Letter from Steve

Once the leaves start falling and the weather gets cold, I start gearing up for the holidays–all of the festive food, the comfort of family and all the unexpected surprises that come with the season.

As a kid, holiday surprises came wrapped as gifts, but now I see them as sharing fun and funny moments. That’s why I am particularly excited by humorist David Sedaris’s tale, The Cow and the Turkey. It’s a quirky tale that challenges the Thanksgiving turkey. Plus, we took a creative leap and illustrated his story with photographs and recipes for holiday leftovers from some great chefs.

It has also been fun to give “sugar plums” a whole new meaning. Sugar plums will still dance in children’s heads, but Tim Burton’s sugar plum persimmon purée is delicious and healthier than any candy we can think of. In “Sugar Plum Dreams,” four famous pastry chefs share exclusive sugar plum holiday desserts.

Speaking of famous chefs, we are refocusing on the fantastic ideas that they bring to our magazine readers. We invited chefs Eric Ripert, Michael Anthony, Rick Bayless and the Beekman Boys to share with us their best-loved apple recipes. In “Apples” you’ll relish classic Caramel Apples, a Fine Apple Tart, Apple-Fennel Guacamole and more.

You’ve heard of glamping…we had some genuine fall fun by adding a dash of glamour to tailgating in “Glamgating”––our latest twist on Stone Soup. With a gleaming Airstream RV trailer, Buffalo Trace Bourbon, a roasted pig infused with aged maple syrup and a guest list including eight of Chicago’s finest chefs, no one even thought of asking, Who’s Hungry?

Happiest of holidays from the Who’s Hungry?™ crew. See you in 2014!

STEVE, DEIRDRE, IAN, JUDITH, KATHRYN AND CECE