New York Chefs Team Up With Stouffer's For Hurricane Sandy Relief

New Yorkers who don't mind braving the cold during lunch to eat mac and cheese for a good cause can try catching the limited-run Stouffer's Mac 'N' Cheese truck during the next two weeks. Some of New York's well-known chefs (including several judges from Food Network's Chopped rotation) have teamed up with Stouffer's to serve their own spins on the brand's macaroni and cheese out of Eddie's Pizza Truck. All profits from the truck's three-week run will benefit the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City in support of hurricane relief efforts.

"I was evacuated and couldn't move back into my apartment building for 10 days," said chef Elizabeth Karmel of Hill Country and Hill Country Chicken, explaining her own misfortune during Hurricane Sandy, and the inspiration behind her participation in the event. "Luckily, I live on the eighth floor so nothing was damaged. But I really wanted to do this for the entire city of New  York because I think it's just the greatest city in the world and so many people were affected in so many different neighborhoods. And it's not over yet. There are still people without power and those whose lives were really devastated by the storm. Anything that I can do to help, I wanted to do."

In addition to Karmel (who added that it's "always been [her] dream to have a food truck") other participating chefs include Seamus Mullen, Amanda Freitag, Lee Anne Wong, Marc Murphy, Chris Santos, Sarah Simmons, and spice-blender Lior Lev Sercarz, who said he was inspired to help by the plight of an old co-worker who lost his home. "We are excited to partner with this talented group of chefs and the Mayor's Fund to support Hurricane Sandy Relief efforts through this initiative," added Stouffer's director of marketing Tom Moe.

The daily menu will include five variations ($4 per cup) created by Sercarz and Karmel (chili mac, barbecue mac, Mex mac, veggie mac, and mushroom mac) and a rotation of the chefs' dishes. When the promotion ends on Valentine's Day, the company has announced that it will donate an additional donation of $25,000 on behalf of the chef with the top-selling recipe.

You can find the truck on Twitter (#stouffersmobilemac) and at the following locations through Feb. 14:

2/5 Tuesday (Lee Ann Wong) 4 World Financial Center, North End Ave at Vescey Street
2/6 Wednesday 57th and Eighth (Hearst Building)
2/7: Thursday (Marc Murphy): 46th and Vanderbilt (Grand Central)
2/8 Friday Hanover Square
2/11 Monday (Chris Santos) Varick and Vandam (SoHo)
2/12 Tuesday 54th Street between 10th and 11th Streets
2/13 Wednesday 46th and 6th Streets
2/14 Thursday (Sarah Simmons) To be annouced.