Disney Dining Plans

An awesome video from Disney Parks that gives a brief explanation of Disney's 3 Dining Plans!

'Ohana means family...our Disney Side Home Celebration

Whew! What a weekend!!  Our Disney Side Party was on Saturday and I think it went really well! Lots of fun and food...especially food! That was the main focus of our party. We didn't do any games since the ages of the kids were pretty divided between toddlers and teens and a few in between.  We focused on just having a great time with our family and friends...and sharing some of our favorite food! Not only have guests been asking for the yummy recipes I used, but I wanted to share them with you all as well!! Plus a few sneak peaks of the party!

We had a ton of fun decorating the house...even though we kept it pretty simple!

Now on to the menu and the recipes!!

We started out with salad with Honey Lime dressing...this is my favorite and be warned the recipe makes A LOT. I still have some left in the fridge (YAY)!!

1/2 C honey
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp salt
1/2 C cider vinegar
1/4 C lime juice
1/4 C diced onion
1 C canola oil

Mix well and coat the salad....it's that easy!! I left out the raw onion but otherwise I made it with the exact ingredients...it was delicious!
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Next up....Pog Juice. I could literally drink this by the gallon. It's so delicious and easy to make!

21 ounces Passion Fruit Juice21 ounces Guava Juice14 ounces Orange Juice (pulp free)

Mix and enjoy! I found the passion fruit and guava juice in the international aisle with the Mexican food (they were Goya juices).

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Now for hubby's favorite part...the chicken wings! I was nervous about doing a large amount of chicken wings until I read that they are BAKED!!! WOOHOO!!! I bought 5 lbs but my guests could have eaten double that! One thing I will note is I think the dry spice on the wings could have easily been skipped...the sauce was plenty sufficient...we can't wait to make it again!

Wing Dry Seasoning

1 tablespoon ground paprika

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Coriander Wing Sauce

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/2 tablespoon chili powder

1/2 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1/2 tablespoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Wings

5 lbs chicken wings and drumettes

2 to 4 tablespoons vegetable oil

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Mix wing seasoning indredients in a small bowl and using a whisk.
Put the chicken and 2 tablespoons of wing seasoning in a large bowl.
Add enough oil to coat the chicken evenly and mix well.
Spread the seasoned chicken in a single layer on prepared cookie sheet.
Bake for approximately 45 minutes or until the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165 degrees.
Place all wing sauce ingredients in a large saute pan, and bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat.
Cook and stir until thickened - the sauce will get sticky and thick within a few minutes.
Transfer the cooked wings into the sauce and serve.

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This next one was a bit trickier and that's only because of the noodles. I wasn't entirely sure WHAT to buy.

I have to say this by far made me feel like I was at 'Ohana...the smell was AMAZING! I will note that the recipe was a bit too sweet...I would cut back the brown sugar by at least a cup and then modify as necesary.

The noodles I bought were called Yoba noodles and they where a Chinese Buckwheat noodle. Pretty darn close if you ask me! I also omitted the cabbage as I'm not a fan!

Ingredients

Pineapple Glaze

2 Cup Brown Sugar

1 3/4 Cup Soy Sauce

3/4 Cup Rice Wine Vinegar

1 1/4Tablespoon Fresh Garlic, minced

1 1/4 Tablespoon Fresh Ginger, minced

2 1/4 Tablespoons Cornstarch

4 Tablespoons Pineapple Juice, frozen concentrate

Yakisoba Noodles

Shredded Red & Green Cabbage

Shredded Bok Cho

Dissolve all ingredients, except cornstarch and pineapple juice, in sauce pot.
Bring to a boil.
Make a slurry with the cornstarch and pineapple juice, and slowly add to boiling mixture to thicken.
Simmer for 30 minutes.
Strain through fine mesh strainer.
Saute shredded red and green cabbage and bok choy in wok.
Add Yakisoba noodles and Pineapple glaze and toss.

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For our last 2 items...I'll admit....I cheated!!  Neither one was prepared by me!

And now what you've all been waiting for....which Dole Whip Recipe won?  By a landslide...recipe #1!

The first 7 taste testers said #1 so we just gave up and doled out that one instead (get it? Doled....).  For fun a few pictures from the party!

Sorry for the clarity of the pics...I was exhausted by this point and just took a few cell phone pictures

Thanks again to everyone who came! We had a great time!

Dole Whip Recipe #2

Today is finally the day of our Disney Side Home Celebration!  Today I want to share with you Dole Whip Recipe #2! While I really enjoyed the first recipe, traditionally Dole Whip is a non-dairy dessert. Our home version of Dole Whip came out more like ice cream....delicious, pineapple ice cream. I decided to try my hand one more time and something a bit more authentic.

Here is the recipe

20 oz can of crushed pineapple
2 TB lemon juice
2 TB lime juice
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tubs of Cool Whip

Take the Pineapple and combine with the lemon and lime juice in a blender. Blend until pretty smooth.

Then put in a gallon zip lock bag and lay flat in the freezer.  It will take about 90 minutes before it turns to slush.

Pour the pineapple slush into a bowl.

Combine with the cool whip and refreeze until it turns to an ice cream consistency.

So far so good...my taste testers really loved it! I'll update after the party on which recipe won!

Get Your Kicks on Route 66!

This morning on Facebook I posted this picture and asked "Do you know where I am?"

A few years ago I was lucky enough to take a trip out West with my Dad. My Dad and I have traveled together quite a bit and we had previously made a trip out to Yosemite and Monterey a few years earlier.

This time around, I had a conference in Las Vegas to attend (not my thing!) so we decided to take a trip out to the Grand Canyon.  We stayed in a small town (Williams) outside of the Grand Canyon and had a great time!

On our way back home we diverted off of Rt 40 for a bit and hopped on the old Route 66.  As we drove along we came to the town of Seligman.  Now this was long before I had kids and while I was aware of the movie Cars, I hadn't watched and didn't really know much about it.  I was so excited when we arrived to see a few familiar faces!!

After doing a little digging I found out that Seligman was part of the inspiration for the movie (the cars didn't have eyes back then, lol). Delgadillo's Snow Cap Drive-In was a big reason for that! According to some reports/stories I've read, John Lasseter met Delgadillo's brother who told him how dead the town was since Rt 40 had been built. Both Delgadillo brothers have credits in the film!

Hope you enjoyed a little more of my Disney Side today! And if you didn't catch it early...there is a hidden Mickey in this post!

Princesses in EPCOT

Did you know that you can meet lots of different characters throughout all 4 theme parks? While most people rush to the Magic Kingdom or a character meal to meet the Princesses, my favorite place is to head to World Showcase in EPCOT!

Belle & the Beast (from Beauty & the Beast) in France

Jasmine & Aladdin in Morocco

Mulan in China Pavillion.

Snow White in Germany

While not princesses, you can also meet Alice and Mary Poppins!

EPCOT also offers a great princess meal for breakfast, lunch or dinner at Akershus in Norway!

Of course there are other fun character meet and Greet's through EPCOT and all 4 parks as well! Check your My Disney Experience App for meeting show times and locations.