GREEN BAY - After 33 years as a morning mainstay on WLUK-TV (Fox 11) , Amy Hanten is leaving the station, but the “Fox 11 Living” show synonymous with her name will continue.
The station announced Monday that Hanten, who is most familiar to viewers for her time in the studio kitchen whipping up Wisconsin-inspired recipes for brunches, tailgates and holidays, will depart at the end of the year. Her last show as host will be Dec. 20.
“After 33 years, leaving Fox 11 is one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever made!” she said in a news release. “This job has been so incredibly special, and I’ve loved every minute of it! That’s what makes this so hard. I am so grateful to those of you who have watched me over the years. I've been so lucky to meet so many wonderful people."
Hanten also shared that she got married last year and that she and her partner are eager to be able to visit their five children, who live all over the country and the world, more often. They also want to be able to spend more time with aging parents in Arizona.
“We are very excited for Amy and for what she has planned in the future,” said Jay Zollar, vice president and general manager of WLUK and WCWF (CW14), in a statement.
Hanten, who is from Petoskey, Michigan and graduated in 1988 from Marquette University, joined the station in March 1991 as a morning news anchor as part of the “Good Day Wisconsin” team. She got her own show, “Fox 11 Living with Amy,” in September 2008.
The one-hour program at 10 a.m. weekdays has her whipping up recipes featuring ingredients from northeast Wisconsin dairies, meat markets and other local businesses. She also regularly shares the kitchen with local cooks and features segments with chefs and others in the community with home entertaining, decorating and lifestyle expertise.
In an interview with the Green Bay Press-Gazette in December of 2008, Hanten described the show as a "a dream job" and herself as "the queen of the casseroles." Viewers quickly embraced her relatability as someone often cooking with the same ingredients and pots and pans they had in their own kitchens.
"It's live and, and I am who I am. You get what you get when you see me," she said in 2008. "I may not have the fanciest knives or the fanciest cookware, but it's the same stuff I cook with at home. It's local. It's Green Bay. It's not the Food Network in New York."
“Fox 11 Living” will continue with new talent and expanded content on air, online and on social media, the release said. Further details will be announced in the near future.
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In addition to her television career, Hanten started her own brand and business, “The Cooking Mom,” in 2012 and will continue to share recipes on TV stations across the country. She’s at work on her third cookbook. She also owns a vacation business in which she plans and books group trips in the United States and abroad.
"As hard as this decision has been, it's time," Hanten said as part of her news release statement. "I am so excited to cook up some of my very best recipes for the next few months until my last show on December 20th. That's going to be a tough show. It's going to be so hard to say goodbye! I hope to come back and visit my Fox 11 family from time to time to check in and share more recipes. Thank you all so much!"
Kendra Meinert is an entertainment and feature writer at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at 920-431-8347 or kmeinert@greenbay.gannett.com . Follow her on X @KendraMeinert .
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: After 33 years at WLUK-TV, 'Living' host and cook Amy Hanten is leaving the station
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