Kona Kafe at Polynesian Resort - Walt Disney World

Posted by Lori:

(Another Disney World post for those looking for food reviews, or for those who might be looking for some nice people so that they could reward them with a free Disney World vacation.  (Hey! I can dream....can't I??? :)

I thought I had already written about the all of the delicious desserts at the Kona Kafe of the Polynesian Resort at Walt Disney World, but apparently I only reviewed the Kona Kone - HERE.   I did review the whole Kona Cafe on my other blog HERE.  That post will tell you about the all of the food we ate, not just the desserts.  It was all so good!  Worth making time for in your busy schedule while visiting WDW!

So....here is a display of the wonderful looking desserts.  All of these are available on the Disney Dining Plan (DDP). If my daughter or I ate the dessert, I have noted such and given it our personal review. 

Ice Cream Sundae

Chocolate Fondue with cookies and fruit.

Banana - Chocolate Creme Brulee

No Sugar Added - Apple/Caramel Stack

Raspberry Lemonade....Sooooo good!  We both ordered this drink.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

 Kilauea Torte

 White Chocolate Cheesecake -  This was my dessert.  Sure wish I had another one! :)

Oh....the memories!

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Untraditional Rolls with Roast and Gravy

One day in August I had made great supper plans:  roast, carrots, potatoes, green beans, corn on the cob, gravy, and rolls.  I just use the Rhodes brand frozen rolls, but about half-way through the afternoon, I realized I had forgotten to set them out!  Thanks to our many, many days of over 100 degree weather, I figured covering the frozen bread and putting it out in the garage would have them rising up in no time.

Well, my plan did work, but the planner didn't work.  She (ME) forgot about those rolls until it was time to bake them!  (OOPS!)  And, when my son, Zachary went out to get them and take of the lid for me, he said, "Mom....I don't think you're going to be very happy!"  Well, I wasn't too happy, but figured what was done, was done, so we baked them.....or I guess I should say we baked 'IT'....since it was just one big thing of dough!

Since it wasn't traditional in shape, we did something untraditional with the serving of the bread.  We made it into an open-faced sandwich with the roast and gravy.  And, guess what?  It was deeee-licious!  Hummmm.....maybe I'll forget the rolls and let them rise too much again?  However, I can do without the over 100 degrees for many, many days for a long time (forever would be okay!).

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Mexican Dessert Nachos

Posted by Lori:

I've never actually eaten a churro, but they always smell yummy at Disney World and Rangers' baseball games. I think it's the scent of cinnamon that gets in the air and makes it so appealing.

At Walmart a few days ago, I happened to see a box of churros chips and decided to buy them.  So a few nights later, I made them into a dessert for my family.  They were a HUGE hit and turned out so pretty to be so, so simple!

Mexican Dessert Nachos

1 box churros chips (
Vanilla ice cream
Squirt-type whipped topping
Caramel ice cream topping
Chocolate syrup
Cinnamon/sugar mixture

Spread chips out on a platter.  Top with scoops of vanilla ice cream and whipped topping.  Drizzle caramel topping (I heated it in the microwave to make it thinner.  You could use caramel syrup, but I prefer the ice cream topping.) and chocolate syrup over the top.  Sprinkle cinnamon/sugar mixture over the entire dessert.  Serve immediately.


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Fall Decoration

Posted by Donna:

I had so much fun making this for my front door this weekend. I'm not a great decorator, but I get such an enjoyment doing things like this---it's a lot of self satisfaction. Of course, a lot of it, too, is that I can't go out and buy everything I see--I have to make a lot of things myself, but I do love doing it. I should have been cleaning my house, but things like this are so much more fun!!!!! I knew my "dirt" would still be there.


To make this, I sewed a long pocket out of burlap--then folded the top over to make a flap. I probably should have used orange, yellow, and purple for the greenery, but I really liked these "sprigs" from Hobby Lobby. I think the brighter colors would have shown up more from the street, but these look good from the front porch. The netting is a dark purple-y brown that matches the darker sprigs. Larry had to help me get the wire secured the right way. What would we do without our husbands?


Happy Fall!!!!!! Pin It Now!

Easy Skillet Apple Pie

Posted by Donna:

If you want to feel like the Pioneer Woman, you must make this pie. This recipe is in the recent issue of Southern Living. It's such a pretty pie, and you really do feel a sense of pride when it comes out of the oven. The fact that it's baked in a cast iron skillet makes it so much fun.

Skillet Apple Pie

2 pounds Granny Smith apples---I used four of these
2 pounds Brae burn apples---four of these also
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 pie crusts, unbaked (I used my recipe that is posted on this site) You can use store bought if you choose.
1 egg white
2 T. sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel apples, and cut into 1/2 inch thick wedges. (I just cut mine up to what I thought would work.)
Toss apples with cinnamon and 3/4 cup granulated sugar.

Melt butter in a 10 inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat; add brown sugar, and cook, stirring constantly, 1 to 2 minutes or until sugar is dissolved. (It took the 2 minutes on my stove.) Remove from heat, and place 1 piecrust in skillet over the brown sugar mixture. Spoon apple mixture over the piecrust, and top with the remaining piecrust. Whisk egg white until foamy. Brush the top of the piecrust with egg white; sprinkle with 2 T. granulated sugar. Cut 4 or 5 slits in the top for steam to escape.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly. If the pie crust starts to brown too much, place aluminum foil on top of the crust. (As well as I remember, I did use the full hour and 10 minutes in my oven and I did have to put foil on top of my crust. Cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes before serving.

Serve with ice cream.

This fall issue of Southern Living is worth the purchase. The cake on the cover is just as good. I made it, also, a few weeks ago. There are a lot of apple recipes in this issue. Of course, you can go to their website and get some of these as well.

I wish I had a picture to share. I can't wait to make it again. Pin It Now!

Broccoli Cornbread

Posted by Donna:


This cornbread recipe is definitely a crowd pleaser. I’m sure there’s someone out there that doesn’t like it; but down here in Southwest Oklahoma, it’s considered “lip-smackin” good.

Broccoli Cornbread

4 eggs
2 sticks butter, melted
1 cup small curd cottage cheese
1 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen chopped broccoli, thawed
2 boxes Jiffy cornbread mix

Mix all ingredients together. Bake in a 9 x 13 pan at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes, or until browned on top.

It’s very hard to type this recipe without thoughts of pinto beans and fried potatoes coming to mind. Matter of fact, I just added it to my menu for next week!
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Slow Cooker Lasagna

Posted by Donna:


I've looked at this Betty Crocker recipe for a long time and finally decided to make it this week. I'm not a huge lasagna fan, but Larry is. I like it; it's just not something I make very often since I can't handle beef very well. Like all lasagna recipes, it makes a large amount---- I told Larry he knows what he'll be eating the rest of this week!!!

Slow Cooker Lasagna

1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
3 cans (15 ounces each) Italian-style tomato sauce (I had to use small 8 oz. cans. They were basil, garlic seasoned tomato sauce. I also added some Prego Spaghetti Sauce to equal the total 45 ounces needed for the lasagna.)
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. basil leaves
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 container (15 ounces) part-skim ricotta cheese (I substituted with cottage cheese.)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (I used the Kraft shredded Parmesan)
15 uncooked lasagna noodles (I used the Ronzoni Whole Grain.)

1. Cook sausage and onion in a skillet over medium heat until that sausage is no longer pink. Drain. Stir in tomato sauce, basil and salt.

2. Mix 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese and the ricotta and Parmesan cheeses. (Refrigerate remaining mozzarella cheese while the lasagna cooks.)

3. Spoon one-fourth of the sausage mixture into a 6 quart slow cooker; top with 5 noodles, broken into pieces to fit. Spread with half of the cheese mixture and one-fourth of the sausage mixture. Top with 5 noodles and remaining sausage mixture.

4. Cover and cook on Low heat setting 4 to 6 hours or until noodles are tender. (My slow cooker cooks fast; so, it only took mine 4 hours.)

5. Sprinkle top of lasagna with remaining 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Cover and let stand about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Cut into pieces.

Larry loved this. It was good. It was nice getting it in the slow cooker about 2:00. My piano lessons started at 3:30 and weren't over until after 6:00; so it was great having supper ready. I had already washed the lettuce earlier for our salad; so our supper was ready in minutes.

This is a keeper recipe. Pin It Now!