I love cooking and I’m slowly, but surely building a repertoire of meals I’m able to prepare! Since I have a bigger sweet tooth than probably anyone else, I tend to gravitate toward baking goodies in the kitchen. I find baking and cooking to be therapeutic, so if I’m stressed out, you will most likely find me whipping up a batch of cookies or cupcakes. I don’t even have to eat them, I just like to make them and give them away!

That brings me to the focus of my blog posts. I will be picking a restaurant to highlight every week from the Disney parks and telling you all a little bit about it, what my experience has been there, and the best dishes you will find there. Then, I will leave you with a recipe from that location, so you can try it at home! My boyfriend just got me a Disney cookbook, so I can assure you I will have some good recipes to share with you all!

Besides being a foodie, I am also a huge Disney nerd. My friends can attest to the fact that my family loves Disney and that I get incredibly excited about anything pertaining to Disney. My family has been to Disney World 50+ times, Disneyland once, on a Disney Cruise, and I have personally visited Disneyland Paris! The reason that I love Disney is because it feels like coming home to me. I always get a sense of calm and peace when I enter the Disney gates because it feels like a safe haven away from the real world. A place to just be goofy and be a kid again and not care what anyone else thinks about it. I’ve had some of my greatest family memories spending time together on vacations there. Any time I’m at Disney, I find myself constantly laughing, smiling, and having a great time. It also provides a sense of stability. Even when lots of things are ever changing in the real world, you always know Disney will be there and will be relatively the same when you return next time.

I’m excited to start writing my posts and I hope everyone enjoys them! Please let me know if you want me to highlight any particular restaurants or recipes! Thanks guys!

*o*–Kristin

The post A Taste of Disney: A Delicious New Blog Series appeared first on WDW Radio - Your Walt Disney World Information Station by Lou Mongello.

Hello and welcome to The WDW Radio Show – Your Walt Disney World Information Station. I am your host, Lou Mongello, and this is show #278 for the week of June 10, 2012.

Join us around the table for a little different live restaurant review from Walt Disney World, as this week we experience our first live review at a counter-service restaurant in the parks. So join us as we stroll down Commissary Lane at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, for our live lunch review of the ABC Commissary. We sample the menus for adults and kids, discuss the theming, value, options and more.

I’ll have the answer and winner for last week’s Walt Disney World Trivia Question of the Week, and pose a new one for your chance to win a Disney prize package.

I’ll explain why this week’s show is a little shorter than usual as I am getting ready to bring you live, full coverage of the opening of CarsLand at Disney California Adventure Park in Disneyland later this week, so be sure and stay for the announcements and your voicemails at the end of the show. So sit back, relax, and enjoy this week’s episode of the WDW Radio Show.

Thanks for listening! Be sure to tune in next week!

Information and Links from This Week’s Show:

Question for YOU: What is your favorite counter-service restaurant in Walt Disney World? Leave your answer in the comments section below

• Listen to this week’s episode for the Walt Disney World Trivia Question of the Week for a chance to win a Disney prize package!
• Private Tours of Walt Disney World with Lou Mongello
• Disney Meets and WDW Radio Meets of the Month in Walt Disney World – Get dates and locations on our Events page
• Watch & chat during our LIVE WDW NewsCast Wednesdays at 7:30pm ET at WDWRadioLIVE.com
• Get Celebrations Magazine on your iPad/iPhone in iTunes App Store
  

The post Show # 278 – June 10, 2012 appeared first on WDW Radio - Your Walt Disney World Information Station by Lou Mongello.

An upswing in Walt Disney World dessert sales is a sign of the times, with sweet sales soaring in U.S. restaurants. And in spite of the no-carb craze, there’s no sign that the heightened demand is slowing down.  Last year at Walt Disney World Resort, pastry chefs used more than 865,000 pounds of sugar.

Erich Herbitschek, master pastry chef at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, keeps a staff busy with increased dessert orders for his chocolate creations, crème brûlèe and other desserts.  On a recent weekend at California Grill at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, 50 percent of the diners ordered desserts such as butterscotch crème brûlée with banana cakes and caramelized bananas; warm Valrhona chocolate cake with molten center and raspberry ice cream; and chocolate pyramid with chocolate gelato and berries.

Which Disney desserts are making memories?  Though you’ll find house-made sorbets and fresh fruit on menus, here are the decadent, longtime best sellers:

• Silky chai cream with tea tuile at Sanaa at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge.
• Warm berry cobbler at Artist Point at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, seasonal fruit and a sugary crust served with vanilla ice cream.
• Old-fashioned s’mores at 50′s Prime Time Cafe at Disney’s Hollywood Studios — graham crackers, chocolate square and marshmallows, served warm, just like the campfire days.
• A Florida favorite, the Key lime pie at Olivia’s Cafe at Disney’s Old Key West Resort.
• The legendary grapefruit cake at The Hollywood Brown Derby at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, made from the 1920s recipe shared from the original Brown Derby restaurant in Hollywood.
• The satiny crème brûlée with a crisp brown sugar topping served at restaurants at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa.
• The Kona Kone at Kona Café at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, a childish delight for kids of all ages: a giant waffle cone filled with ice cream and served with cotton candy and M&Ms.
• The Kitchen Sink at Beaches & Cream at Disney’s Yacht Club and Beach Club Resorts, a wonderfully sinful sundae meant for sharing with a gallon of ice cream, multiple toppings and an entire can of whipped cream.
• Anything on the menu at Ghiradelli Soda Fountain & Chocolate Shop at Downtown Disney Marketplace — a root beer float, hot fudge sundae, even an old-fashioned malt.

What is YOUR favorite Walt Disney World dessert?  Share your dessert memories in the comments below!

The post Sweets to the Sweet: Disney Desserts Worth the Calories appeared first on WDW Radio - Your Walt Disney World Information Station by Lou Mongello.

Chef Robert Adams, executive chef Magic Kingdom

Chef Jens Dahlmann, executive chef Epcot - Dahlmann classically trained in European kitchens and worked for Cunard and Seabourn cruise lines, traveling in Southeast Asia and the Mediterranean.  He also worked for Le Cirque 2000 in New York City and Cafe ‘L Europe in Palm Beach, Fla., before joining Disney in April 2004.  He was chef de cuisine at both Flying Fish Cafe at Disney’s BoardWalk and California Grill at Disney’s Contemporary Resort before taking the helm at Epcot, where he directs a team of chefs in Future World and World Showcase restaurants.

Chef Lenny DeGeorge, executive chef Resorts Food & Beverage - DeGeorge grew up in his family’s catering business, then studied at Johnson & Wales in Providence, R.I.  After graduation he headed to Walt Disney World Resort to hone his skills in Magic Kingdom restaurants.  At Artist Point at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, he focused on the cuisine of the Pacific Northwest.

Chef Todd English, Todd English’s bluezoo – Celebrity chef, restaurateur and TV and radio personality, English opened his first Florida restaurant, Todd English’s bluezoo, at the Walt Disney World Dolphin in 2004.  Bluezoo’s signature “dancing fish” grill features fresh seafood roasted over an open rotisserie.

Master Pastry Chef Erich Herbitschek, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa – Herbitschek was born in Austria and studied at Mollard Pastry School in Vienna, the “city of sweet dreams.”  After working in resorts in the United States, Philippines, Japan and Hawaii, Herbitschek now oversees a staff creating breads and sweets – 1,200 loaves of bread on an ordinary day.  And his wedding cakes are legendary.

Chef Scott Hunnel, Victoria & Albert’s – Chef Hunnel started his career as a dishwasher in a Chicago restaurant, and today is at the top of his game with Central Florida’s only AAA Five-Diamond restaurant, Victoria & Albert’s in Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa.  He graduated from Chicago’s Joliet Culinary Program, and has been with Disney since 1998.  Hunnel and his culinary team prepare modern American cuisine with the best-of-the-best from around the world.

Chef Gary Jones, culinary dietary specialist, Walt Disney Parks & Resorts – Jones has been an integral part of the Food & Beverage Operations team for 24 years.  Initiatives focus on providing healthy options, expanding menu offerings for children, and developing new ideas for guests’ special dietary needs.

Chef Tim Keating, Flying Fish Cafe – Keating oversees a talented staff in the on-stage kitchen at the award-winning restaurant.  The New Jersey-born chef began his culinary career in his early teens and mastered his craft at several top California hotels.  He is a founding member of the Chefs Collaborative, a nationwide group that supports local farmers and inspires their customers to choose nutritious and sustainable foods.  Flying Fish Café at Disney’s BoardWalk features seasonal cuisine with influences from around the globe.

Chef Roland Muller, chef de cuisine Walt Disney World Product Development - A native of the Alsace region of France, Muller began his cooking career at age 14, classically training in France.  He moved to California to be part of, he says, “the American food revolution” and also to learn English.  Muller worked at Disneyland Paris before coming to Walt Disney World Resort in 1997.  Today he’s chef de cuisine for Walt Disney World Food & Beverage Product Development.

Chef Tim Oakley, chef de cuisine The Land, Epcot – Oakley graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, then with a hospitality degree from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst where he met Disney reps at a job fair and headed to Walt Disney World Resort.

Chef Brian Piasecki, chef de cuisine California Grill - Toledo, Ohio, native Piasecki says he always felt at home in the kitchen, and did most of his training at Disney’s apprenticeship program, working in some of the top Walt Disney World kitchens.  Today he’s chef de cuisine at the award-winning CaliforniaGrille at Disney’s Contemporary Resort.

Chef Phillip Ponticelli, chef de cuisine Cítricos, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa – Ponticelli studied at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., then headed first to the South Pacific, then to Switzerland to further his training.  Coming back to America, he worked in Washington, D.C., and joined the Disney culinary team in 1996.  He has worked at several Disney restaurants, including California Grill, Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano and Narcoossee’s.  Ponticelli describes Cítricos’ cuisine as “American style with heavy emphasis on Mediterranean flavors and ingredients.”

Chef Wolfgang Puck, Wolfgang Puck Cafe – Austrian-born Puck received his culinary training in France, and today oversees a food empire that includes restaurants in major cities around the world.  He is the author of several cookbooks, including Adventures in the Kitchen with Wolfgang Puck.  Signature dishes at his restaurant at Downtown Disney West Side include thin-crust pizzas and Chinois Chicken Salad.

Chef Michael Pythoud, executive chef Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Animal
Kingdom - Pythoud oversees the culinary staff at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.  A native of Neuchatel, Switzerland, he says he knew he wanted to be a chef at age 6 and began an apprenticeship at age 15 in a Swiss restaurant.  His career took him from Switzerland to the Philippines, New York City and Disneyland Paris.

Master Pastry Chef Stefan Riemer, Parks & Resorts Food & Beverage Concept Development & Standards – Riemer was born in Berlin, Germany, and apprenticed in pastry kitchens at age 16.  He graduated from Culinary Pastry School in Brunswick, Germany, and started working around the globe – Switzerland, Indonesia and India were stops along the way.  His favorite medium is chocolate – Riemer says he bakes every single day and spends his free time trying out new desserts.

Chef Bruno Vrignon, Les Chefs de France, Epcot – French-born Vrignon, long associated with the three French chefs who operate the Epcot restaurant – Paul Bocuse, Roger Verge and Gaston Lenôtre – trained with Bocuse at his legendary restaurant in Lyon, France.  Vrignon has been chef at the Epcot World Showcase restaurant since it opened in 1982.  Signature dishes include classic French onion soup, coq au vin, and marmite du pêcheur parfumée au safran, a traditional Mediterranean seafood casserole

Chef Ed Wronski, Director, Food & Beverage Product Development, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts - A native of Detroit, Wronski graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y.  He first joined Disney in 1976, left to pursue other opportunities, then returned to the company. He spent five years at Tokyo Disney Resort, and returned to Walt Disney World Resort in 2003.

If you had the chance to meet and dine with one of these chefs in their Disney restaurant, which would you want to meet and why?

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