It’s been just over a month since we wound up our latest trip down the West coast to California, and since that time I’ve been pondering the very harsh reality of food cravings.
It’s one thing to crave a type of food you have access to, but to crave something you can only eat at a very specific place you only visit occasionally? That’s a tough one. If you’ve ever been to Disneyland, you probably understand exactly what I mean, and there’s even a name for it—Disneyland withdrawal.
Although Disneyland withdrawal means different things to different people, for me it means living with the reality that I can’t have a Dole Whip for another 6 months or longer. So what’s a Disneyland foodie to do? In my case, I go to the grocery store, grab my favourite kitchen appliances, and try to make it myself!
Yes, you can make Dole Whip at home. It might not be exactly the same, but it’s close, and there are websites out there dedicated to perfecting other Disneyland copycat recipes too. It’s definitely a fun way to spend an afternoon, and I swear the results get better every time I try.
Here are some of my favourite Disneyland copycat recipes.
Dole Whip
Maybe it’s the fact that you eat it while listening to the Tiki Room theme song, or there’s magic in the recipe, but there is nothing I love more at Disneyland than Dole Whip. I’ve seen Dole Whip around in different places, some even near Vancouver where I live, but they don’t taste exactly the same as a Disneyland Dole Whip. This recipe is from lilluna.com, and although the original recipe asks you to use Cool Whip, I’ve modified it to use real whip cream. I find it tastes better, and I’m not a fan of non-dairy edible oil products.
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Ingredients: 2 20 ounce cans crushed pineapple 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 2 tablespoons sugar I cup real whip cream pineapple juice, chilled, for serving |
Directions
Combine the crushed pineapple (with its juice), lime juice, lemon juice, and sugar in a blender, and process until very smooth. Add the whipped topping and process again until smooth.
Pour the mixture into a prepared ice cream maker, and process 15-20 minutes, or until it is the consistency of soft-serve. Place in the freezer until ready to serve.
To serve, fill a cup halfway full with pineapple juice. Add the frozen mixture to fill the cup.
New Orleans Gumbo
Kids have food cravings too, and it’s been funny to watch my kid’s tastes veer away from chicken fingers to different foods. Now when I ask my daughter what she wants for dinner, she almost always says New Orlean’s Gumbo. That’s a tall order to fill when you’re 2000km away from Royal Street Veranda at Disneyland, but I’ve dug up a recipe from disboards.com that will do in a pinch.
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Ingredients: 1 lb Butter
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Directions
Melt butter in a sauce pan, add flour to make a roux (mix of butter and flour).
Cook for ¼ hour, add onion and celery, cook for five minutes, add stock (can be made with a mix of water and chicken base) making sure roux is dissolved completely, simmer for 10 minutes, add remaining ingredients, return to a simmer. Adjust salt to taste.
Note: if using seafood, add seafood at the last minute, making sure seafood is cooked before removing from pot.
NOTE: You may notice by the amounts mentioned in the ingredients below that this is the mass-production recipe. You will probably want to adjust the quantity or freeze a bunch of it for a rainy day craving.
Matterhorn Macaroons 
I’ve only discovered Matterhorn Macaroons in the past few years. They’re available at the Jolly Holiday Bakery in Disneyland, and as soon as I tried them for for the first time I knew this was a recipe I had to make at home. They taste like regular macaroons, but they’re dipped in white chocolate to mimic the ‘snow’ on the mountain. This recipe from magicalrecipes.net is a close second to the real deal.
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Ingredients: 4 egg whites 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 3/4 teaspoon almond extract 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar 1 1/2 cups white sugar 1 cup all purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 1/2 cups flaked coconut Topping 1 bag of ghirardelli white chocolate chips 2 tablespoons milk or cream Confectioners sugar for dusting |
Directions
Preheat the oven to 300°.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl or mixer, beat egg whites, vanilla, almond extract, and ream of tartar until soft peaks form.
Gradually beat in sugar and whip until stiff.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, and coconut.
Fold into the egg whites.
Drop by heaping tablespoons onto prepared cookie sheets, shaping each one into a “Matterhorn Mountain.”
Bake for 20-30 minutes (depending on size) until slightly golden.
Melt the white chocolate with the cream over a double broiler, and dip the top of each cooled macaroon into the melted chocolate.
Sprinkle with confectioners sugar.
I’ve heard the only cure for Disneyland withdrawal is another trip to Disneyland, but if that’s not possible, I hope these recipes help a bit. They certainly help me, and they’re a lot of fun to make.
Here are a few kitchen tools I use when creating Disneyland copycat recipes.
 Gumbo can slow cook for hours in a stock pot |
 PIle your Matterhorn Macaroons on a cookie sheet and there will be some to share |
 Baking is easier when you’ve got a great set of measuring cups on hand |
