Thanksgiving is here and perhaps you’re trying to think of a last minute idea for what to cook. You’ve come to the right place. While we almost never get to cover recipes here at That Park Place, this time it just so happens to work. So without further adieu, here are ten incredible recipes for your Thanksgiving meal that just might remind your guests of their last trip to Walt Disney World.
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5. Oxtail Soup from Boma
Marjie J from the Disboards provides us with this not-so-exotic dish from one of our very favorite restaurants at Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Here’s the recipe if you want to make it at home. It can also be made with chicken or vegetarian style (no meat and substitute vegetable broth):
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients:
4 pounds Beef Oxtails
2 quarts Beef Stock
3 each Carrot, diced
1 large Onion, diced
1 cup Corn Kernels
1 each Red Bell Pepper, diced
1/2 pound Plantain
2 T. Red Crushed Pepper
1 each Jalapeno, sliced
1/4 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Parsley, chopped
1 cup Soy Sauce
1 T. Ginger, chopped fine
Roux (1 pound butter and 1 1/2 pounds flour)
Method: To make a roux, melt the butter in a small sauce pot, slowly add the flour to make a paste. Cook until incorporated. Remove from heat and set aside.
In heavy skillet, brown the oxtail. After caramelize, place the oxtail in the stockpot and add beef stock, red crushed pepper, sugar, and ginger. Let simmer until the oxtail is 3/4 done. (Skim all the excess fat.) Add the roux and cook until thickened. Add the red bell pepper, potato, onion, corn, and plantain.
Let cook until vegetables are done. Add parsley and jalapeno last. Adjust seasoning.
** If you are using frozen plantain, add last when you are ready to serve.
4. Lobster Rolls from Columbia Harbour House
Getting tired of turkey and ham? I’m definitely not, but there’s still a place in my heart for a bit of seafood on Thanksgiving. For Love of the Mouse has a great recipe that mimics the Lobster Rolls from everyone’s favorite Magic Kingdom quick service:
Ingredients
- 4 ounces pineapple juice
- 1 big scoop vanilla ice cream (about 3/4 cup)
- 2 cups frozen pineapple chunks
- 2 tablespoons sugar , optional but recommended
- splash of lemon juice
- pinch of salt
Instructions
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Combine all the ingredients in a blender (in the order listed); blend until smooth and ultra creamy, pushing down the pineapple chunks if necessary, about 3 minutes.
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At this point you can pour into dessert cups. But I like to freeze the mixture for 30-40 minutes, then transfer to a piping bag with a 1M “star” tip (to get that iconic Dole Whip swirl.)
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Swirl into glasses.
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(To help the soft-serve hold its shape even longer, freeze the swirled whip another 20 minutes.)
2. The Grey Stuff from Be Our Guest Restaurant
You should try it, it’s delicious, and so should everyone else at your next Holiday get-together! Thanks to Devour Dinner for this wonderful guide:
Ingredients
- Cool Whip
- Milk
- Vanilla Pudding
- Oreo Cookies
Instructions
There are only a few ingredients in this wonderful dessert. Vanilla pudding, Cool Whip, crushed Oreo cookies and milk. How can you go wrong with this?
- Mix milk and Instant Vanilla Pudding and then put it in the refrigerator to set up for about 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, use a food processor to crush up the cookies to a fine power. Remove any big chunks and add to your set vanilla pudding.
- Then gently fold in your whipped topping. Place back in the refrigerator to set up.
- I used a galloon zip-lock bag to hold the mixture to set up. Then when I was ready I cut the corner off and piped it onto whatever I was serving it on. In this case, a brownie!
Turkey Legs from Frontierland
You knew this would be here. And while I support your desire for monstrous drumsticks, it’s also okay if you want to just cook an entire turkey. From A License to Grill, here is the recipe… and again, you can literally use this to smoke a whole turkey, just make sure to inject it with some sort of brine, butter, or cider so that it’s not too dry:
Ingredients
- Turkey legs, skin on
- BBQ dry rub
- Ice cubes
- Kosher salt
- Brown sugar
- Smoked paprika
- Onion powder
- Garlic powder
- Crushed black pepper
- Cayenne pepper
Instructions
Step 1: prepare the brine
Combine the sugar, spices, and salt in a large bowl. Then, add the boiling water to dissolve the ingredients. Add ice cubes to fully cool the wet brine.
Step 2: brine the turkey legs
Submerge the turkey legs fully in the bowl with the brine. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. You can also use a resealable plastic storage bag or an airtight container. Brine the turkey legs for up to 24 hours.
Step 3: prepare the turkey legs
Remove the turkey legs from the brine and pat them dry. Coat each turkey leg with the barbecue seasoning rub.
Step 4: smoke the turkey legs
Place your turkey legs in a pre-heated smoker set to 225°F with your favorite wood or pellets. I use my trusty Traeger Pro 780 in this recipe. I like to use the Pit Boss Competition Blend. Cook until the thickest part of the turkey legs reaches 175°F. The USDA recommends cooking the turkey until it is 165°F, but turkey legs have a lot of connective tissue and need extra time to get tender. It will take about 4 to 5 hours.
Step 5: baste the turkey legs
Baste or brush the turkey legs with your favorite oil while they are cooking. You only need to give them a coat of oil a couple of times. I like to baste my turkey legs with olive oil halfway through the cook and towards the last 30 minutes. This will help to keep the meat moist and to ensure crispier skin on the exterior of the legs.
