Alex Guarnaschelli Shares Thanksgiving Recipes on Wendy Williams

Hamptons chef and Dan’s Taste of Summer host Alex Guarnaschelli whipped up some fantastic Thanksgiving sides on The Wendy Williams Show Tuesday. Guarnaschelli schooled Williams on the art of creating traditional sides with a twist and shared recipes for Crispy Brussels Sprouts Salad, Stuffed White Mushrooms and Rutabega Puree from her cookbook, The Home Cook.

When she’s not enjoying the Hamptons or appearing on television shows like Chopped, where she is a regular judge, Guarnaschelli runs her NYC restaurant Butter (70 West 45th Street), which will be open for Thanksgiving. “We’re going to probably serve 250 or 300 people,” she told Williams, pointing out that she began cooking turkeys “like a week ago.”

Of the three dishes, it was clear Williams most enjoyed the Crispy Brussels Sprouts Salad, which she couldn’t stop eating—a habit Guarnaschelli says she finds most endearing about the talk show host. “Oh, this is a winner, I’m so glad!” she said as Williams shoveled in another mouthful of the salad.

Williams was particularly fond of the salad’s dressing, which Guarnaschelli said is made with balsamic vinegar, lemon, shallots and olive oil. “I actually make the dressing in the bowl and then just throw the salad together at the last minute, which is helpful when you’re overloading on your oven and your kitchen is, you know, running full steam for Thanksgiving,” the chef said.

True to Williams’ style, she of course asked about Guarnaschelli’s favorite celebrity diners to “fawn over” at Butter.

“Honestly, Leonardo DiCaprio is quite the drink of water,” Guarnaschelli replied, revealing the Montauk regular eats at her restaurant. “We also had Rihanna come to eat, and that was really like, ‘I am not worthy,” she said. “She ate like it was an electric chair party, and we love that.”

You can get Alex Guarnaschelli’s Thanksgiving side dish recipes for Crispy Brussels Sprouts Salad and Stuffed White Mushrooms at wendyshow.com, or get all three recipes and much more in the pages of The Home Cook.