Professor featured on Sirius program on cooking

Stephanie Anderson Witmer may be known for her writing, but Thursday she gets serious — that's Sirius as in satellite radio — about another passion: Food.

Witmer, assistant professor of communications/journalism, was a guest on Sirius XM Satellite Radio Channel 112 Sept. 3 as part of the "Morning Living" show broadcast over the Martha Stewart Living Radio Service.

"My segment should be about 15 minutes long," said Witmer, who has previously done a limited-series baking show televised on Comcast. She said she's excited to be a part of the radio broadcast, partly because she loves radio and also because it airs on the Martha Stewart Living Radio Service.

In 2007 Witmer published Killer Chili, an in-depth look at some of the best chili recipes available in the United States and Canada. The book features pictures of the chefs and the finished dishes, along with recipes and brief descriptions of the eateries serving the various chilies.

"Killer Pies," also published in 2007, follows the same format for the top 50 pie recipes.

The Sirius program discussion focused on her pie recipe book and on baking with late-summer fruits. It was her publisher at Chronicle Books who contacted her last week about the radio stint.

Witmer said both chili and pie enjoy strong subcultures. "I think the thing about pies is (they're) a very nostalgic food," Witmer said. "People tend to associate pies with simpler times."

Her favorite late-summer fruit for pies? "Peaches, probably because you can only get them in the summer."

Witmer, who joined the university in 2007 has worked as a freelance magazine writer, editor and proofreader. Though she always enjoyed food, her interest developed into a hobby when she supervised the food section, annual dining guide and restaurant survey at Central PA Magazine in 2000 to 2002.

She started taking her work home to test recipes and cook various dishes. Food became a passion and, as a writer, she enjoyed delving into the subcultures and histories behind cooking. Witmer won the Gold Award for Feature Writing from the International Association of Business Communicators in 2000. She's also written for other food magazines. 

Her books even led to an appearance at the Book and the Cook Festival in Philadelphia.

Witmer doesn't have any books in the works at the moment, but she continues working on some short-term writing projects.