Brian Hogan Stewart is the host and creator of Salt + Spine, the acclaimed podcast dedicated to telling the stories behind cookbooks. A once-aspiring chef who became a journalist, Stewart is an avid home cook and cookbook collector whose incisive interviews have featured a who's who of culinary authors, including Jacques Pépin, Samin Nosrat, Nigella Lawson, Carla Hall, and Yotam Ottolenghi. The podcast has been a featured show on Apple Podcasts and earned accolades from the TASTE Awards and the Cook Awards. Beyond the podcast, Brian is a co-founder of Cookbook Fest, a 2024 festival in Napa Valley celebrating the art and craft of cookbooks. He has extensive experience in journalism, new media, and public relations, having led marketing and storytelling efforts for various advocacy organizations and hospitality clients. Brian holds an undergraduate degree in journalism from the University of Iowa and an MBA in Food & Wine from the Bologna Business School in Italy, where he now lives with his family.