Planning what delicious foods you are going to eat at Disney is always such a big part of any trip! I love planning, (which is why I set up Most Magical Guides!) and because of this I have done hundreds of hours of research into which restaurants have the best reviews, what menus sounded the best for us as a travelling party with mixed dietary needs and which dishes made my taste buds tingle.
I had planned out where we were going to eat over 6 months in advance of our trip and knew just what I wanted to order. 6 months in advance?! That's crazy! I agree it does sound crazy! But this was so I could book our ADRs (Advanced Dining Reservations). Disney offer ADRs for all their table service restaurants via their website (and for a few of their quick service restaurants too). I always book as soon as my booking window opens to make sure I can get the hardest to get reservations.
TOP TIP!
Advanced Dining Reservations can now be booked 60 days in advance of your trip. Everyone can book ADRs, you don't have to be staying on-site at Disney to do this. The benefit of staying on-site at Disney is that you can book your whole trip (up to 10 days) all at once! If you are staying off-site you can book reservations one day at a time.
Alas my trip had to be cancelled for this year but to bring the Disney spirit into my house I decided to make some of the meals and treats I wanted to try at home!This was one of my top tips in my blog post Your Disney Trip Has Been Cancelled. What To Do Next?
Below are 8 Disney dishes that even a novice cook like me managed to make! Some of the elements I improvised or changed slightly to ingredients that I had to hand. They all were super easy to make and so delicious!
I am vegan so all the dishes below are plant-based but you can easily swap any of the ingredients to fit with your own dietary preferences and needs.
LeFou’s Festin from Be Our Guest Restaurant in Magic Kingdom
I love a great breakfast dish and LeFou's Festin looked like the perfect way to start the day in Magic Kingdom. Unfortunately breakfast is no longer being served at Be Our Guest Restaurant but I was so keen to try this so I made my own version at home!
LeFou's Festin is a plant-based dish and comes with a sausage, 'eggs', breakfast potatoes and fruit.
To make this dish at home I used:
Birds Eye Green Cuisine Sausage (you can use any sausage of your choice)
Potatoes (I chopped these up and then put them in the microwave for 4 and a half minutes to soften, then coated in oil and salt and put into the oven for 20 - 25 minutes until golden)
Tofu Scramble
Fruit
We don't have Just Egg in the UK at the moment so I swapped the eggs to a tofu scramble. Tofu scramble is one of my favourite dishes! It is really quick to make and a lovely alternative as a replacement to eggs.
To make the tofu scramble I pressed a block of firm tofu to squeeze out the moisture. I love the Tofuture tofu press. I've been using it for years! It is really easy to use and removes so much moisture, making the tofu much easier to cook and gives a better texture. It is a really handy way to press tofu and a kitchen staple for me! If you would like your own Tofuture tofu press you can purchase it here!
I leave the tofu in the press and put it in the fridge for a few hours to allow it to squeeze out as much moisture as possible. Once ready I crumble the tofu up so it resembles scrambled eggs. I put some oil in a pan and once it is hot I add the tofu. I let it brown very slightly and then add a range of spices to give some awesome flavour! I like to use turmeric (which also gives a great yellow colour to the tofu), cumin, black pepper, nutritional yeast and garlic powder. I cook this for just a few minutes and then as I remove the pan from the hob I add a dash of kala namek, also known as black salt, which gives an eggy taste.
This dish takes only around 20-25 minutes to cook and then you are all set for a filling and delicious breakfast!
Lighthouse Sandwich from Columbia Harbour House in Magic Kingdom
The Lighthouse Sandwich is a fan favourite and is something that always pops up on lists of hidden gem food items at Disney. It is really nice to sometimes be able to have a lighter meal, especially in the Florida heat.
The Lighthouse Sandwich is filled with hummus, broccoli slaw and tomatoes. This sounded like a really unique and delicious combination to me so I made my own version!
To make the Lighthouse Sandwich I used:
Wholemeal Bread
Red Pepper Hummus
Homemade Broccoli Slaw
To make the broccoli slaw I used:
A Store Bought Coleslaw Mix
Broccoli
Hellmans Vegan Mayonnaise
Dijon Mustard
Sriracha Mayonnaise
I added the coleslaw mix into a large bowl and then cut up the broccoli into pea sized pieces. I added the broccoli to the coleslaw mix and then added 2 heaped tablespoons of mayonnaise, 1 and a half teaspoons of Dijon mustard and a good squeeze of Sriracha mayonnaise. Stir until all the vegetables are covered with the sauce. And it is done! So quick and so yummy!
You can find the recipe I used here!
I cannot stop making this broccoli slaw! It is so easy and really tasty and can be added to so many different meals that I almost always have some in the fridge now!
This sandwich lived up to my expectations and I can see why people rave about it. It is really unique and very flavourful. On my next trip to Walt Disney World I cannot wait to try the original version to see how mine compares!
Loaded Slaw Dog from Casey's Corner in Magic Kingdom
A trip to Casey's Corner is a staple for most people when they visit Magic Kingdom. This plant-based loaded slaw dog tastes as good as it looks!
To make the Loaded Slaw Dog I used:
Hot Dog Bun
Birds Eye Green Cuisine Sausage
Broccoli Slaw
Crispy Onion Pieces
I cheated a bit by using the same broccoli slaw as I had used in the Lighthouse Sandwich. Because I live on my own I am always trying to find creative ways to use leftovers instead of repeating the same meal over and over again. So this was a great opportunity to use some more of my broccoli slaw.
This hot dog is incredible! The crunch from the onions, the creaminess of the slaw and the texture of the sausage are great together! I've never had a hot dog topped with slaw before and it is a revelation!
Crispy Tofu with Potato Hash and Chimichurri Sauce from Satu'li Canteen in Animal Kingdom
Satu'li Canteen has quickly become the go to quick service restaurant in Animal Kingdom since Pandora opened in 2017. I love that you can build your own bowl, so can tailor your meal to your own tastes. I think this is really fun to do as well!
The items I planned to pick for my version of this meal were the crispy tofu, the potato hash and the charred onion chimichurri.
To make my own version at home I used:
Firm Tofu (that has been pressed)
Potatoes (diced into small cubes)
Onions
Mixed Peppers
Schwartz Chimichurri Spice Packet (just empty the packet and add a dash of olive oil and water to make a quick and easy chimichurri sauce).
To fry the tofu I added some oil into a pan and waited for it to get really hot. In the meantime I put some cornflour into a bag, cut the tofu into cubes and then put them into the bag. It's then time to have a dance about and shake things up to cover the tofu in the cornflour!
Once the oil is hot I added the tofu to lightly fry, turning the cubes to make sure they are a light golden colour all around. This takes a few minutes to do, after which I then put the tofu into the oven to crisp up some more whilst I make the potato hash. You don't need to add the tofu into the oven, but I like to put it in there to keep it warm and crisp whilst I make the rest of the dish.
To make the potato hash I add the diced potatoes into the remaining oil that I had cooked the tofu in. I stir this occasionally to make sure the potatoes brown evenly. After a few minutes, when the potatoes have soften, I add onions and mixed peppers. Once they have cooked it is time to add any spices you like!
I really enjoyed this dish and will absolutely be heading to Satu'li Canteen on my next trip to Animal Kingdom! The crispiness of the tofu is so good! I topped the tofu with the chimichurri sauce and it was delicious! The potato hash was soft and the peppers give a lovely flavour. A winner for me!
Bangers and Mash from The Plaza in Magic Kingdom
I really like that bangers and mash is on the menu at The Plaza! It is nice to have something a bit different to what you would expect for theme park food and is also a taste of home!
For this classic British dish I used:
Birds Eye Green Cuisine Sausages
Potatoes (I peel the potatoes and boil them for 20 minutes until soft. I then drain and mash before adding salt, pepper and Flora Buttery to give the beautiful rich, buttery taste we all love in mash!)
Petit Pois Peas
Vegetable Gravy
My personal thoughts are if you can still see your food you don't have enough gravy! How much gravy do you like to have on your meal?
Vegetarian Platter from Tangierine Cafe in EPCOT
This dish is always on lists of great meals at Disney and was something I was desperate to try! This Middle Eastern mezze dish is light and flavourful and at the Morroco pavilion at EPCOT the portion is big enough for two people!
This is the sort of meal I like to make at home because it is very simple and tasty! I love cous cous, (especially the packet versions that already have spices and dried ingredients added to them), as all you have to do is put boiling water on the cous cous, stir and then leave for 5 minutes and it is ready! A super easy and quick meal!
To make this dish at home I used:
Falafel
Spice Infused Cous Cous (you can use any flavoured cous cous of your choosing)
Red Pepper Hummus (you can use any flavour of hummus you enjoy)
Homemade Tabbouleh
Homemade Tomato and Cucumber Salad
I made my own tabbouleh and tomato and cucumber salad. These are really easy and quick to make and extra tasty when made from fresh!
For the tabbouleh I used:
Cous Cous
Tomatoes
Parsley
Mint
Lemon
Olive Oil
To make the tabbouleh I used some of the cous cous I had made earlier for the main dish to add to this recipe. I diced up the tomatoes, added the cous cous, parsley and mint and drizzled it all with some olive oil and lemon juice. Mix this all together and the tabbouleh is made! It's that simple! The herbs in this dish give the most amazing taste!
You can find the recipe for this tabbouleh here!
For the tomato and cucumber salad I used:
Tomato
Cucumber
Red Onion
Finely Chopped Garlic
Parsley
Coriander / Cilantro
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
I diced the tomato, cucumber and red onion and added salt, pepper and olive oil. Then I finely chopped up the parsley and coriander, added it to the bowl and mixed everything together. Really fresh, really simple and very quick to make!
You can find the recipe for this super tasty salad here!
There are so many flavours in this dish and it tastes so fresh! It really is a perfect meal for the hot Florida heat.
Felucian Garden Spread from Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo in Galaxy's Edge at Hollywood Studios
I love the creative names of the dishes at Docking Bay 7. It makes you feel so immersed in the world of Batuu!
I really wanted to try the Felucian Garden Spread as it sounded like a unique dish that would be a lighter option that would be packed full of flavour.
To make this dish I used:
Birds Eye Green Cuisine Meatballs
Red Pepper Hummus
Homemade Broccoli Slaw
Homemade Tomato and Cucumber Salad
Again I have used some of the same ingredients! It is really nice to be able to use them up but in a different recipe. Sometimes you can end up eating the same meal 2 or 3 days in a row. So these dishes were a great way to use up the items I had made but in a variety of different ways.
I used the broccoli slaw as a base and topped it with the red pepper hummus, the Green Cuisine meatballs and finally finished off with the tomato and cucumber salad. The combination of these different flavours was incredible! They really go well together and there is just so much going on in your mouth! I will definitely be adding this recipe to my repertoire now!
Iced Vanilla Latte from Starbucks in All Disney Parks
With early starts and long days in the parks everyone needs a pick me up every now and then. And an iced coffee is always the perfect solution!
I really love that Disney have their own Starbucks cups which are so cute! Plus Disney have their own You Are Here collectible Starbucks mugs. Each park has their own unique mug design and they are changed up every so often so these are lovely to take home as a souvenir!
Using the Same Ingredients in Many Different Ways!
I've reused a lot of the same recipes and ingredients but put them into different dishes. This is a great way to keep your costs down by limiting the amount of ingredients you need to buy and helps keep your meals interesting by using the same items in different ways! Here is all the different ways I used the same ingredients for more than one meal.
Broccoli Slaw
- Lighthouse Sandwich
- Loaded Slaw Dog
- Felucian Garden Spread
Tomato and Cucumber Salad
- Vegetarian Platter
- Felucian Garden Spread
Sausages
- LeFou's Festin
- Loaded Slaw Dogs
- Bangers and Mash
Potatoes
- LeFou's Festin Breakfast Potatoes
- Power Breakfast Bowl Breakfast Potatoes
- Satu'li Canteen Bowl Potato Hash
Peppers
- Power Breakfast Bowl
- Satu'li Canteen Bowl Potato Hash
Hummus
- Vegetarian Platter
- Felucian Garden Spread
- Lighthouse Sandwich
I hope you have enjoyed Part 1 of the Disney foods that I have made at home! This Thursday Part 2 will be released and features 8 new dishes including items from Pecos Bills, Grand Floridian Cafe and Capt. Cook's!
Are there any of these recipes you are going to try at home? Let me know and share your pics with me over on Instagram @most.magical.guides!