It's no secret...  San Angel Inn is my favorite place to eat on property.  The ambiance, the atmosphere, and the food are among the best in Epcot and Walt Disney World.  Plus, with a slow-moving, relaxing ride that never has any line about 30 feet away?  Perfect.  There really is nothing better in this whole world than filling up at San Angel then rolling over to the "Gran Fiesta Tour" to take it easy.

San Angel Inn has gone through a lot of changes over the years, including an extensive menu overhaul in the mid-to-late 2000's.  While most of the signature dishes made the cut into the new menu (Pollo A Las Rajas and Sopa Azteca), there were a few that were retired or made seasonally available to help bring the restaurant to a more fine dining experience.  One of these dishes was the queso fundido.

The collective mourning that San Angel Inn fans went into at the loss of this popular dish was undeniable.  Pop through forums and blogs at the time it was announced it was retired and it's not hard to find people begging for how to make this hearty guilty pleasure.

I'm happy to say that the folks at San Angel Inn have always been happy to oblige on any recipe when they could, so despite retiring the dish at San Angel Inn, they were happy to share how to make the dip at home.

And I wonder if the demand for this dish and the response of people when they saw it was no longer on the menu played a role in queso fundido finding a new home in the neighboring restaurant, La Hacienda de San Angel?  I will say, of all the establishments I've gotten and reproduced recipes for, the folks at San Angel Inn are in a league of their own when it comes to listening to their customers.  I wouldn't be at all surprised if they brought back this popular dish to their sister restaurant to appease the queso fundido addicts of the world (like myself).

When people read this recipe, they'll be over-the-moon at how ridiculously simple this is to make an appetizer this delicious.  For those who're making it in the style of San Angel Inn, all you need is two ingredients: cheese and chorizo sausage.  For those who're making the updated sister version as featured at La Hacienda de San Angel, you need to add a third ingredient...  A dash of poblano pepper.  Really, it couldn't be easier.  Cook, broil and serve with your favorite chips or flour tortillas.  Keep in mind, this isn't a dip where you stick your chip in and scoop out the cheese.  Think of this as a warm spread, not a traditional dip.  You'll need a spoon to scoop it out and spread it on your delivery food of choice.

Now, I think it goes without saying that an appetizer that's made up of cheese and sausage is not a low calorie, low fat, diet friendly food.  And I can't stress enough, if you don't really blot the fat out of the chorizo, you'll end up with a lot of fat rising to the top during the broiling process.  Really drain the sausage, then blot it with paper towels.  Blot it, blot it, and blot it again.  Then blot it again once more, for good measure.  If you broil it and there is still a lot of visible fat, just let it cool slightly and blot it gently with a paper towel.

I'm still dreaming about how delicious this dish is...  And I just made it about 12 hours ago.  I am in love with everything about this dish and it makes me so homesick for a riverside table in the shadow of a pyramid.  Sigh...  San Angel...    

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Queso Fundido

As was served at San Angel Inn, Mexico Pavilion Epcot with adaptations for as it is served at La Hacienda de San Angel, Mexico Pavilion, Epcot

 

°o°  1/2 pound Muenster cheese, grated  
°o°  1/4 pound chorizo sausage, in links with casing or ground  

°o°  poblano peppers (optional)  

Roughly cut chorizo in large chunks (if in a link sausage remove casing).  Add to a warm saute pan and cook over medium, medium high heat until browned.  Stir constantly and, as the sausage cooks, break it up further with a spatula or spoon.  When sufficiently cooked, drain on paper towels.  Turn and blot sausage repeatedly, absorbing as much fat as possible.

Preheat broiler.

Spray an oven and broiler proof shallow, small dish very, very lightly with non-stick spray.  Layer half of the grated cheese at the bottom of dish.  Layer chorizo sausage over the cheese, then top with remaining cheese.  Broil until cheese melts and begins to brown, or 5-12 minutes.  When done, cool slightly and serve (blot surface fat if needed).

Serve immediately with chips or warmed flour tortillas.

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Being a Northerner, I think it's fair to say my experience with barbecue isn't what most people in the southern half of the US enjoy.  While I've had awesome barbecue before, and we even have an amazing BBQ joint a few hours away, it just isn't something I get a chance to eat a lot.  Even when I make it, which isn't often, I tend to either rely on sauce from a bottle or a sauce I kind of trial-and-error my way through to something that, I think, tastes pretty good.  So I was pretty pumped to try a tested, and really popular, barbecue sauce recipe from Boma.

This is super easy to make, even for barbecue newbies like me.  I think the big trick is making sure you don't burn the brown sugar and allowing enough time for the Coca-Cola to reduce to a syrup.  It does take about 20 or so minutes, and all but 17 of those minutes I asked myself "is this really going to reduce or did I mess something up?"  Trust me, it takes what feels like forever, but it does get there.  Eventually.

Overall, I think the sauce is pretty delicious.  It is the right combination of sweet, spicy, and tangy.  I was surprised I couldn't really taste the Coca-Cola like I thought I would, but it was delicious.  It was a pretty big hit around the house too.  I think I, finally, I have a great barbecue sauce recipe for those days I want to make my poor, New Englander attempt at barbecue!

It also kind of gets me a little anxious to try Boma...

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Coca-Cola Barbecue Sauce

As is served at Boma, Animal Kingdom Lodge

 

°o°  1 tablespoon olive oil
°o°  1 onion, diced  
°o°  1 ounce minced garlic  

°o°  2 jalapeno peppers, seeded, minced  

°o°  4 ounces brown sugar, packed 

°o°  24 ounces Coca-Cola

°o°  2 ounces vinegar  

°o°  2 cups ketchup
  

In a large saucepot, warm olive oil and onions and cook until caramelized.  Add garlic, peppers, brown sugar and cook until brown sugar melts.  Stir constantly.  Quickly add Coca-Cola and deglaze the pan.  With heat at medium high, reduce mixture until a thick syrup, about 20 minutes.  Stir frequently.  Add ketchup and whisk.  Return to a simmer and allow to cook another 20 minutes.  Serve warm or cool.

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Unknown

First, thanks to vacations at Walt Disney World, I have discovered that I love bread pudding.  Love it.  In fact, I'd say that now I'm developing what could be considered an unhealthy obsession with it.  While I wouldn't say I'm a bread pudding expert, I'd like to say I know the good from the bad from the exceptional.

This brings me to my second point of today...  Whomever invented this recipe is a genius. A complete and total genius.

I'm a big fan of Sunshine Seasons in The Land building and I always have been.  If they could somehow figure out how to bottle the smell of the inside of that building and then sell it, it would be one of the happiest days of my life.  Anyway, to me Sunshine Seasons is one of my special happy places.  Ever have a favorite spot that, when you visit, you feel you're finally at Disney and your vacation has really started?  The Land and Sunshine Seasons does exactly that for me.  There was a time where a stop for a meal there used to mean I just finished riding Soarin', I was about to go ride Soarin', or I had just gotten my paper Fastpass to go ride Soarin' later.  I remember the first time I ate there, I was surprised by how good the food was and how, despite how full the seating area was, the wait for food was never really that long.  I guess that's why I somewhat irrationally think of it as my private spot...  Strange since it's one of the busiest areas in Epcot.

While I've been to Sunshine Seasons numerous times, I somehow never got around to

trying this and I so totally regret it now.  Croissants?  Blueberries? Bread pudding?  This was made for my mouth.  It's on my "must eat" list for next trip...  And it's also on my "I'm going to make this all the time" list for at home.

This is fast and easy, almost impossible to mess up.  The crust is crunchy, the inside is sweet, moist, and almost has a pillow-like texture.  The blueberries make the whole thing fresh and just oh-so-yummy.  The right mix of buttery bread and sweetness, I think this may challenge Tusker House's banana bread pudding as best bread pudding on property.  And did I mention, while it doesn't make the kitchen smell like The Land building, it does make your house smell like cakes and blueberries.  No complaints on that here!

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Croissant Berry Pudding

As is served at Sunshine Seasons, The Land Pavilion, EPCOT

 

°o°  5 eggs  
°o°  24 ounces heavy cream
°o°  3/4 cup sugar

°o°  1 tablespoon vanilla  

°o°  1 pint blueberries  

°o°  1 pound croissants   

Preheat oven to 375.

Combine eggs, cream, sugar, and vanilla.  Set aside.

Tear croissants into large pieces.  In a large baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray, spread about half of the croissant pieces in one layer in baking pan.  Scatter with a layer of blueberries.  Top with remaining croissant pieces and blueberries.  Pour in liquid and sugar mixture and allow to soak for 10-20 minutes or overnight.

Bake in 375 degree oven for 1 hour until liquid is absorbed and mixture is cooked through.  Serve immediately.

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I've never tried anything from Victoria and Albert's and boy, this recipe has me thinking I should save my pennies and give Walt Disney World's ultimate luxury dining experience a try.

Victoria and Albert's is located at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and is one of the most acclaimed restaurants not only in Walt Disney World, but central Florida.  It has the highest luxury fine dining reviews on TripAdvisor and Yelp, and it's one of only three restaurants in all of Florida to have AAA's 5-Diamond Award.  During your two hour experience, you have not just one, but two servers who work with each person individually to craft your own personal menu that's laid out over six courses.  That is, unless you sit at the Chef's Table...  Then you get your own Executive Chef who comes out and consults on your 11 course meal over three or four hours.  No big deal, right?

This is one of the highest levels of fine dining out there.  Men wear dinner jackets, women wear dresses or pantsuits...  They also (somewhat controversially) have a policy to not seat children under the age of 10 due to the size of the dining room and acoustics which command a quieter dining party.  I can't think of any restaurant at Disney that has table side sommilers to help you find individual wine pairings per course.  Very fancy pants, for sure.

Since dining here is slightly out of my price range, I was really excited to try a recipe from here.  Not only did I want to get a taste of what the high rollers get to experience, I wanted the chance to practice some different techniques and just see if I was up to the challenge of making something that's fine dining-style, as opposed to homestyle.

I was really fascinated by this recipe because it wasn't what I expected, in the absolute best of ways.  It ended up being a spectacular reminder that a few well-chosen, high quality ingredients prepared correctly can really knock your socks off.

As this is a cheese soup, my mind went immediately to perhaps the most famous cheese soup on property, and I expected this to be really similar.  However, it could not be more different.  Where the Cheddar Cheese Soup at Le Cellier is thick, creamy, and hearty, this soup is light, clean, and very thin.  The texture is more like your traditional broth soup and not a thick cream.  Designed to be a light soup course meal, this is a great alternative to people who love the flavor of that other cheddar soup, but not the heaviness.  Honestly, and I was told it was sacrilegious to say this, I feel like this soup is actually better than Le Cellier's soup.  While you could bulk it up with bacon for a taste that's both light and elevated, but slightly more hearty, I really think this soup is best appreciated as-is.

I think this recipe is a new favorite of mine and I wish I could do justice to describing the flavor.  The sharpness from the beer is obvious, but it's tamed by the snap of the cheese and the creaminess of the cream, making it a really bold and not overwhelming flavor.  While I can only have a bowl of the Le Cellier soup before feeling full, I ate a whole bowl of this and felt warmed, satisfied, but not heavy.  It's so amazingly delicious and perfect as both a cold weather comfort, or a light introduction to a gorgeous, luxurious dinner.         

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Roast Garlic and Gruyere Cream Soup

As is served at Victoria and Albert's, Disney's Grand Floridian Resort

 

°o°  4 tablespoons olive oil
°o°  10 cloves of garlic, crushed and roughly chopped  

°o°  1 small onion, chopped  

°o°  3 stalks of celery, diced 

°o°  1 leek, white part only, diced  

°o°  4 cups chicken broth, not unsalted  

°o°  6 ounces dark beer  

°o°  1 cup heavy cream  

°o°  1 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded  
 

In a large pot, warm olive oil.  Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until lightly browned.  Quickly add onion, celery, and leek and cook until tender and onion translucent.  Stir constantly.  Slowly add broth and bring to a rolling boil.  Lower heat, add beer and heavy cream.  Bring back to a low boil.  Using an immersion blender, blend soup until thinned.  Add cheese and stir until melted.  Strain the soup, then return to the stove and warm gently, discarding strained and cooked vegetables.  

Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and serve.

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