Grub Street New York: The Food Network announced details of its new season today and, having seen the first episode of The Next Iron Chef, we urge you all to set your DVRs for 9 p.m. on October 4. In the first challenge, the chefs (including Nate Appleman, Jose Garces, and Amanda Freitag) must first cook something from their past, and then show fearlessness by cooking with scary ingredients. (And we mean scary. Scary like unhatched eggs.) We’re also looking forward to Butter chef Alexandra Guarnaschelli’s new show, Alex’s Day Off. The first episode, “Early Morning Breakfast” features dishes like “cheese fondue hashbrowns and homemade doughnuts with cinnamon sugar and hot blueberry jam,” which will do wonders for future hangovers. See the complete rundown below.

**All Times ET/PT**

**FOOD NETWORK OCTOBER 2009 HIGHLIGHTS**

‘THE NEXT IRON CHEF’ BATTLES FOR SUPREMACY IN OCTOBER
Season Two of ‘The Next Iron Chef’, Special 90-Minute Premiere
New Daytime Series “Alex’s Day Off” with Chef Alex Guarnaschelli
New Specials: ‘Tailgate Warriors with Guy Fieri’ and ‘Good Eats 10th Anniversary’

NEW YORK - September, 2009 - Kitchen Stadium once again opens its doors to find a new culinary warrior in the season two premiere of The Next Iron Chef on Sunday, October 4th at 9pm. Hosted by Alton Brown, the series challenges ten top chefs from around the country in a series of demanding situations, testing their culinary skills and mental toughness. Popular Food Network personality, Chef Alex Guarnaschelli shares her cooking style as a professional chef, working mom and passionate home cook, inviting viewers to cook down-to-earth recipes with sophistication and sass in new daytime series, Alex’s Day Off premiering Sunday, October 18th at 9:30am ET/PT. Alton Brown celebrates ten years of culinary exploration with a one-hour special, Good Eats 10th Anniversary on Saturday, October 10th at 10pm and Guy Fieri throws down the gauntlet to teams battling for tailgating supremacy in Tailgate Warriors with Guy Fieri on Saturday, October 17th at 9pm.

FEATURED SERIES

The Next Iron Chef- Season Two
Kitchen Stadium once again opens its doors to find a new culinary warrior in the sizzling primetime series The Next Iron Chef. Hosted by Alton Brown (Good Eats, Iron Chef America), the reality competition challenges ten top chefs from around the country in a series of demanding situations, testing their culinary skills and mental toughness. The winner will join the ranks of Mario Batali, Cat Cora, Bobby Flay, Masaharu Morimoto and Michael Symon, and be launched into instant fame as a member of the Chairman’s team on Iron Chef America.

Premiering Sunday, October 4th at 9pm- SEASON PREMIERE!
“Episode One”
In the season premiere of The Next Iron Chef, 10 chefs arrive in Los Angeles to compete in a series of globally-inspired cooking challenges that will test their abilities to master culinary styles from around the world. The chefs are greeted by host Alton Brown (Iron Chef America, Good Eats), who gives them their first two tests: Memory and Fearlessness. For Memory, the chefs are asked to use an ingredient that has played a significant role in their lives to create a dish that expresses their culinary style and heritage. Next, the chefs are assigned exotic ingredients from around the world that test their iron wills and stomachs. They must showcase their fearless nature through their approach in using these ingredients as the centerpiece of two dishes. The first chef is then eliminated.

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