Book Review: ‘The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook: Remembering 101 Sweet Delicious Disney Recipes’ by Pam Brandon and the Disney Chefs
Disney Parks are some of the happiest places on Earth. This is for many different reasons, but one of the big ones is the food! Now you can have some of that happiness from the comfort of your own home with The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook: Remembering 101 Sweet Delicious Disney Recipes from Pam Brandon and the Disney Chefs. Brandon has gathered recipes from Disney parks and resorts all over the world, even the Disney Cruise Line. There are old favorites and new treats just waiting to be discovered within its pages.
[Note: While I am reviewing this novel independently and honestly, it should be noted that it has been provided to me by Penguin Random House for the purpose of this review.]
The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook offers culinary magic at home
There are so many things to love about a Disney trip: the characters, the rides, and the atmosphere. But it’s almost impossible to talk about a trip to Disney without mentioning the food. From iconic Mickey-shaped pretzels to gigantic churros to the Dole Whip that causes frenzies, food is an integral part of any Disney experience. In The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook, author Pam Brandon teams up with actual Disney chefs to bring that magic home. Brandon has collected 101 recipes from Disney parks, resorts, and cruises around the world, including 35 brand-new recipes that have never been released before.
Now Disney isn’t exactly known for simplicity. Some of the foods at Disney locations are extremely intricate with very difficult recipes. Sure, they could share these, but unless you’re a professional chef, it’s unlikely you’ll be replicating these foods at home anytime soon. Luckily, Brandon thought of that, so she actually gathered more than 101 recipes while researching her book. She then tried each recipe at home three times. If she wasn’t able to achieve the desired results all three times, the recipe was tossed aside, no matter how good the dessert is at Disney. This is a nice reassurance for home chefs who are looking at The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook and wondering if they could possibly manage that Disney magic at home.
The fascinating thing is that some of these recipes are almost too easy. There are many of the cake-based desserts that use boxed (yeah, you read that right) cake mix for the cake, saving the fancy work for fillings or toppings. I’m not complaining about making things easier; I was just really surprised that recipes from actual dessert chefs use boxed cake mix! Of course not all the recipes are so easy; some are so difficult that I didn’t bother to mark them for later, even though they sounded delicious. It was just too much for me.
A cookbook showcasing a wide variety of dessert recipes
Disney has parks and resorts all over the world. That means they have numerous different desserts to fit every taste and desire. The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook divides its recipes into seven different types of dishes: cookies and bars, pies, tarts and crisps, cakes, shortcakes and cheesecakes, bread, creamy & frozen confections, and drinks.
Some of these recipes are obviously aimed at Disney’s presumed main demographic, children, with things like peanut butter & jelly shakes and s’mores cookies. But most of these desserts are aimed at their other main demographic, Disney adults. From bourbon-chipotle chocolate whoopie pies to pumpkin milkshakes, the vast majority of The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook’s recipes are too fancy or contain flavors that won’t appeal to the majority of children. And if you think that all the recipes have Mickey decorations or cutsie character-based names, think again. The recipes in The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook are mostly high-end desserts that would look good at any swanky restaurant.
The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook isn’t what I expected
To be honest, I didn’t feel like most of them connected to Disney at all. I know that all the desserts are served at some Disney property around the world, but they aren’t what I was expecting from a book decorated with Disney characters. And I know everyone is hoping to hear that the secret of Dole Whip is included in The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook, but alas and alack, it’s not. There is, however, a Dole Whip-inspired pineapple cupcake recipe.
But I wouldn’t say I was disappointed exactly about the lack of Disney-ness in the desserts. The recipes all look delicious. In fact, I bookmarked at least half the recipes to try later. But that’s because I want to try them. I don’t think my kids will be interested in most of the recipes, and I wouldn’t try serving any of them at a kids party either. Now, an adult party—yes, there are tons of desserts in The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook that would go down very well with a roomful of adults looking for something sweet.
My rating for this book: 7/10
The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook catches your attention because of the word Disney in the title. Otherwise you might skip over it as just another dessert book. But the recipes inside are delicious independent of the Disney label. So far the ones I’ve tried have been great, and I can’t wait to try some more.
There is one more feature of the book that I haven’t seen before, and I’d like to share. At the back of the book there’s a photographic index of the recipes. It’s a quick way to look up what you’d like to eat. I like it better than a simple word index because seeing the pictures really helps me to decide if it’s what I want to make and eat. So, if you’re looking for something yummy to eat, flip through The Official Disney Parks Desserts Cookbook, and you’ll probably find something worth making!
Also check out: Book Review: The Princess Bride The Official Cookbook by Jenn Fujikawa
