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Mickey Mouse Spider Web Rice Krispie Treats

September 30, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski Leave a Comment

Mickey Mouse Spider Web Rice Krispie Treat // magicaltreatsathome.com

Where can I find the original treat?

These treats can be found all over the Disneyland resort.

There are so many tasty Halloween treats at Disneyland right now that it was a bit hard to narrow down what I wanted my first spooky treat of the season to be. But I had to go with a rice crispy (crispie… krispie… krispy…) treat. A Mickey Mouse Spider Web Rice Krispie treat that is!

Sometimes simple is best and these treats are SO simple to make. They’re also great at sizing up, in case you want to give these out as Halloween treats at home, or to a class, or to friends. (Our recipe below has a handy button to increase the recipe yield, please use it for this if you want a large amount!)

After the initial rice crispy treat is made and cooled, kids can help cut and decorate. I also tried out a new-to-me product from Wilton which is pretty much a prepackaged squeeze bottle of black icing. So that’s an option if you don’t want to melt two batches of chocolate and color them. I found it convenient, however, I would have liked a smaller opening for the icing. All of these pictured I used the bottle icing but I think I’ll also try with my own chocolate next time just to compare.

As per usual, there are some notes following the recipe so please read all the way through. One big tip though is that when you’re working with marshmallows, you’ll never scrape everything out of the pan you make them in so make peace with that now. Also, damp fingers/hands are best since the marshmallow won’t stick to you!

I hope you get in the kitchen this week and make these sweet, classic treats, with this Halloween spin!

Mickey Mouse Spider Web Rice Krispie Treats

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 3 Mickey Mouse Spider Web Rice Krispie treats 1x

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Description

Chewy, crispy, Mickey Mouse-shaped rice krispie treats get the Halloween treatment with a bright orange and black spider web design on the iconic treat. A Disneyland-inspired recipe.

Ingredients

Scale

For the rice krispie treat:

2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
157 g ( 2 cups) mini marshmallows or 20 regular sized marshmallows
2 cups crisped rice cereal

For the topping:

3–1/2 ounces white chocolate
6–8 drops orange, oil based food coloring for chocolate
2 ounces (100 g) light cocoa candy melts
3–4 drops black, oil based food coloring for chocolate
OR, Wilton Black Cookie Icing (instead of light cocoa melts and black food coloring)

Tools:

Mickey Mouse cutter
3 Popsicle sticks

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Instructions

For the rice krispie treat:

Before beginning, line a 8×8″ baking pan with parchment.
Combine the butter and marshmallows in a medium sauce pan over medium-low heat. Stir constantly until marshmallows have melted and mixture is smooth.
Immediately dump in the crisped rice cereal and mix to combine.
Pour into the prepared pan and gently press mixture into place with a rubber spatula (or damp fingers). Set aside for at least an hour in the refrigerator so that the mixture can firm up enough to cut shapes.
Once firm, use parchment to lift out rice krispie treats. Use a Mickey Mouse shaped cutter to cut out shapes and set aside.

For the decorating:

First, melt the white chocolate and orange food coloring in the microwave inside a microwave safe bowl, like glass, for 30 seconds. Stir and microwave again for an additional 30 seconds. Keep stirring and microwaving in short bursts of 15-20 seconds until melted and smooth. Use can alternatively use a double boiler for melting.
Insert a popsicle stick into each treat.
Dip a treat into the melted chocolate, letting any excess drip off back into the bowl. Repeat for other treats.
Next, melt the light cocoa candy melts and black food coloring in the microwave inside a microwave safe bowl, like glass, for 30 seconds. Stir and microwave again for an additional 30 seconds. Keep stirring and microwaving in short bursts of 15-20 seconds until melted and smooth. Use can alternatively use a double boiler for melting. Or you can skip and use the tube icing here.
Transfer black melted chocolate to a squeeze bottle or a piping bag with a small portion of the tip cut off. Then decorate a spider web design over the orange chocolate. Repeat until all treats are decorated.
Let the chocolate firm up, at least an hour in the refrigerator before serving. Enjoy!

Notes

Use a smaller pan than you think you’ll need for this. As the marshmallows melt into the butter, if there’s too much space in the pan they will start to dry out and form strings. Keeping the marshmallows closer together in the pan will ensure they melt more evenly, creating a better mixture to add the cereal into.
When mixing crisped rice cereal into the melted marshmallows, keep the mixture on the flame so that marshmallows stay liquid. Removing to mix in can seize up the liquid before the cereal is fully mixed.
You can combine some extra rice krispie treat scraps into the mold to shape additional Mickey Mouse treats.
You can also use orange candy melts instead of the white chocolate and orange food coloring.
Treats can be kept in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.

Mickey Mouse Pumpkin Spice Beignets

September 23, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski Leave a Comment

Where can I find the original treat?

These treats can be found at the Mint Julep Bar in New Orleans Square.

Today marks the first official day of fall. Which might seem odd because I think we’ve been celebrating all things pumpkin spice since about August 27th. But to mark the date, we’ve got our own pumpkin spiced treat on the site today: Mickey Mouse Pumpkin Spice Beignets!

If you want your kitchen, and maybe even your whole house, to smell like fall, this treat will do it. A hefty dose of pumpkin spice flavored powdered sugar covers every square inch of these melt-in-your-mouth beignets.

These Mickey Mouse beignets are the same base used in the traditional beignet recipe (and in our Butterscotch Beignets too!); it’s the coating here that makes them different. And, as with all our recipes, please read all the way through including the notes for helpful tips!

EXTRA EXTRA: since these traditional style beignets make for hollow pockets, you could go the extra mile here and fill them with pumpkin or apple butter if you want to turn the fall flavors up to 110%.

Ok, let’s go pumpkin spice-ify Mickey Mouse.

Mickey Mouse Pumpkin Spice Beignets

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 15–18 Mickey Mouse shaped beignets 1x

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Description

Melt-in-your-mouth Mickey Mouse Pumpkin Spice Beignets are ready for fall with a hefty dose of powdered sugar, cinnamon, and spice! A Disneyland-inspired treat.

Ingredients

Scale

1/2 teaspoon dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (105º)
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening (I used refined coconut oil)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 egg
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup boiling water
Vegetable oil for frying, like avocado
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice (or make your own blend, see notes below)

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Instructions

Sprinkle yeast over warm water in a small bowl, gently stirring to dissolve. Let stand for 5 minutes.
Combine sugar, shortening, salt, heavy cream, egg, flour and boiling water in a large bowl. Mix until everything is just combined and then stir in yeast mixture. With the dough hook attachment of an electric mixer on medium speed, mix the dough just until combined and smooth. About 3-4 minutes. Let dough rest for 30 minutes in the bowl.
Flour your surface and roll to 1/4-inch thickness. Using the Mickey Mouse cutter, cut dough pieces, twisting slightly, and carefully removing dough from around cutter before releasing. You may have to combine dough and roll out again to cut more shapes out. Cover with a towel and let dough rise until doubled in size in a warm, draft-free area, about 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
While dough is rising, mix together the powdered sugar and pumpkin pie spice in a large bowl. Set aside.
Pour enough oil into a deep-sided, heavy bottomed pot until it reaches 2 inches up sides; heat oil over medium heat to 370°F.
Add 2-3 beignets to oil; fry until golden brown on both sides, about a minute each, turning once.
Remove from hot oil with a slotted spoon and place on a baking sheet lined with paper towels.
Let rest at least five minutes, and then toss in the powdered sugar and spice mix. You can sift extra sugar over all the beignets before serving.

Notes

Pumpkin pie spice blend: 3 tablespoons cinnamon, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 3/4 teaspoon allspice, and 1/2 teaspoon cloves
Dough may have to be recombined and rolled a second time if you have a lot of scraps.
Wait for oil to come back to temperature before adding next batch of beignets to the pot.
No dough hook attachment? Knead dough until smooth and shiny, about 5-8 minutes and then proceed with the recipe.
Want to make these at night for the next morning? After cutting Mickey Mouse shapes out. Transfer to a baking sheet and let rest, covered with a towel, in the refrigerator overnight. Let come to room temperature before frying in the morning. Dough shapes can also be frozen and then left in refrigerator overnight and fried off.
If your dough gets a skin while rising, put the sticky side down first into the oil to avoid tearing while the beignet expands.
If your powdered sugar is lumpy, sift when combining with the pumpkin pie spice mix.
Strain your oil after it reaches room temperature. It can be used again!

MSEP Ladybug Macarons

September 9, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski 1 Comment

Main Street Electrical Parade Ladybug Macarons // magicaltreatsathome.com

Where can I find the original treat?

This treat can be found at the Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe in Disneyland.

This past summer, Disneyland brought back the beloved Main Street Electrical Parade (MSEP) for a short run, ending September 30th. Besides the thousands of glittering lights, they also brought out a slew of tasty treats to commemorate the event. Like the giant Ladybug Macaron.

This treat is not new to the park, and was last seen in 2017 during a longer run of the MSEP, and I’m sure will be ending its run at the Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe when the parade closes. But now that we’ve recreated the recipe, you can enjoy it again until the next (hopefully longer) run of the parade returns!

This oversized ladybug-shaped macaron is filled with strawberry buttercream, strawberry jelly, and freeze dried strawberry pieces. These are also gluten free, as the cookies are made using ground almonds and no gluten containing flour if that’s an issue.

I’ve included some additional notes below the recipe, so please read all the way through before making these. However, I will point out that sifting the almond flour and the powdered sugar together is a must. It might seem crazy to sift it four times, but you need that amount of sifting to make sure the sugar has absorbed the oils from the almonds otherwise it will be clumpy. Also, working with egg whites means you need to have a gentle hand when folding in the mix, or even pouring in the sugar. Patience and steadiness will result in great puffy macarons.

BONUS: Download our printable template for these Main Street Electrical Parade Ladybug Macarons below! Perfectly shaped and spaced, with outlines for both colors. Never worry about mismatched macaron halves!

4 inch MSEP ladybug template

1 file(s) 89 KB

Download

Questions? Leave them in the comments below and you’ll probably be helping out another reader! Now let’s bake!

MSEP Ladybug Macarons

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 3–4 large macarons 1x

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Description

Oversized ladybug shaped macarons with three kinds of strawberry filling to commemorate the Main Street Electrical Parade. A Disneyland-inspired treat.

Ingredients

Scale

For the black macarons:

67g (apx. 3/4 cup) almond flour
90g (apx. 3/4 cup) powdered sugar
52g egg whites, from about 1–1/2 eggs
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
30g (1–1/2 heaping tablespoons) granulated sugar
gel based black food dye

For the red macarons:

645g (apx. 1/2 cup) almond flour
60g (apx. 1/2 cup) powdered sugar
35g egg whites, from about 1 large egg
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
20g (1–1/4 heaping tablespoons) granulated sugar
gel based red food dye

For the filling:

35g egg whites, from about 1 large egg
1/4 cup (52 g) sugar
pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon of strawberry extract (or bakery emulsion)
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons strawberry jelly or jam
1 teaspoon freeze dried strawberry pieces

Special Tools:

mesh strainer
pastry bags

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Instructions

For the black macarons:

First sift the almond flour, powdered sugar, and salt back and forth four times between two bowls using a mesh strainer. Set aside.
Line a baking sheet with parchment. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add in the egg white and whisk until slightly foamy. Add in the cream of tartar and whisk until soft peaks appear. Then slowly pour in the sugar. Whisk on high until stiff peaks form.
Add in four drops of the black food coloring to the egg whites and slowly whisk to combine. Remove the bowl from the mixer.
Sift a third of the dry mixture into the colored egg whites and fold until barely incorporated, about 10 turns. Repeat twice with remaining dry mix. Fold until batter forms a ribbon when dropped into bowl.
Add about 1/4 of the batter into a piping bag and set aside. Pour remaining batter into a new piping bag and cut the tip off the bag. You want it large enough to pipe out the large ladybugs.
Pipe the bottom lady bug shape onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Let the batter sit about 1 hour.
Preheat your oven to 350°f. Place cookies in oven to bake, and lower the temperature to 300°f. Cook for 17-18 minutes.
Let the macarons cool at least 20-30 minutes before decorating.

For the red macarons:

Follow steps 1-5 above, adding in RED food coloring instead of the black.
Place all the batter into a piping bag, cut the tip of the bag, and pipe out the top ladybug halves as circles.
Using the black macaron batter that was set aside, pipe heads and spots on the red batter to represent ladybugs.
Again, let batter sit for one hour and follow cooking directions from above.

For the filling:

First make the Swiss strawberry buttercream frosting by stirring the egg whites, sugar, and salt together over a double boiler (or bowl set over simmering water on the stove), until temperature reaches 160°f.
Pour heated egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until stiff peaks form.
When the bowl is cool to the touch, add the butter, one piece at a time, whipping between pieces to incorporate butter, but not fully mixing it in.
Next, add in vanilla and strawberry extracts. Whip everything on high until smooth.
Place the frosting in a piping bag and pipe out along inside edges of the black macarons, leaving a center well to fill with the jam. *You may have leftover frosting. Storage instructions in notes below.
Fill well with strawberry jelly/jam and sprinkle freeze-dried strawberry pieces on top.
Attach top and enjoy!

Notes

Sifting the almond flour and powdered sugar together is necessary for the absorption of oils and to prevent clumping of batter.
Using gel based food coloring will give a much deeper, and vibrant color, than standard food dye.
Any left over macaron batter can be piped into smaller cookies and baked off for 15 minutes.
Swiss buttercream heats the egg whites to 160°f to kill off any bacteria.
Leftover buttercream can be stored in the fridge up to two weeks, brought to room temperature, and whipped before using. It can also be stored in the freezer up to 3 months.

Minnie Mouse Chocolate Covered Caramel Apple

September 2, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski 1 Comment

Where can I find the original treat?

These treats can be found all over the Disneyland Resort.

I jokingly declared it fall over on last week’s Instagram announcement due to both Starbucks and Disneyland bringing out all their seasonal products…. in August. But now that it’s September 1st, somehow that doesn’t feel so strange. So, today we’re making caramel apples. Minnie Mouse Chocolate Covered Caramel Apples!

These caramel apples are easy to find at the parks, and you can grab one at Candy Palace, Pooh Corner, Trolley Treats, and Marceline’s in Downtown Disneyland. The treat consists of an extra large apple (I’ve gotten Granny Smith apples but I’ve also seen Fuji) dipped in caramel, with marshmallow ears, which then get dipped in semisweet chocolate, and then half dipped in white chocolate. The apple then gets decorated with the classic Minnie Mouse bow, and gets a layer of white M&M’s buttons and a red sanding sugar bottom. The apples also seemed to be treated with a citric acid bath probably to stop the apples from browning and to keep them fresh while sitting, albeit briefly, in the candy case. We’re going to skip that step here, but if you’re making a bunch, say for favors, or for a class treat, drop me a line and I’ll let you know how to do that.

These chocolate covered caramel apples are sweet, crunchy, and big enough to share. I find these treats best if eaten at room temp, straight out of the refrigerator they’re too hard, and the flavors too muted. So, if you make these and then store them for awhile, let them sit out on the counter at least 15 minutes before digging in.

This recipe has a few steps, and a bit of a waiting time to make, but once you have all your ingredients prepped, you can double and even triple this recipe to suit your needs. Also, once you’ve covered your apples in caramel and done the first chocolate dip, I would say from here on out the apples are kid ready for decorating. An adult should melt the white chocolate, but kids can dip apples in there, and then decorate the bottom themselves.

We’ve got a few notes on chocolate tempering and how to get candies and sugars to stick to each other below in the notes, so please read all the way through the recipe. Also! Hot caramel can be dangerous, so keep kids away during that part. Hope you enjoy this sweet treat!

Minnie Mouse Chocolate Covered Caramel Apple

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 3 caramel apples 1x

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Description

A sweet, crunchy, Minnie Mouse themed chocolate covered caramel apple. A Disneyland-inspired treat.

Ingredients

Scale

3 Granny Smith apples
14 ounces individually wrapped caramels (like Kraft)
2–1/4 tablespoons water
6 regular sized marshmallows
2 ounces red candy melts
16 ounces semisweet chocolate wafers, divided
8 ounces white chocolate melting wafers
18 white M&Ms candies
1–2 cups red sanding sugar

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Instructions

First, rinse apples in very hot water to move any wax that they might be covered with. Dry well, and using a sharp pairing knife, remove bottom and top stems. Insert a wooden stick into the bottom of the apple. They are easier to stand if you keep them bottoms up. Place them on a sheet pan covered with parchment.
Next, combine caramels and water in a medium sized saucepan over medium-low heat.
Stir constantly until everything has melted and caramels are smooth (about 7-8 minutes).
Slightly tip the pan towards you with one hand and dip the apple in the caramel, turning it around to coat the entire surface. Let the excess caramel drip off and scrape any remaining on the bottom off on the side of the pan. Place back on parchment and repeat with next two apples. Let caramel cool slightly but still tacky. Place two marshmallows on each apple towards the top (as caramel cools more, the marshmallows will settle out and downwards a bit). Refrigerate at least 1 hour to let caramel harden and set.
While caramel sets, make the Minnie Mouse bows by melting the red candy melts in the microwave inside a microwave safe bowl, like glass, for 30 seconds. Stir and microwave again for an additional 30 seconds. Keep stirring and microwaving in short bursts of 15 seconds until melted and smooth. Use can alternatively use a double boiler for melting. If you’d like to also create white polka dots here as well, melt about 1 ounce of white candy melts in the same way and then transfer to a piping bag. Pipe small, round dots in the mold first, and then proceed below.
Pour red candy melts into bow molds and let set for 15-20 minutes (you can speed this up by sticking the molds in the refrigerator). Remove from the molds and set aside until ready to use.
Next, temper the semisweet chocolate. You can do this in a double boiler on the stove or in the microwave. Place 2/3 of the semisweet chocolate in a glass bowl. On the stove, over a double boiler, stir until temperature reaches about 110°f. In the microwave, heat for 30 seconds, stir, and keep heating in short 15-20 bursts, stirring between, until temperature reaches about 110°f. Next, start adding in the rest of the semisweet chocolate in small amounts, stirring until melted between batches, until chocolate temperature cools to around 84-90°f. The chocolate is tempered at this point and ready to use.
Remove caramel covered apples from the refrigerator. Dip each apple in, shaking off any excess and letting it drip back into the pan. Scrape any extra off on the side of the bowl. Place back on parchment and attach red bow. Allow chocolate to firm up, about half an hour in the refrigerator.
Fill a shallow bowl with the red sanding sugar, set aside.
Then, melt white chocolate over a double boiler over medium heat, or in the microwave, stirring until smooth.
Dip half the apple in the white chocolate, allowing any excess to drip off, and scraping any extra off on the side of the bowl.
Attach white M&M’s “buttons” around the base and then immediately roll the apple in the red sanding sugar. Set aside and repeat with last two apples.

Notes

Melted caramel is HOT! Use caution in the kitchen. Do not dip your fingers or hands into the caramel has it can adhere to skin and burn you. Keep away from children.
Use hot water to remove caramel from pans and utensils.
Extra melted caramel can be poured into a container and reheated at a later time. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator.
If you are having trouble keeping your marshmallows on during chocolate dipping, insert a small toothpick in each, dip, and immediately remove the toothpick.
If you have extra melted caramel that has pooled at the bottom of the apple, use kitchen shears to remove it immediately after removing from the refrigerator.
You can also pour the red sanding sugar over the apple into a bowl to catch excess and then press lightly with your hand to secure the sugar.
Any extra red sanding sugar that has attached itself to the apple can be swept away with a pastry brush once the white chocolate has set.

Churro Toffee

August 26, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski 3 Comments

Where can I find the original treat?

These treats can be found all over the Disneyland Resort.

I heard about Churro Toffee long before I ever tried it. Several Disney food accounts I follow on Instagram would frequently sing the praises of this spiced, sweet treat reminiscent of the classic Disneyland churro with lots of drooling emojis and exclamation points; I was intrigued. I had to make it.

But first I had to try it! The Disneyland resort has a few places you can pick this up from. I dropped in to Marceline’s in Downtown Disneyland to get mine. Sometimes, if you’re lucky, you can watch the candy makers make Churro Toffee in the window there (but mostly they’re making candy apples).

The trickiest part of this recipe is getting the toffee just right. You’d think with what is really just two, sometimes three, ingredients, this would be an easy recipe to make… but it can go very wrong if you’re not paying attention to temperature. Here, both the temperature of the stove, and the temperature of the mixture are very important. If the heat on your stove is too high, the mixture can “break” or separate and you’ll end up with an oily mess headed straight for the garbage. Also, if you let your mixture get too hot, it will burn, and nothing is going to save it. Nothing. So, if you’re new to toffee making, please go get yourself a candy thermometer. But if this isn’t your first time at the toffee rodeo, proceed as usual.

After you’ve got a solid toffee base, you’re in the clear and this treat comes together fairly easily. Once the toffee is set, it gets a quick dip in melted white chocolate and then takes a cinnamon sugar bath. Kids can help with this part! You’ll need to wait a little while before eating because the white chocolate needs to harden (but even when it’s still a little soft you can sneak a bite. I sure did!).

So now that we’ve talked up this sweet treat, let’s get to making some! Read through all the tips at the end of this recipe too and drop a comment below if you’ve got a question!

Churro Toffee

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 4 large squares 1x

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Description

Buttery english toffee is covered in white chocolate and dusted with a layer of cinnamon-sugar, reminiscent of the classic churro! A Disneyland-inspired treat.

Ingredients

Scale

For the Churro Toffee:

1 cup salted butter (if using unsalted add 1/4 teaspoon)
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons chopped roasted peanuts (see notes on home roasting below)
white chocolate melting wafers
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon

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Instructions

For the toffee base:

First, spray or grease an 8×8″ baking pan and then line with parchment.
Sprinkle chopped peanuts over the parchment and set aside.
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the sugar, butter, and water together. Stir occasionally until butter is melted. Attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pan, careful not to let it touch the very bottom of the pan.
Let the mixture come to a boil, stirring occasionally until it turns an amber brown (this could read 290-305 F on a candy thermometer). The mixture can burn very quickly at this point so as soon as it gets brown, remove from the stove and pour into the prepared pan.
The mixture will start to set up pretty quickly, but move to the refrigerator for about 15 minutes to firm up more. After this point, use a dough scrapper to divide the toffee into 4 large squares (you can always do smaller too if you’d like). Then place back into the refrigerator to completely firm up, about one hour.

For the churro coating:

About 15 minutes before the hour is up, set up your dipping station.
In a medium sized work bowl large enough to fit a square of toffee, mix together 1 cup of sugar and the cinnamon. Set aside.
In a microwave safe bowl, like glass, pour in the white chocolate melting wafers. Microwave for 30 seconds. Stir and microwave again for an additional 30 seconds. Keep stirring and microwaving in short bursts of 15-20 seconds until melted and smooth. Use can alternatively use a double boiler for melting. Set aside.
Remove toffee from the refrigerator and let sit for 5 minutes to come to room temperature. Then dip one square into the white chocolate, letting excess drip off (you can also use a popsicle stick to remove any excess from the edge). Then immediately dip into the cinnamon sugar mixture, turning around the square so that it is evenly covered. Set aside on a baking sheet lined with parchment.
Repeat above dipping steps for next three pieces.
Let the squares sit about an hour at room temperature to fully harden and then enjoy!

Notes

Toffee can reach temperatures of over 300°F so please use caution in the kitchen! Wear gloves, an apron, closed toe shoes, and use a candy thermometer. Keep children away when handling hot sugar.
If the butter separates it could be for a few reasons. One could be that your stove heat is too hot. Keep it around medium for the whole time. Another could be that your butter has a high fat ratio (like European style butters). Also, don’t stir too much after it has reached a boil, just every few minutes should be ok.
I tried this with half the amount of the butter and sugar and found it kept burning easily so I’d keep this as the smallest amount to make and then you can double or triple your batch from there.
If chocolate starts to cool after it is melted, microwave for 5-10 seconds and give it a stir.
Use very hot water to remove stubborn toffee from pans and utensils.
If you cannot find roasted peanuts in the store, you can roast raw peanuts at home by laying them on a baking sheet and baking at 350°F for about 20-25 minutes. giving them a turn about halfway through.

M&M’s Mickey Mouse Rice Krispie Treats

August 19, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski 1 Comment

Mickey M&M's Rice Krispie Treat // magicaltreatsathome.com

Where can I find the original treat?

These treats can be found all over the Disneyland Resort.

I love a rice krispie treat and the Disneyland resort does not shy away from several varieties on their property. It’s been a few months since making the Minnie Mouse Rice Krispie treats, so I thought it was about time we all made another of these fun, kid friendly, treats.

Using a standard rice krispie base, these treats are then dipped into milk chocolate, and then dunked into a sea of mini M&M’s, covering the entire front of the treat in tiny candies. And if that didn’t sound good enough already, then the whole thing gets a nice drizzle of semisweet chocolate. Because, why not?

Mickey M&M's Rice Krispie Treat // magMickey M&M's Rice Krispie Treat // magicaltreatsathome.com

Actually, that drizzle helps secure many of those mini M&M’s from falling off, and it’s a nice little contrast in chocolate from the milk chocolate holding the candies on. This recipe makes 3 treats, but the beauty of this particular recipe is that is doubles, and even triples, easily (just use the multiplier option in the recipe below!).

If you’re new to making rice krispie treats, or working with marshmallows, be sure to read the notes at the end of the recipe. There’s some helpful tips! Also, this recipe qualifies as “kid friendly” for the assembly! Once the base has cooled, kids can help cut out shapes, dip into chocolate and the M&M’s, and even help drizzle the final chocolate on top. Kids love decorating treats and it’s a great way for them to get involved in the kitchen!

M&M’s Mickey Rice Krispie Treats

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 3 M&M’s Mickey Rice Krispie treats 1x

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Description

Crispy, chewy Mickey Mouse Rice Krispie Treats are dipped in a sea of M&M’s candies and topped with a chocolate drizzle. A sweet, Disneyland-inspired treat.

Ingredients

Scale

For the rice krispie treat:

2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
157 g ( 2 cups) mini marshmallows or 20 regular sized marshmallows
1–3/4 cups crisped rice cereal

For the topping:

3–1/2 ounces (100 g) light cocoa candy melts
1 cup mini M&M’s
1–1/2 ounces semisweet chocolate

Tools:

Mickey Mouse cutter
3 Popsicle sticks

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Instructions

For the rice krispie treat:

Before beginning, line a 8×8″ baking pan with parchment.
Combine the butter and marshmallows in a medium sauce pan over medium-low heat. Stir constantly until marshmallows have melted and mixture is smooth.
Immediately dump in the crisped rice cereal and mix to combine.
Pour into the prepared pan and gently press mixture into place with a rubber spatula (or damp fingers). Set aside for at least an hour in the refrigerator so that the mixture can firm up enough to cut shapes.
Once firm, use parchment to lift out rice krispie treats. Use a Mickey Mouse shaped cutter to cut out shapes and set aside.

To decorate:

First, melt the light cocoa candy melts in the microwave inside a microwave safe bowl, like glass, for 30 seconds. Stir and microwave again for an additional 30 seconds. Keep stirring and microwaving in short bursts of 15-20 seconds until melted and smooth. Use can alternatively use a double boiler for melting.
Next, fill a shallow bowl with the M&M’s candies. Set aside.
Insert a popsicle stick into each treat (this will make it easier to handle the chocolate and candies later).
Dip a treat into the melted chocolate, letting any excess drip off back into the bowl, and then immediately dip into the mini M&M’s. Press firmly and then set aside candy side up. Repeat for other treats. Place treats on a piece of parchment lined sheet pan and press candies firmly into place on the treat.
Then, melt semisweet chocolate in a microwave safe bowl, like glass, for 30 seconds. Stir and microwave again for an additional 30 seconds. Keep stirring and microwaving in short bursts of 15-20 seconds until melted and smooth. Use can alternatively use a double boiler for melting. You can also melt directly in a heavy duty, heat safe, piping bag using the same microwave method (I find this easiest when I will be piping without a tip on the bag).
Drizzle or pipe the semisweet chocolate across the M&M’s coated treats. Refrigerate to set about 1 hour. Enjoy!

Notes

Use a smaller pan than you think you’ll need for this. As the marshmallows melt into the butter, if there’s too much space in the pan they will start to dry out and form strings. Keeping the marshmallows closer together in the pan will ensure they melt more evenly, creating a better mixture to add the cereal into.
When mixing crisped rice cereal into the melted marshmallows, keep the mixture on the flame so that marshmallows stay liquid. Removing to mix in can seize up the liquid before the cereal is fully mixed.
You can combine some extra rice krispie treat scraps into the mold to shape additional Mickey Mouse treats.
Treats can be kept in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.

Mickey S’more Square

August 12, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski Leave a Comment

Where can I find the original treat?

These treats can be found all over the Disneyland Resort.

Did you know that Saturday was National S’mores Day? Don’t worry, you won’t find it marked on the calendar, and there isn’t an elf that sneaks into your house at night and leaves s’mores in your shoes. It’s just an excuse to enjoy one of the BEST treats for summer. And Disneyland has you covered… with no fire required!

One of the year-round favorites at the resort, you can usually find this square at Candy Palace, Pooh Corner, Marceline’s in Downtown Disney, and Trolley Treats at DCA. And now you can have it at home too!

The Mickey S’more square is made up of a crisp graham cracker base, a layer of rich milk chocolate fudge, a layer of thick marshmallow, and it’s all covered in a semi-sweet chocolate topped with a yellow chocolate Mickey Mouse. Our recipe below has a few steps, but it all comes together fairly easily once you’re ready to assemble. There’s just the added wait time for the fudge to set up, and the chocolate to set. You WILL NOT need to make graham crackers for this recipe, however, if you do have a homemade recipe you love, by all means use it! We’re using store bought here for consistency and time. For your final square, the Mickey chocolate on top is definitely optional, but we do give an easy way to make one below too, just in case you want a few to snack on!

We won’t be making any campfires for this recipe, and the only fire you’ll see is on a gas stove, but you’ll definitely know you’re eating a S’more when you take a bite of this yummy treat.

Mickey S’more Square

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 6 S’mores Squares 1x

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Description

Layers of crisp graham crackers, rich milk chocolate fudge, and gooey marshmallow are covered in semi-sweet chocolate and topped with a yellow Mickey Mouse chocolate in this dessert reminiscent of the classic s’mores. A Disneyland-inspired treat!

Ingredients

Scale

For the Milk Chocolate Fudge:

8 ounces (227 g) milk chocolate, finely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
7 ounces sweetened condensed milk
pinch teaspoon salt

For the Marshmallows:

1–1/2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 corn light corn syrup
pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 packets of gelatine
2/3 cups of water, divided

For assembly:

6 graham cracker squares (3 large sheets broken in half)
12 ounces (340 g) semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped and divided
2–1/2 ounces white chocolate (71 g), chopped, optional
yellow oil-based chocolate covering, optional

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Instructions

For the Milk Chocolate Fudge:

Line a loaf pan with parchment paper or wax paper.
In a double boiler, combine milk chocolate, butter, sweetened condensed milk, and salt. Stir occasionally, until smooth.
Pour into loaf pan and chill, uncovered, until firm, about 4 hours. Set aside.

For the Marshmallows:

Grease a loaf pan and line with parchment paper or wax paper. Grease top of paper as well. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan over high heat, combine sugar, corn syrup, salt, and 1/3 cup of water. Stir to dissolve sugar. Once mixture reaches a boil, do not disturb. Let the mixture reach “soft ball” stage, approximately 238°F (use a candy thermometer or probe thermometer to get an accurate temperature).
While syrup is boiling, in the bowl of a stand mixer, pour in the other 1/3 cup of water and sprinkle gelatine over it. Let sit for five minutes so water can absorb the gelatine. Not all of it will absorb and that’s ok.
Then, attach the whisk attachment and turn mixer on slowest speed. Wearing oven mitts in case of splashing, slowly pour in the syrup mixture into the mixer. Whisk two minutes and then raise speed to medium. Whisk another two minutes and then gradually move speed to highest. Whisk another 3-5 minutes until mixture is stiff. Beat in vanilla extract for 30 seconds and then pour everything into the prepared pan. Mixture will be very sticky and you might not be able to get everything out of the bowl. See notes below.
Use wet fingers to smooth out the marshmallow top and let sit out, uncovered, until firm. About 3 hours.

Mickey Mouse chocolate toppers (optional)

In a microwave safe bowl, combine chopped white chocolate and a few drops of the oil-based yellow food coloring.
Heat in microwave for 30 seconds, stir, and continue to microwave in short 15 -20 second bursts, stirring between, until chocolate is melted and smooth.
Pour into molds and let sit in the refrigerator about 30 minutes to harden. Remove from molds and set aside.

Assembly:

First, temper the semi-sweet chocolate for coating: In a microwave safe bowl, add 2/3 of the chocolate. Microwave for 30 seconds, stir, microwave for another 30 seconds. Stir again and microwave in short bursts of 15-20 seconds until chocolate has uniformly melted and has reached between 114° – 118°F. Then add in some of the remaining chocolate, stir to completely melt and then add more (I did three batches). Continue to stir the chocolate until it has cooled to 88° – 89°F (this can take several minutes of stirring). The chocolate is now tempered and ready to use. Set aside.
Un-mold the fudge from the pan and using a graham cracker as a guide, divide and cut the fudge to fit on the base of cracker. You may need to combine some pieces of fudge if your graham crackers are larger.
Next, remove the marshmallow from the pan keeping it on the parchment. To square off ends of marshmallows, use a long, sharp knife to trim sides. Clean knife with hot water between cuts.
Then, using a graham cracker as a guide, divide the pan into roughly 9 squares, using the same, long, sharp knife to make cuts. You will only need six of the marshmallows for this recipe. See notes below for storing extra marshmallows. Use damp fingers to remove marshmallows from each other if they get stuck together.
Create each stack by starting with the graham cracker base, a piece of fudge, and then top with the marshmallow. Set aside on a sheet pan lined with parchment.
Dip each stack into the tempered chocolate, using a spoon to pour chocolate on top and let drip down sides. Use a chocolate fork or slotted spatula to remove the stack from the chocolate. Allow the chocolate to drip from the stack for a minute or two (or you’ll end up with lots of pooled chocolate) and then place on sheet pan. Repeat until all stacks have been dipped.
If you are using the yellow chocolate Mickey Mouse topper, place one on each stack after you have dipped it.
Allow everything to set at least 4 hours or overnight. Enjoy!

Notes

Making marshmallows is a sticky, hot mess. You will need to wear an apron, close toed shoes, and make sure you have a candy thermometer and the clear space to work.
Be OK with the fact that you were going to lose some of the marshmallow in the mixing bowl, on your spoon, and probably on your hands. It’s OK! You’ll have plenty left over.
Any leftover marshmallows in the pan can be cut and tossed in powdered sugar. Keep in an airtight container up to a week.
When tempering chocolate, keep all moisture and liquids away from the chocolate.
If chocolate starts to cool after it is tempered, microwave for 5-10 seconds.
A note on pan sizes. I mention that the fudge is made in a loaf pan and the marshmallows are made in an 8″ square pan. Both hold around 8 cups capacity so you would be able to make both in the 8″ square pan. I was able to get 6 squares of fudge from the loaf pan, I just had to smoosh a few pieces together as noted in the recipe above. Force of habit of making fudge in a loaf pan automatically had me write the recipe this way!

Cheshire Cat Tails

August 5, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski 2 Comments

Cheshire Cat Tail // magicaltreatsathome.com

Where can I find the original treat?

These treats can be found at the Candy Palace on Main Street in Disneyland.

These sweet treats, based on the iconic pink and purple coloring of Alice in Wonderland’s Cheshire Cat, are more than meets the eye. At its base, it’s a marshmallow wand, enrobed in a layer of caramel, and then dipped in pink colored white chocolate. The white chocolate is strawberry flavored, and the whole thing is finished with stripes of purple sanding sugar held on with white chocolate.

While these marshmallow wands might seem straightforward, there is actually a lot of temperature control needed, as well as precise ingredients. Why? Because we’re dealing with caramel and chocolate.

Now, admittedly I started this recipe off with the wrong caramel recipe. See, I have this super yummy salted caramel recipe that I love. So without thinking I started there and only when I tried to dip the marshmallows in it, and it just started falling off the marshmallows, did I realize that this yummy recipe was in fact the wrong type of caramel. A soft, liquid-y caramel is not what one wants here for two reasons. One, well, it falls off the marshmallows and does not become fully solid. And two, when the not fully solid caramel hits the very warm white chocolate… it all just melts off into a puddle. Yuck.

So, melting caramels are a good bet here. And on second try this was the perfect solution to getting a firm caramel that held up to being dipped in warm chocolate. Alternatively, there are homemade caramel recipes out there that will become solid, you’ll just need to use that type of recipe. Usually there is corn syrup in it.

With melting chocolate, there are a few factors you need to remember. First, the type of chocolate you’re using will determine how hot you can get your temperature. White chocolate, which isn’t technically chocolate, should not go above 110°f. If you temper your chocolate you will lose its temper and you also risk burning your chocolate if you get it too hot. Also, if you get your chocolate too hot, it will start to “break” when you try to coat items like these caramel covered marshmallow wands. Check out the notes below the recipe for tips dealing with this if it happens. The trick with coating is to get it warm enough to drip off your spoon and keep it warm, not hot, for even coating.

I did say this was a “kid friendly” recipe and you might think I have lost my mind. Molten caramel! Scalding hot chocolate! What the heck?! But really, the fun part for kids is the decorating. Older kids can dip wands into the pink white chocolate because really, at the dipping point the chocolate should not be hot enough to burn skin. And small kids will have lots of fun covering their marshmallow wands with purple sprinkles. And it’s OK if adults enjoy it just as much (I do!!).

So let’s get into the kitchen and whip up a batch of Cheshire Cat Tails! They’re sure to make you grin!

Cheshire Cat Tails

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 6 Cheshire Cat Tails 1x

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Description

These ooey-gooey marshmallow wands found at the Candy Palace at the Disneyland Resort are more than meets the eye! Sweet, buttery caramel covers a marshmallow wand while the whole treat get covered in strawberry flavored pink white chocolate and topped with purple sanding sugar stripes… just like the Cheshire Cat’s tail. A Disneyland-inspired treat.

Ingredients

Scale

24 marshmallows
1 eleven ounce package of individually wrapped caramels (like Kraft)
2 tablespoons water
11 ounces of pink candy melts
1 tablespoon of coconut oil
1/4 teaspoon of strawberry flavor oil (like Lorann – must be oil based not water based! See notes below)
6 ounces of white candy melts
1 cup purple sanding sugar
6 lollipop sticks

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Instructions

Place four marshmallows, round side facing out, on each lollipop stick. Set aside.
Place a sheet of parchment on a sheet pan. Butter it lightly and set aside.
Unwrap all the caramels and add to a small saucepan. Pour water in and heat over medium-low heat.
Stir constantly until everything has melted and caramels are smooth (about 7-8 minutes).
Once melted (caramels should drip in a ribbon from a spoon back into the pan), dip each wand into the caramel, turning quickly to coat. Let excess caramel drip off for at least 30 seconds, turning while it drips for even coating, and then place on the buttered parchment.
When all the wands have been dipped, refrigerate for thirty minutes.
About 15 minutes to wands coming out of refrigerator, set up your sanding sugar station by setting out an empty wide, shallow bowl and another bowl with sanding sugar in it.
Remove wands from the refrigerator. Then, in a double boiler, combine pink candy melts, strawberry flavoring, and coconut oil (this can alternatively be melted in the microwave as well. Please see notes below.). Melt over medium heat, stirring constantly until smooth. Do not let the temperature go above 110°f (you might want to use a candy thermometer if you’re unsure).
Once smooth, dip caramel covered marshmallow wands in the chocolate, turning evenly to coat and fill in any gaps. Let the pink chocolate drip back into pan and lightly scrape one side on the edge of pan to remove any additional excess. Place back on buttered parchment. Repeat for all wands and let coating dry about 30 minutes.
Next, melt the white chocolate (you can melt in a heavy duty piping bag as well), and create stripes on the first marshmallow wand, and immediately pour the purple sanding sugar over the stripes, letting excess catch in the empty bowl. You can press the wand lightly into sugar if you’d like a more thicker coating (I was fine with the lighter stripes). Set aside. Repeat with additional wands. If sanding sugar adheres to the pink coating, use a small brush to brush crystals away after fully dried. Then enjoy!

Notes

Melted caramel is HOT! Use caution in the kitchen. Do not dip your fingers or hands into the caramel has it can adhere to skin and burn you. Keep away from children.
Use hot water to remove caramel from pans and utensils.
If you wish to microwave your candy melts, combine them with strawberry flavoring, and coconut oil in a microwave safe bowl, and heat for 30 seconds on half power, stir, and continue to microwave in about 15-20 second increments until smooth.
If you have extra melted caramel that has dried around your wand, use kitchen shears to remove it immediately after removing from the refrigerator.
Did your chocolate coating break when you first dipped your wand in? Wait for the chocolate to cool down more. It should drip freely from a spoon without it seizing when the spoon is shaken slightly (will cause crevices in the chocolate on the spoon). If it breaks on the wand, your wand also might be too cool, so let them warm up more. And don’t worry, once that chocolate starts to firm up, you can dip it AGAIN into the chocolate to get a more even, although slightly thicker, coating.

Mickey’s Celebration Churro

July 29, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski Leave a Comment

Where can I find the original treat?

This specialty churro was part of the “Get Your Ears On” celebration found near the Small World Promenade at the Disneyland resort.

Well, July is almost over and that means that Churro Month is coming to an end (for now). And to conclude this on a celebratory note, today we’ve got Mickey’s Celebration Churro for our final churro recipe.

This fun chocolate churro was another favorite of mine, mostly because it was doused in warm cookie butter. And I heard from a number of followers that this too was a win, albeit a bit messy!

Remember, check out all the notes following the recipe below for some tips and tricks to making churros at home. These are definitely easy to make once you get the hang of everything.

Here we’ve got a chocolate churro that’s been covered in chocolate cinnamon sugar, drizzled with cookie butter, sprinkled with sparkling sugar crystals, and then it gets covered in black, white, and red Mickey Mouse decorettes. I opted to purchase cookie butter for ease of use with this recipe, but if you have a recipe for it you like, go ahead and use that! I’ve found that the cookie butter spread at Trader Joes was similar in taste to what was at the park. Also, if you enjoy making Disneyland-inspired treats at home, Amazon has a wealth of options currently for this Mickey Mouse decorettes.

Ok, let’s start up that cooking oil one last time and make some churros!

Mickey’s Celebration Churro

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 16 – 18 churros 1x

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Description

Celebrate Mickey with this chocolate churro covered with chocolate cinnamon-sugar, warm cookie butter, sugar crystals, and black, white, and red Mickey Mouse decorettes! A Disneyland-inspired treat.

Ingredients

Scale

Chocolate Churros

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
1/4 cup white sugar crystals
1/2 cup cookie butter (I used Trader Joes brand here)
black, white, and red Mickey Mouse decorettes

vegetable oil for frying
1 cup water
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 eggs

Marshmallow Creme

3/4 cup glucose or corn syrup
1 ounce egg white
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons vanilla extract
1–2 tablespoons milk (start with one and increase if needed)
red food dye
yellow “buttons” (I used M&Ms)

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Instructions

Chocolate Churros:

Line two half sized sheet pans with parchment, set aside. Mix together the 1/2 cup of granulated sugar, cinnamon and cocoa powder in a long shallow bowl or loaf pan, set aside.
Warm the cookie butter in the microwave about 45 seconds. Stir and set aside. Optionally, you can pour the warmed cookie butter into squeeze bottle. Keep near the stove while cooking so it stays warm.
In a medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat, combine water, butter, sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, or until butter has melted.
Turn burner to low and sift in all the flour and cocoa powder. Stir until there are no visible flour lumps and dough has begun to stick together in a ball and pulled away from the sides of the pan. Remove pan from heat and let sit 5 minutes. Then stir in each egg until incorporated. Dough will appear to break or become lumpy. Continue to stir until it forms a smooth, sticky dough.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a Wilton 1 M open star tip half full with batter (see notes below on filling pastry bags) and pipe 8″ long dough onto the sheet pan. I was able to fill two sheet pans with all the batter.
Refrigerate dough at least 30 minutes and up to two days. Batter will stiffen the more it sits, so let the dough come to room temperature before frying.
Fill a dutch oven or deep frying pan with vegetable oil at least 2″ up the side of the pan (I found a 1/2 gallon of avocado oil worked for me in my large dutch oven. See note below about reusing oil.). Heat oil to 340-350°f, using a candy thermometer to keep the temperature constant. You may need to adjust heat up or down during cooking.
Place churros 2-3 at a time in the cooking oil for 6 minutes, turning after 3 minutes with a spatula. Wait until oil comes back to temperature before adding next batch.
Using a spider or large spatula, remove churros from oil and drain on a cooling rack over parchment or on a paper towel. Wait at least a minute and then toss the churro in the chocolate cinnamon-sugar, tapping off any excess. Then move them back to the cooling rack. Drizzle cookie butter on the churros, sprinkle the sugar crystals, and then the Mickey decorettes.
While churros cool slightly, make the marshmallow creme dip.

Marshmallow Creme:

Combine glucose or corn syrup, egg white, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on high for 5-10 minutes until doubled in size.
Once doubled, move speed to low and pour in powdered sugar in a constant stream and mix until fully combined. You may have to stop and scrape down sides of bowl. Add in one tablespoon of milk. Add in additional milk if you’d like the creme runnier. Mix in vanilla extract.
Remove 1/2 cup of mixture into a separate container and add in 3-4 drops of red food dye until desired color is reached. Top marshmallow creme with the yellow M&M “buttons”.
The rest of the marshmallow creme can be sealed in an air-tight container and refrigerated up to a month.
Dip churros in marshmallow creme. Enjoy!

Notes

Do not overfill your pastry bag! Fill in two to three batches. If there is too much dough, it will seep out the top and will be hard to pipe.
Slowly pipe out dough all of a consistent size, smaller spots on the churro can cause them to become more fragile while handling and can break in the oil or while coating in sugar.
Churro dough can be piped out onto parchment and covered in the fridge up to 48 hours.
If you want to make you churros immediately after making dough without the chilling time, once oil has reached temp, starting about one inch above the oil, pipe a small line of dough down into oil and either snip end with scissors, or break the dough off the pastry tip on the side of your pan. Follow directions above for frying.
Thicker churros will require a longer cooking time to fully cook through the center. Test one churro first to adjust your cooking time.
Cooking oil can be fine strained and stored again for another use. I strain back into the bottle it came from. Well strained oil can be stored in a cool, dry place and used up to several times.
Churros curling? That could be one of a few reasons. One is that it will naturally shrink and change shape as the dough hits the oil and puffs up. I found that the stiffer dough from sitting in the fridge resulted in straighter churros while fresher dough tending to curl more. Also, if you’re using a circular pot like a dutch oven, churros may rest against the inside edge of the pan while cooking causing them to take on the curved shape of the pan. To prevent this, nudge your churro with the spider or spatula immediately after placing in oil when it pops back up to the surface. Continue to nudge gently back and forth for about 20-40 seconds or until the dough has gotten stiff in the oil.

Banana Pudding Churro

July 22, 2019 by Elana Lepkowski 1 Comment

Where can I find the original treat?

This specialty churro was part of the “Get Your Ears On” celebration found near the Haunted Mansion at the Disneyland resort.

I’ll start this post by putting it out there that I’m not a big banana dessert fan. Sure, I’ll eat a straight up banana, but when presented with any kind of dessert where the banana is transformed into something else… hard pass. So, I was definitely a little hesitant to even try this churro at the park. But, I’m glad I did because I ended up surprisingly liking it. So, now we have the third recipe for #ChurroMonth here on the site: Banana Pudding Churros.

This specialty churro had people divided. There were those who really enjoyed it, like myself, and there were those who hated this churro (with lots of vomiting emoji faces to state their case). A big reason for this might have been that people complained that the banana pudding was sour. And, well, it kinda was in a weird way. I have a feeling it could have been too much of a preservative added in because it seemed like it was heavy on citric acid. Or it could have been a stabilizer, but alas, I never asked anyone about it so I don’t conclusively know.

Like I’ve said in previous posts, since all these recipes are “inspired” and not straight copycat recipes, I can take a cue from the audience and make sure that our banana pudding is not sour. I mean, if you did like that sourness you can buy citric acid in bulk on Amazon or crush up a vitamin C pill and you’ll have done the trick.

This recipe works because of the two components: shortbread crusted churros and banana pudding. Separate they are lacking, but together they are just delicious. The buttery, not too sweet shortbread gets a lift in flavor from the sweet, banana pudding. And I’ll note also that we are not making the banana pudding from scratch, although, if you have a recipe you love and want to make that here, by all means, please do. For me, I’ve stuck to box pudding and am totally OK with it.

So, if you were a fan, I hope you enjoy this week’s churro recipe, and if you were not convinced at the parks, well, I hope you try my recipe and change your mind. Enjoy!

Banana Pudding Churros

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Author: Elana Lepkowski
Yield: 16–18 churros 1x

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Description

Buttery, slightly sweet shortbread cookie crumbs cover the classic cinnamon-sugar churro accompanied by sweet banana pudding dipping sauce. A Disneyland-inspired treat.

Ingredients

Scale

Toppings:

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
156 grams of shortbread cookies, crushed (I used an entire bag of Pepperidge Farm shortbread cookies, homemade also OK here)
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Churro:

1 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
big pinch of salt
1 cup all purpose flour
2 eggs
vegetable oil for frying

Banana Pudding Dip

1 package of instant Banana Pudding (I used Jell-O brand Banana Cream)

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Instructions

For the banana pudding:

Make banana pudding according to instructions. Chill, covered, in the refrigerator until ready to use.

For the toppings:

Line two half sized sheet pans with parchment, set aside. Mix together 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and cinnamon in a long shallow bowl or loaf pan, set aside.
Crush cookies in a ziplock bag with a rolling pin until finely ground. Alternatively, you can pulse in a food processor until a sand-like consistency forms. Combine with melted butter until all butter is absorbed. Place in a long shallow bowl or loaf pan, set aside.

For the churros:

In a medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat, combine water, butter, sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, or until butter has melted.
Turn burner to low and pour in all the flour at once. Stir until there are no visible flour lumps and dough has begun to stick together in a ball and pulled away from the sides of the pan.
Remove pan from heat and let sit 5 minutes. Then stir in each egg until incorporated. Dough will appear to break or become lumpy. Continue to stir until it forms a smooth, sticky dough.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a Wilton 1 M open star tip half full with batter (see notes below on filling pastry bags) and pipe 8″ long dough onto the sheet pan. I was able to fill two sheet pans with all the batter.
Refrigerate dough at least 30 minutes and up to two days. Batter will stiffen the more it sits, so let the dough come to room temperature before frying. (Note below for frying immediately after making dough)
Fill a dutch oven or deep frying pan with vegetable oil at least 2″ up the side of the pan (I found a 1/2 gallon of avocado oil worked for me in my large dutch oven. See note below about reusing oil.). Heat oil to 340-350°f, using a candy thermometer to keep the temperature constant. You may need to adjust heat up or down during cooking.
Place churros 2-3 at a time in the cooking oil for 6 minutes, turning after 3 minutes with a spatula or spider. Wait until oil comes back to temperature before adding next batch.
Using a spider or large spatula, remove churros from oil and drain on a cooling rack over parchment or on a paper towel. Wait at least a minute and then toss the churro in the cinnamon sugar, tapping off any excess. Then roll churro in the cookie crumbs, lightly pressing to adhere. Set churro aside. Repeat with all the churros.
When ready to eat, dip each churro in the banana pudding. Enjoy!

Notes

Do not overfill your pastry bag! Fill in two to three batches. If there is too much dough, it will seep out the top and will be hard to pipe.
Slowly pipe out dough all of a consistent size, smaller spots on the churro can cause them to become more fragile while handling and can break in the oil or while coating in sugar.
Churro dough can be piped out onto parchment and covered in the fridge up to 48 hours.
If you want to make you churros immediately after making dough without the chilling time, once oil has reached temp, starting about one inch above the oil, pipe a small line of dough down into oil and either snip end with scissors, or break the dough off the pastry tip on the side of your pan. Follow directions above for frying.
Thicker churros will require a longer cooking time to fully cook through the center. Test one churro first to adjust your cooking time.
Cooking oil can be fine strained and stored again for another use. I strain back into the bottle it came from. Well strained oil can be stored in a cool, dry place and used up to several times.
Churros curling? That could be one of a few reasons. One is that it will naturally shrink and change shape as the dough hits the oil and puffs up. I found that the stiffer dough from sitting in the fridge resulted in straighter churros while fresher dough tending to curl more. Also, if you’re using a circular pot like a dutch oven, churros may rest against the inside edge of the pan while cooking causing them to take on the curved shape of the pan. To prevent this, nudge your churro with the spider or spatula immediately after placing in oil when it pops back up to the surface. Continue to nudge gently back and forth for about 20-40 seconds or until the dough has gotten stiff in the oil.

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