Add Some #DisneySide Flare to Your Party Menu

Disclaimer: I received free products in order to host a Disney Side @Home Celebration. The opinions expressed here are my own. Thank you to Disney Parks (Leanne Jakubowski, Jamie Longdon and the entire Disney Parks team!) and MomSelect (Maria Bailey!) for this wonderful opportunity!

This is my first in a series of blog posts on a recent #DisneySide @Home Celebration I hosted recently. I am currently on “babywatch” status and am probably sitting here at 6 cm dilation as I type this! But now, labor is progressing at a snail’s pace. I think I need to call the Guiness Book of World Records, because I feel like I’ve been in labor for weeks with no end in sight! So for now I’ll do what can keep me grounded…write about food. HEHE!!!

I think food is a critical part of any party. It is the center of nourishing your guests’ souls. Breaking bread with one another is an important way to share your love for those who have taken the time to celebrate your special occasion. Since I’m filipino, I first have to share how filipinos like to “break bread”:

With TONS of food!

IMG_1826
What was on the menu? Fried chicken, lechon, beef and broccoli, menudo, pansit, asian meatballs, hawaiian macaroni salad, kale salad, lumpia, roasted vegetables, and a vegetable tray!

We ordered the lumpia, pansit, and menudo from a local filipino restaurant, but made everything else ourselves. This is how a standard filipino party throws down and I totally feel it screams #disneyside. Why? OVERINDULGENCE!!!

However, I wanted to share some of the ways I added a bit of Disney pixie dust to my menu. I’m not a chef or baking extraordinaire, but I think it is easy to add some special touches to show your party guests that Disney magic is present as they eat!

One simple way I did this was through a basic Mickey Mouse Wilton cake pan I received with my DisneySide @Home Celebration kit. You can find this and other Disney-themed cake pans at your local stores and craft stores.

DSC_0606

If I wasn’t so VERY pregnant and didn’t have a 2 year old running around my kitchen, I would have attempted to back a cake in it (the easy part for me!), and decorate it with icing (the impossibility for me). I didn’t trust my decorating skills at this time, so here were my alternatives.

I filled it with rice krispy treats…and flipped the mold on a plate. Voila!

DSC_0506b

For during the party, I filled the ears, nose, and eyes with dark grapes and the rest with cut strawberries.

IMG_1829b

Another way to add some Disney flare is to find themed-recipes and displays. Of course you can find them on Pinterest! Here’s my Pinterest board for throwing a DisneySide @Home Celebration that includes tons of food ideas, especially for a Mickey-themed or Disney Cars-themed party. An easy low-maintenance display I made was a plate of Mater’s Tires (mini-chocolate donuts).

DSC_0594b

For my son’s 2nd birthday cake, I made a Duff Goldman Tie-Dye cake (which was included in my DisneySide @Home Celebration kit!). The cake is really festive, bright-colored, and super easy to make-totally ideal for showing your DisneySide! I’m not too big on icing, so I made a pineapple whipped cream icing. With the volume of people in my house and the hot temperature, the pictures of the cake left something to be desired and didn’t do the rave reviews on how delicious it was justice. So I made it again in trifle form and will be posting the recipe to my Tie-Dye Pineapple Cream Cake this week!

If you are looking for tons of inspiring Disney=themed recipes, you must check out the Disney Side Celebrations site for party ideas, themes, printables, activities, and recipes! Here are some of my favorites:

Queen-Elsas-Sweet-Glazed-S
Image from Disney Family

Having a Disney’s Frozen-themed party? Try out Queen Elsa’s Sweet Snowflakes. It’s a sweet lemony spin on flatbread!

Photo from Disney Family
Photo from Disney Family

Can’t you see these cute Donald’s Just Ducky Cupcakes at a little one’s birthday party or even a baby shower?!

Photo from Babble.com
Photo from Babble.com

Cinderella’s Carriage Dip is such an adorable way to get kids to eat their healthy veggies!

There are definitely tons more recipes on the site as well as throughout Pinterest-perfect for a Disney-themed celebration. But you don’t have to throw together a party to add some Disney magic to your meals. Why not make a Disney-themed family dinner! i can see that as making getting through the week MUCH easier!

Enjoy!

~Lani