When October hits, I fall immediately into soup mode. I try (and discard) a lot of Disney recipes, and find that the soup ones are often winners. So this weekend I decided to try Epcot’s French Onion Soup from the old, award-winning Bistro de Paris. Continue reading “Ooh La La! Epcot Bistro de Paris French Onion Soup” →
Oh the faithful decadence of banana bread. Its sweet smell fills a kitchen and its warmth is like forbidden love in the afternoon. Disneyland’s version is as magical as expected and comes to the level of sublime with a pat of butter. It’s honestly one of my favorite banana bread recipes and is crazy reliable. Continue reading “Disneyland Resort Banana Bread – Yes, It’s Delicious!” →
Oh the magical seduction of the Grey Stuff. Such a novel and climactic ending to the hard-to-get lunch at Be My Guest. Back in 2020, Disney shared an elementary version of the recipe (which I’ve based these on). My guess is that the original is more of a true classic mousse, but this one is incredibly similar and yes, it’s delicious. Continue reading “5 Shades of The Grey Stuff: Disney Recipe of the Week” →
Inspired by late summer nights and campfire memories, this double chocolate pie is fool-proof but nostalgically decadent. And absolutely no wandering firepit required.
Of course, there’s no evening campfire show and marshmallow roasting at Fort Wilderness this year. The smells of crackling timbers has been replaced by the occasional whiffs of hand sanitizer. This pie lovingly forgives all of that, without all the messy. Continue reading “Chocolate Chip’ndale S’Mores Pie: Our Favorite Camping Dessert” →
When Tony’s on Main Street first opened in the Magic Kingdom in 1989, I was thrilled as Italian food is among my favorites. But somehow on our 1990 trip, we didn’t make it there. Not even once. This only added to its mythology to me as an exclusive, impossibly romantic restaurant with old-school Italian grandmothers laboring in love over handmade pasta. Continue reading “A Delectable Disney Classic: Tony’s Town Square Lasagna” →
A psychologist once told me that we don’t really reach adulthood until about 27 years old. That exactly coincides with the time that you’re expected to have absolutely perfected a few soul-healing dishes. Well, at least that’s how we do it in the south. These are the chicken casseroles, the cakes, and the deviled eggs you take to church homecomings, reunions and funerals. But mac and cheese is such an important part of such gatherings that you can’t afford to be meh. I mean you wouldn’t want a 2-star mac and cheese showing up at your funeral, would you? How distressing and tacky. Continue reading “Disney’s Most Comforting Dish: Art Smith’s Homecomin’ Mac & Cheese” →
Word has it that the third Monday in January is the most depressing day of the year, and we’ve surely gotten off to a blue start in 2020. With 5:30 sunsets, freezing nights, and news of bigly foreign conflicts, Fantasyland seems farther away than ever. I think that weeks like this may be why God created soup sometime back in 18th-century France. And of all the soup that Disney has made, this Baked Potato Soup one ranks right up there with Boma’s Oxtail Stew and Le Cellier’s Cheddar Soup as the most comforting. Continue reading “January Blues Cure: Disneyland’s Loaded Baked Potato Soup with Caramelized Leeks” →
Art Smith’s Fried Chicken Salad has become quite a hit at his chi-chi Southern restaurant in Disney Springs. As simple as fried chicken seems, it usually takes a real southerner to get it both crispy and juicy. Two things I love about this recipe are the nearly fail-proof process for getting the chicken to the level of sublime, and the versatility to make it your own. In this case, I added some grated cheese, as a nod to our 90s favorite fried chicken salad at long-gone Mick’s in Atlanta. And then, I Disneyfied it a little more with boiled Mickey eggs – making it a hit for the kids. Continue reading “Homecomin’ Fried Chicken Salad with Impossible Mickey Eggs” →
It seems that the cucumbers always last a little longer than tomatoes, better surviving the shortened days of sunlight. This sadly limits my days of my favorite Tomatocumber Dollars. Enter, the infinite plethora of cucumber salads. The 70s southern ones have that sour cream mixture served in a grandma bowl. A decade later brought the still-popular onion-tomato-cucumber mixture, dressed in some rendition of a vinaigrette. Yet, the most imperial are the Asian versions, typically mild and served in a modest cup in a Thai or finer Chinese restaurant. Epcot’s Nine Dragons Restaurant has upped the ante on this, infusing the crisp cool with a contrasting bite of heat. Much like a September day. Continue reading “Gold in a September Garden: Nine Dragons Cucumber Salad” →
This salad has been a go-to for All-American celebrations (think Mickey’s Backyard Barbecue) for many years. There’s little, if anything, that has changed from this favorite since the campy Hoop-Dee-Doo dinner show opened 45 years ago. Yesterday, for our July 4th party, Baby Back Ribs and Clementine’s Prizewinning Potato Salad took center stage, but our good friends and neighbors devoured this traditional salad (iceberg lettuce) with its tangy and complex vinaigrette. Of course, its presentation in a heavy tin bucket at Pioneer Hall adds the frontier touch,and makes it suddenly appealing to kids. For our shindig, I picked up a cheap tin ice bucket at Walmart.
The Orlando Sentinel published the Disney-provided Pioneer Hall recipe as a response to a reader request back in 1978. “The salad was the best we’ve ever had anywhere,” the reader noted. Nearly a decade later the recipe reappeared (with some small modifications in the amounts of ingredients) in the first Disney cookbook, Cooking with Mickey Around the World (1987). As you recall, back in the 80s, a spinach salad with bacon dressing was about as exotic as we got. It wasn’t until the 90s when we saw the spread of arugula, spring mix, candied pecans, and more inventive creations.
As far the cookbook itself, very little of the food items are still served at Disney today. In addition to the Pioneer Hall Salad Dressing, some other favorites that remain at WDW include the Philadelphia Pepper Pot Soup (Liberty Tree Taven), Cinnamon Rolls, Fettucine Alfredo (Italy Showcase), Queso Fundido (San Angel Inn), Scotch Eggs (Rose & Crown Pub), Fish ‘N Chips (Rose & Crown Pub), and Strawberry Shortcake (Pioneer Hall). Most of the restaurants in the cookbook, such as Top of the World, South Seas Dining Room, and The Empress Lily, are long gone.
When you crave the good-old-standard salad, it doesn’t get much better than this. I suppose the closest commercial equivalent might be the beloved Olive Garden salad, but this dressing stands superior. As with any Disney recipe, some measurements look like of strange when they have been reduced from a mass quantity. For example, the dressing recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of chopped red pepper. Seriously? So, I’ve provided the original recipe, but indicated how I made reasonable modifications. Note that the recipes do not include cheese, but it has been served on this salad for some time. This stores well in the refrigerator, so you can make it a few days before your camping trip or outdoor soiree. I would leave the addition of the chopped boiled egg until the day of serving.
