Just in time for Star Wars Weekends, this designer cupcake is back – rich chocolate-peanut butter filling and chocolate frosting with Darth Vader and a kitschy saber (actually a plastic pick) topping the confection.

You’ll only find it May 17-June 9 at ABC Commissary, Pizza Planet, Backlot Express, Studio Catering Company, Starring Rolls, Rosie’s All-American Cafe and Fairfax Faire. Cost is $4.99 and the cupcake is on the Disney Dining Plan.

Tagged: Dining, Star Wars, WDW

Filed: Disney Dining, Walt Disney World Resort

There’s the Cuban, the lobster, the California Burger . . . and Chef Dan at ESPN Club on Disney’s BoardWalk can’t help but keep inventing new “extreme” burgers-more a meal than a sandwich. One of the newest is the PB&J Burger, a stack that starts with creamy peanut butter on a Kaiser roll and builds with an Angus Burger, bacon, pickled jalapeños and a generous slather of house-made blackberry. His latest is the Farmhouse Burger, beginning with potato pancakes instead of bread, then everything for a big breakfast is included: a fried egg, sausage, oven-roasted tomatoes, arugula – and an Angus Burger, of course. Take a look at my pal John Graham’s video.

Tagged: Dining, Video, WDW

Filed: Disney Dining, Walt Disney World Resort

Opa! A Celebration of Greece kicks off May 25 with all sorts of fun at both Disneyland and Disney California Adventure parks. There’s live entertainment, line dancing, wine education and tasting seminars at Disney California Adventure park, Olympic training with Hercules at Disneyland park … but for us, it’s all about the food.

Each day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., activities at the festival center around “it’s a small world” Mall in Disneyland park and Paradise Gardens in Disney California Adventure park.

Authentic Greek tastes include thin flatbreads; a classic gyro, the Greek version of a quick-service sandwich with rotisserie meat and veggies; spanakopita swirl, a fun take on the traditional spinach pie; and melomakarona (meh-loh-mah-KAH-roh-nah), a delicious cookie with honey and walnuts. Look for the Greek goodies at Carnation Café, Redd Rockett’s Pizza Port and special carts in Disneyland park. At Disney California Adventure park, treats are at Boardwalk Pizza & Pasta, Paradise Garden Grill and special carts in Paradise Gardens.

At 8 p.m. on May 26, Executive Chef Christine Weissman and her team of chefs from Disneyland and Disney California Adventure parks will work alongside Greek celebrity Chef Argiro Barbarigou to creatively interpret her recipes at “Celebrate Greece: A Culinary Experience.” Greek winemaker Christina Boutari will join the chefs at the Golden Vine Winery in Disney California Adventure park for a four-course Greek dinner featuring cod croquettes with roasted beetroot, arugula and skordalia; salad with caramelized figs, walnuts, pomegranate and fresh goat cheese; tender braised osso buco; and a trio of Greek sweets for dessert. Reserved viewing for “World of Color” nighttime spectacular is included. Tickets are $150, including tax and gratuity (park admission separate). For reservations and tickets, click here.

Tagged: DCA, Dining, DL, DLR

Filed: Disney California Adventure Park, Disney Dining, Disneyland Park, Disneyland Resort

You’re going to love the Disney Cruise Line recipe we’re sharing this month: a very flavorful seafood risotto! Another guest favorite at Palo, this saffron risotto dish is served with shrimp, mussels, clams and fried zucchini. Check out this video with Palo’s Executive Chef Silvio as he shows you how to make this delicious entrée.

 
Saffron Risotto served with Fried Zucchini, Shrimp, Mussels, and Clams
Serves 4

Fried Zucchini

• 1 small zucchini, sliced lengthwise into paper-thin strips
• Vegetable oil, for frying

Risotto

• 6 cups fish or vegetable stock
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 cups Arborio rice
• 1/2 cup white wine at room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
• 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
• Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Seafood

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup chopped shallot
• 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 12 mussels, scrubbed
• 12 clams, scrubbed
• 12 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 cups seafood or vegetable stock
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon

Garnish

• 4 stems fresh thyme
• 4 stems fresh oregano
• 4 stems fresh rosemary
• 4 fresh chives
• 12 cherry tomatoes
• Shaved parmesan cheese, to taste

For fried zucchini:

Heat oil in a large, deep pot until it shimmers. Working in batches of 3 or 4, gently drop zucchini strips into hot oil. Cook until crisp and golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. Keep warm.

For risotto:

1. Warm stock in a small saucepan over medium heat. Keep warm.
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat; add onion and sauté, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes.
3. Add rice and toast lightly for 1 minute. Add wine and cook until almost completely absorbed. Add 1 cup stock and cook until it is mostly absorbed, stirring often. Continue adding stock, 1 cup at a time, simmering, stirring often, until almost all broth is absorbed before adding next cup. Add stock until rice is creamy and cooked through.
4. Stir in saffron threads and mascarpone; season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep warm.

For seafood:

1. Warm olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat; add shallot and garlic, cooking until softened and golden, about 2 minutes.
2. Add mussels, clams, and shrimp; stir to combine. Add stock; cover, and bring to a simmer. Cook 3 to 5 minutes, or until shellfish has opened and shrimp are just cooked through. Stir in tarragon. Keep warm.

For garnish:

Create 4 bundles of 1 stem each of thyme, oregano, and rosemary. Tie a chive around each bundle to secure.

To serve:

Gently fold seafood into risotto. Divide risotto mixture evenly among 4 serving plates. Top each serving with fried zucchini strips, 3 cherry tomatoes, an herb bundle, and shaved parmesan cheese.


Yum! Read on for more recipes from Disney Cruise Line:

• Recipe for Disney Cruise Line’s Grilled Tuna
• Recipe for Disney Cruise Line’s Osso Bucco
• A Recipe for Disney Cruise Line’s Marinated Lamb Chops

Tagged: DCL, Dining, Recipe, Video

Filed: Disney Cruise Line, Disney Dining

It’s a feast for the eyes and the palate at this year’s Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival, with a dozen new Garden Marketplaces adding to the beauty all around the park. Beyond a taste of global cuisine, each Marketplace features a gorgeous garden that showcases some of the fruits, veggies and herbs you can taste – and what a wonderful way to introduce little ones to how things grow, and how they are transformed into deliciousness.

We met two new friends at Epcot, Evy and Lucy, who were ready for a culinary adventure to check out some of the TRYit! dishes created just for youngsters. TRYit! dishes combine a familiar taste with something maybe not so familiar into something new . . . and these two girls gave the experience “two thumbs up!” Look for the TRYit! logo in Disney restaurants, too.

The festival runs through May 19, still plenty of time to come have a taste and stroll the World Showcase Promenade, with live music plus gardening and decorating seminars daily. For more information, go to www.epcotinspring.com.

Look below for more posts about dining at the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival:

• Flower and Garden, Food and Beverage a Perfect Match at the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival
• Top Five Best-Selling Dishes at the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival
• Catch a Grilling Demo with PBS Chef George Hirsch at Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival

Tagged: Dining, Epcot, International Flower and Garden Festival, Video, WDW

Filed: Disney Dining, Epcot, Walt Disney World Resort

In a super-close competition, Chef Andrew Sutton from Napa Rose at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa was edged out today by Chicago Chef Carlo Lamagna for top honors in the Skuna Bay Chef Challenge at the legendary “Taste of Derby” at the Kentucky Derby.

It’s a long road from Southern California to Churchill Downs Racetrack in Louisville, Ky., and Sutton started competing in March in North American regionals, sponsored by Skuna Bay Salmon. Thirty chefs entered their most impressive Skuna Bay salmon recipes, and Sutton was a regional winner. In April, the winning regional chefs went head-to-head in Round 2 in competitions in Los Angeles and Chicago. Sutton again was victorious.

The finals for “National Skuna Bay Craftsman Chef” were this week in Louisville, with Sutton going up against Chef Carlo Lamagna from Perennial Virant in Chicago. At each stage of the competition, Sutton crafted the same beautiful dish: an elegant, use-all-of-the-fish trio that included tangerine-cured salmon belly sashimi; a pan-roasted fillet with crispy skin on an English pea coulis, topped with house-cured salmon roe and Eureka lemon; and an escabéche featuring fresh salmon cut in perfect miniature cubes and tossed with cucumber, mint and cilantro. Each round started by breaking down and filleting a 10- to 12-pound Skuna Bay salmon. (Skuna Bay is along Vancouver Island, British Columbia, where waters are glacier-fed and the fish used in their feed is from sustainably certified fisheries.)

Along with competing in the prestigious culinary contest, Sutton gets a primo seat for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby.

He offered his winning creation at Napa Rose before the contest, practicing to get it perfect. And we bet you’ll find it back on the restaurant’s menu.

Congrats, Chef Andrew!

Tagged: Dining, DLR

Filed: Disney Dining, Disneyland Resort

Here at Disney Parks, we love the aroma of freshly baked treats. Whether we are being lured to Les Halles Boulangerie & Patisserie at the France Pavilion at Epcot by the scent of éclairs or to Boudin Bakery at Disney California Adventure park by the smell of fresh sourdough bread, baked goods can be found throughout the parks. Read the posts below to learn where you can find the best bakeries and treats at Disney Parks.

Take 5: Bakeries at Disney Parks

1. Expanded BoardWalk Bakery Reopens at Walt Disney World Resort Friday with New Treats – BoardWalk Bakery reopened yesterday with some all-new taste sensations!
2. New Bakery Opens at France Pavilion at Epcot at Walt Disney World Resort – Start your day with a latte and chocolate croissant at Les Halles Boulangerie & Patisserie at the France Pavilion at Epcot, opening each morning at 9 a.m.
3. Behind the Scenes at Boudin Bakery in Disney California Adventure Park – Get an inside look at how bakers take the ingredients at Boudin Bakery at Disney California Adventure park from dough to delicious.
4. All About the Details at Jolly Holiday Bakery Café at Disneyland Park – The Jolly Holiday Bakery Café at Disneyland park is great at any time, boasting everything from sandwiches and sweets to enchanting details.
5. La Brea Bakery Café and Express Café Now Open in the Downtown Disney District at the Disneyland Resort – La Brea Bakery Café and Express Café in the Downtown Disney District at the Disneyland Resort reopened in June, offering both building enhancements and many new menu items.

Tagged: Dining, DLR, Take 5, WDW

Filed: Disney Dining, Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort