It’s Mardi Gras! To celebrate, MiceChat contributor Joe Flowers will be making Gumbo, Monte Cristo’s, Mint Juleps, and Beignets inspired by Disneyland’s Blue Bayou restaurant. You’re sure to find a treat or two that you’d like to make at home. . .
EDITOR’S NOTE: Please welcome Joe Flowers to the site. Joe has a lot of really exciting content lined up for you in the weeks to come. Today is a great taste of his creativity and love of Disney.
Blue Bayou Classics at Home
One of the top-themed dining experiences at Disneyland is the Blue Bayou. Located at 31 Royal Street, this restaurant shares the same building as the Pirates of the Caribbean ride! Inside, while you’re dining, the lights are dimmed and it feels like you’re on the water of a bayou as boats float by. Our last visit here was in September 2019 with our friend Ruston, it was extra magical with a table right at the water’s edge!
I’ve made it a goal to make all sorts of Disney Treats at home while we can’t go to Disneyland and enjoy them in person. In honor of Fat Tuesday, we’re going to virtually visit Disneyland’s New Orleans Square and the Blue Bayou!
Tonight we’re making Blue Bayou Gumbo, a Disneyland Monte Cristo with all the sides, Mint Juleps, and Beignets! And we’re making as much as we can from scratch! Let’s get started!
Mint Juleps
First, we’ll start with the Mint Juleps. We’ll be using a Disneyland copycat recipe for our New Orleans Square-inspired Mint Juleps.
It’s nice to have a lemon tree in our backyard. Theresa picked enough to make a couple gallons of lemonade.
After juicing the lemons, she juiced a bag of limes we bought from the grocery store.
This is a Mint Julep, so we’re going to need some mint leaves. Grammy was ready to help out with that. She’s got mint growing in the front yard. Alli picked a big bunch of leaves for us to use in our simple syrup.
The simple syrup is just water, sugar, and mint leaves. They all come to a boil and then cool back to room temperature. The mint will give this a fantastic flavor as it infuses with the sugar syrup.
Making Mint Juleps:
Step 1: Simple Syrup With Fresh Mint
Simple syrup is just equal parts sugar and water. But we’re adding fresh mint to that for this special drink.
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- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup fresh mint leaves
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Combine sugar and water in a pan (a saucepan with a pour spout makes things easier). Muddle the mint leaves and add to the pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Step 2: Lemonade/Limeade (it’s OK to use concentrate if you don’t want to make it from scratch)
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- 4-6 lemons (6-8 limes)
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup granulated sugar
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Combine sugar and water in a pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Step 3: Mint Julep Mixer
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- 3/4 cup limeade
- 1/2 cup lemonade
- 3 tbsp. Mint Simple Syrup (that you made above)
- Crushed ice is traditional, but cubes will do in a pinch
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Combine limeade, lemonade and Mint Simple Syrup in a large glass filled with crushed ice. If desired, garnish with a lemon wedge, mint leaves and a straw.
Blue Bayou Gumbo
Way back in 2010, Theresa and I went to Disneyland and dined at the Blue Bayou. After having a delicious meal, I asked the waiter about the gumbo that was offered as an appetizer. He asked if I’d like the recipe and emailed this to me a few days later. This has been sitting in my email all that time and this is the first time I’ve attempted making it.
The roux starts off with 1 cup, that’s 2 sticks, of butter. No one said this was going to be healthy.
After adding a cup of flour, this light brown roux is supposed to cook down into a dark brown sauce. 
I took it as dark as I was willing to go. The flour was smelling nutty and toasty.
The recipe calls for Andouille sausage, so we made sure to get that at the store.
There’s quite a bit of meat going into this recipe, so I needed two pans to sauté it all. Chicken, Ham, and Andouille Sausage!
Theresa prepared all the veggies.
The veggies were sautéed in olive oil along with all the herbs. Then the meat, chicken, and water all go into the pot.
And for Royal Street Veranda’s vegetarian gumbo, check out this amazing recipe from fellow MiceChat contributor, Donna Dark Collins:
Disneyland Recreations – Royal Street Veranda Vegetarian Gumbo Recipe
Monte Cristo
One of the classic entrees at the Blue Bayou is the Monte Cristo. This fried sandwich is super rich, but I have to get one when I go there. It’s usually best to share it with a friend.
I found the actual Monte Cristo Sandwich recipe!
The recipe doesn’t say what to do for bread. I did a little research and found that an egg bread is best. So, I baked a homemade challah! But you can buy a nice loaf from the bakery that appeals to you.
It turned out beautifully. If you’d like to try your hand at challah, I found a great one on the New York Times site: My Favorite Challah
Next, it was time to assemble my sandwiches. Here’s that recipe from Disneyland:
Monte Cristo Ingredients:
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- 1 egg
- 1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons water
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 8 slices egg bread (challah works well), sliced 1/2-inch thick
- 8 thin slices ham
- 8 thin slices turkey
- 8 thin slices Swiss cheese
- 3 cups canola oil
- Confectioners sugar
- Blackberry preserves
Monte Cristo Preparation
Line a cookie sheet with paper towels; set aside. Whisk the egg and water together in a mixing bowl. Add flour, salt, and baking powder and whisk thoroughly for 2 to 3 minutes or until smooth, scraping sides of bowl. On one slice of bread, arrange 2 slices of ham, turkey, and cheese, covering the bread evenly. Place another slice of bread on top and slice each sandwich in half diagonally.
Heat oil to between 365 degrees F and 375 degrees F in a 10-inch pan. Do not let the oil reach a higher temperature than this; if the oil starts to smoke, turn the heat down. Dip half of the sandwich into the batter, allowing excess to drain, and very carefully place into the oil. Repeat with the other sandwich half. Cook 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Place the cooked sandwich on the prepared cookie sheet in a warm oven until ready to serve. Repeat with the other three sandwiches.
Cook one at a time, and allow the oil to reach the desired temperature between each. Sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar and serve with blackberry preserves on the side.
The Monte Cristo’s at Disneyland are served alongside a Blackberry Preserves dipping sauce. Even though I already have grape jelly here, I made sure to get the real thing at the store.
Disneyland Beignets
Technically, I don’t think you can get beignets from the Blue Bayou for dessert. But when you make it at home, you can do whatever you want. So we’re taking a virtual step outside the Blue Bayou and over to Cafe Orleans to get a few beignets. I found the actual Disneyland Mickey-Shaped Beignet recipe on the Disney Parks Blog:
This will be fun. Let’s give it a try . . .
Mickey Mouse-shaped Beignets
10 large Mickey Mouse-shaped beignets or 2 dozen small beignets
Ingredients:
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- 1/2 teaspoon dry yeast
- 1/4 cup warm water (105°)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 egg
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup boiling water
- Vegetable oil for frying
- Powdered sugar
Directions:
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- Sprinkle yeast over warm water in a small bowl, stirring to dissolve. Let stand for 5 minutes.
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- Combine sugar, shortening, salt, heavy cream, egg, flour and boiling water in a large bowl; stir in yeast mixture. With the dough hook attachment of an electric mixer on medium speed, mix the dough just until combined and smooth. Let dough rest for 30 minutes.
- Roll to 1/4-inch thickness and cut individual beignets with a Mickey Mouse-shaped cutter or cut into 2 1/2 to 3-inch squares. Cover with a towel and let dough rise until doubled in size in a warm, draft-free area, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
- Using caution, heat 3 inches of vegetable oil to 350°F in a deep, heavy pot over medium-high heat. Fry beignets until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes, turning as soon as they brown on one side. Remove with tongs and place on paper towels to drain. Dust warm beignets with powdered sugar and serve immediately.
It’s almost time to eat!
Theresa measured out the mint juleps using the limeade, lemonade, and mint syrup we made above. She also asked for extra challah dough so she could make more loaves. It’s one of her favorite breads and it freezes beautifully too. Look at that pretty 6 braided plait. Are we ready for the Great British Bake Off?!
The Monte Cristo sandwiches are served sliced into small triangles and dusted with powdered sugar. Blackberry Preserve dipping sauce is a must. Most of the times I’ve ordered it, it’s been served with strawberries and grapes, so I made sure we had those to go along with it. Smile kids! We’re bringing another Disney meal home!
It’s been so long since I’ve actually had Disneyland’s Blue Bayou Gumbo. I can’t specifically remember what it tasted like, but this gumbo tastes pretty good to me.
The homemade Mint Juleps are very refreshing. We’ve got a lemon tree and mint. If only we knew someone who had a lime tree we’d be set!
Our dessert is a mixture of regular beignets and Mickey beignets. You can imagine which ones were the most popular.
My plate for the evening. Everything was really delicious! While we were eating, I made sure to have the music from Pirates of the Caribbean playing in the background.
The Monte Cristo brought back memories of great times at Disneyland.
The kids and family were all happy with the meal.
Beignets covered with powdered sugar are tasty, but Ian found a way to make them even better. He stuffed the air pockets with the blackberry preserves. Jelly-filled beignets . . . why didn’t I think of that?!
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Let’s Hear From You!
Happy Fat Tuesday everyone! I hope we’ve sparked your creativity to bring a little Disneyland home. See anything you’d like to make? Have any customizations or tips? I’d love to hear your thoughts!
And if you are still searching for that perfect gumbo, here’s a vegetarian option from Disneyland’s Royal Street Veranda:
Disneyland Recreations – Royal Street Veranda Vegetarian Gumbo Recipe