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Ask A Pittsburgh Chef: Twists On Classic Thanksgiving Recipes

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If the thought of filling your Thanksgiving table with your usual ho-hum turkey and stuffing recipes leaves you dreading cooking for family and friends this year, perhaps a new twist on everyone's favorite holiday flavors will spice up your dinnertime. Head Chef David Carmine has just the right ingredients to help you whip up a mouthwatering meatloaf, delectable deep fried turkey and savory sweet potato waffles that are sure to be a hit this holiday season. Carmine's recipes are fun, fast and flavorful, which means you won't be slaving away in the kitchen for hours. Add these three recipes to your Thanksgiving dinner rotation for a crowd-pleasing meal.

David Carmine
Head Chef at Andora Restaurant
1616 Mt. Nebo Road
Sewickley, PA 15143
(412) 749-2452
www.andorarestaurant.com

Andora Restaurant's head chef David Carmine is a former broadcast journalist turned chef. Through his internet TV series called Between The Eats on YouTube, Carmine shares his passion for food alongside co-host Terri Dowd, the force behind Parmesan Princess and a frequent cooking demonstrator at the Pittsburgh Public Market. Together the two feature unique twists on everyday favorites, ranging from turkey scaloppini to chili lime sweet potato wedges and even brunch salmon hash. Episodes of Between The Eats and a how-to of recipes from all episodes can be viewed at www.betweentheeatstv.com.

Mexican Meatloaf

Carmine considers meatloaf to be among one of those foods that allow for a lot of creativity, referring to it as a blank canvas. This particular twist gives a traditional meatloaf a Mexican-inspired flavor thanks to ingredients like peppers, cilantro and black beans.

Meatloaf Ingredients:

½ lb. ground beef
½ lb. ground pork
1 lb. thick-cut bacon
1 cup canned black beans, drained
Up to 1 cup warm water to moisten mixture
2 eggs
2 cups dry old-fashioned oats
½ cup cilantro, chopped
1 tbsp. chili powder
½ tbsp. ground cumin
1 small onion, chopped
1 Anaheim pepper, roasted and chopped
1 poblano pepper, roasted and chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, roasted and chopped
Salt/pepper to taste

Glaze ingredients:

½ cup apricot jelly
1 cup ketchup
2 tbsp. chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped

Directions:

Start by whisking together your glaze ingredients, then set aside. On medium heat, sauté peppers and onions until translucent and allow to cool. Combine the remaining ingredients, except for the bacon, in a large mixing bowl, mixing by hand until moist and combined. Add water in a little at a time. Form this mixture into a log shape.

Shingle and stretch the bacon on a large piece of foil roughly three times the size of your meatloaf log. Add the log to the bottom third of the bacon (opposite the bacon's slice direction). Roll while pushing the bacon to encase the meatloaf. To prevent this from leaking, wrap it in an additional piece of aluminum foil.

Bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees, then drop to 350 degrees for another 30 minutes or until the meat is cooked through. Open the foil and crisp the bacon for another 10 minutes before covering with glaze and baking for an additional five minutes.

Let stand for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Deep Fried Turkey

If you crave an all-American dish to serve for your next dinner, Carmine's deep fried turkey is a great choice. He likens this delicious deep fried goodness to being as American as southern soul food, jazz and blues music. Carmine takes a different approach to the usual fried chicken legs by swapping them out for huge turkey breasts.

Ingredients:

4 turkey breasts, pre-roasted to golden brown
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup season flour

Directions:

Season your flour by using 1 tsp. of each: salt, pepper, dried ginger, garlic powder, celery seed, paprika and oregano.

Coat the turkey breasts in seasoned flour then dip in buttermilk, repeating this step until the turkey is well-coated. Place turkey in a fryer and deep fry until desired crispness is reached.

Remove turkey from deep fryer and place on a paper towel-covered plate to absorb remaining oil. Serve hot.

Related: Ask A Pittsburgh Expert: Best Fall Family Dishes

Sweet Potato Waffles

This sweet potato waffle recipe is the perfect accompaniment to Carmine's deep fried turkey. These savory waffles are light and fluffy thanks to airy egg whites. Serve with grilled fruit of your choice. Apricot and pears go wonderfully, as does a touch of whipped cream.

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sweet potato, boiled until softened and mashed
4 eggs (separate yolks and egg whites)
½ cup wheat flour
½ cup milk
6 tsp. baking powder
6 tsp. melted butter
4 tsp. brown sugar
4 tsp. honey
2 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

In a medium mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients. In a separate mixing bowl, combine your wet ingredients, including the brown sugar. Add egg yolks and mix before folding in the egg whites that have been whipped until hard peaks form.

In a grill pan or waffle iron, grill mixtures until brown.

Related: Ask A Pittsburgh Chef: Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Recipes

Jessica Wasik is a graduate of Robert Morris University with a degree in English Studies. She is also a contributing writer for AXS.com and Examiner.com. Her work can be found at Examiner.com.
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