The magic of Disney — in your kitchen!
Disney has, for many people and myself included, kind of become a huge part of our lives. I’ve had the fortune of visiting the Disney theme parks on several occasions throughout my life. So, a variety of the foods that are mentioned within these pages are foods that I have tried. It’s definitely a lucky thing, me being able to come at this book with that experience. And in that vein, I have a few thoughts about this cookbook beyond just being excited to try the recipes within them.
The Introduction
I know a lot of cookbooks start out with these. And, sure, the history was interesting to learn about. At the same time, though, I can’t help feeling that it was just too long. I wanted to get to the bulk of the book, the recipes, sooner. And part of this, I think, comes from the fact that I already know quite a bit about Disney. Some of it, therefore, felt pointless.
Perhaps the greatest thing about this book, though, was the fact that each recipe section comes with a map and short description that tells you where the food is from. Even if I don’t go to Disney with this map, it’s a great option regardless.
Appliance Purchases
I found it kind of interesting that the author mentions her privilege of growing up in Anaheim, California. It is true that living near Disney is a privilege not afforded most. It’s also true that being able to visit on a regular basis falls into that category. And I remember thinking about this as I read the list of materials needed for the recipes. Craft references multiple kinds of blenders, a pressure cooker, stand mixer, and even an ice-cream maker.
There’s nothing wrong with this, exactly, but just looking at that list was overwhelming for me. I’m not the sort of person who spends a lot of time in the kitchen. I also have a small kitchen that couldn’t possibly hold all those appliances. And a number of them can be expensive. And I kept thinking back to that privilege comment. How many people have the money to buy all of those? Who has a small kitchen like mine and couldn’t fit them? How many people live in an apartment and face both of those struggles?
To Craft’s credit, she does explain that one can create many of these items without the appliances. Though it is true that the devices make preparation quicker and easier.
The Photographs
Point blank, there weren’t enough. I honestly think it was a massive missed opportunity that entire pages were wasted on single photos. With the understanding that including photos in books can be expensive, I think Craft’s book would have been far better if the photographs were smaller, included on the main page of the recipe, and more recipes had them.
There were so many recipes where I really just wanted to have a visual for the food. And it was immensely irritating to see so much space wasted on minimal, yet giant, photographs. It just felt wasteful.
The Food
Unarguably the most important part of the entire thing is the food. And Craft doesn’t disappoint here. The book is filled with a large variety of absolutely exciting Disney food that entices even me, a proud hater of cooking, into the kitchen. And that’s not something I can say often.
I can honestly say that I don’t foresee myself making every single recipe in this book. It’s cool that she included one for the colored milks, but I frankly don’t see much point in making it myself. I’m an adult with no kids, after all. Even the Mickey pretzel, as much as I love it, is something I would probably tweak (I like cinnamon sugar better than salted). And in general, I don’t cook much.
The question is, how much can I convince my boyfriend to make?
I was provided a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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Reader Fox 