Out in the kitchen: Dan Smith and Steve McDonagh Hosts, Entertaining With the Hearty Boys, Food Network.

America voted, and the "Boys" won. In June openly gay partners Dan Smith and Steve McDonagh, of Chicago's Hearty Boys Caterers, were chosen by over 50,000 viewers as winners of the Food Network's first televised reality show, The Next Food Network Star. Their prize? A six-episode series, Entertaining With the Hearty Boys (title tentative), to begin airing September 18 at 9:30 A.M., during the network's popular "In the Kitchen" programming block.

"It's going to be a mix of cooking and entertaining tips," says Smith, explaining how each episode focuses on a different theme, such as a casual movie night or impressing an important business associate with dinner.

"We don't want to get all Martha Stewart on you," adds McDonagh, gliding into the conversation with the same sort of humor and ease that made the duo stand out during competition. "We just think that throwing parties should not be a grand mystery or overly fussy. Food should be delicious and accessible." To that end, Smith and McDonagh will divulge some of the secrets of seasoned caterers so that viewers can pull off their own events with the least amount of stress.

Besides scoring their show deal, this summer marked another momentous event in the couple's nine-year relationship: the adoption of newborn Nate into their family. Needless to say, these two aren't cooking inside any closet, and while they were confident they could make it as finalists, the win was truly a surprise.

"It is really exciting that America picked us," says Smith. "To me, it shows that Bush's [vision of] America is not as strong as people think."