lot of search volume on Google and recreate it. I do recreate dishes I’ve tasted in other countries, which is always fun, especially if I was able to bring back a handful of ingredients, like spices or liqueurs. Testing the recipes is usually a good experience for my family, but there have been occasions where the recipe never made it to my website. Maybe we didn’t love the flavor or the texture, or perhaps it was just too difficult to make in the end. Even if the recipe is delicious, if my readers don’t click on it or make it, it’s not a success. A real win is when a dish has incredible flavor and my readers go crazy over it, like my Maryland Crab Dip. 

~by Karen Moraghan

​Maryland Crab Dip

Ingredients

• 4 ounces Cream Cheese (1/2 package, softened). Chef Note: I use Neufchatel light cream cheese.
• 1/2 cup Mayonnaise 
• 1 teaspoon Old Bay (plus more for topping)
• 1/4 teaspoon Dry Mustard
• 8 ounces Crab Meat Lump
• 1 Tablespoon Gouda Cheese (shredded)
• 1 Tablespoon Cheddar Cheese (shredded)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix the softened cream cheese with mayonnaise, Old Bay Seasoning, and dry mustard in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Gently fold in lump crab meat, being careful not to break up the lumps. Spoon dip into an oven-safe dish. Sprinkle with the cheeses. Sprinkle with extra Old Bay Seasoning. Bake for 30 minutes. Brown slightly under a broiler on low. Optional: Top with sliced green onions.

Assembly        

Serve the crab dip with crackers, tortilla chips, or a baguette sliced and toasted.

Chef Note: Make sure to use a block of cream cheese, not a spread. Allow it to come to room temperature before mixing. You can use light mayo and Neufchatel (light) cream cheese to save calories.