Disneyland's Blue Bayou Chicken Florentine

Blue Bayou Chicken Florentine

Ingredients

4 7oz. chicken breast (with skin)
1 cup Florentine sauce (see below)
3 oz. chopped fresh or frozen spinach
3 oz. grated cheddar cheese
2 oz. cooked and chopped bacon
seasoned salt to taste
2 Tbsp. melted butter

Directions

If fresh spinach is used, it must be blanched. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In mixing, combine spinach, bacon and cheese; set aside.

Open chicken breast and sprinkle with seasoned salt. Stuff with spinach mixture.

Fold and place seam side down in baking dish. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle outside with seasoned salt.

Bake in preheated oven for 20 - 25 minutes. Top with Florentine sauce and serve over rice.

Florentine Sauce

Yields 2 cups

Ingredients

2 tsp. unsalted butter
2 tsp. flour
3 tsp. unsalted butter (room temp)
1 1/2 finely chopped onions
3 sliced medium mushrooms
2/3 cup white wine
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 chicken bouillon cubes
1 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp. diced pimentos
1 tsp. chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp. chopped fresh chives
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
salt and white pepper to taste

Directions

Blend together flour and 2 tsp of the butter; set aside.

Saute' onions and mushrooms in 1 tsp. butter (do not allow onions to brown). Add white wine and reduce completely. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a simmer and slowly add the flour/butter mixture a little at a time until desired thickness is achieved. Continue cooking at a simmer for 8-10 minutes.

Disneyland's Blue Bayou Seafood Salad

Blue Bayou Seafood Salad

Ingredients

6 oz. Lobster Tail, cooked, no shell
1 tablespoon Celery, finely diced
1 tsp. Green Onions, finely chopped
1 tsp. Lemon Juice
2 tsp. Mayonnaise
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
Dash White Pepper
Dash Tabasco sauce
Salt To taste

Directions

Slice four thin (1/8") lobster medallions for garnish. Dice the rest into 1/4" cubes for use in salad mixture. Combine all ingredients and store in refrigerator.


Garnish

Ingredients

Cucumber, thinly sliced (approx. 22 pieces)
1/2 small Smoked Salmon
2 slices Cooked shrimp, shell off
2 Cooked crab claws
2 Enoki mushrooms
12 pieces Diced Tomato
2 tblsp. Radish sprouts
1 dozen springs Edible flower
1 Whole dill
1 sprig

Directions

Place cucumber slices around inside of a 2-3" cookie cutter on plate. Fill with lobster salad mixture. Remove cookie cutter. Lay lobster medallions on top. Garnish mold with tomato, flower, and dill. Roll salmon slice around six mushrooms and garnish one on each side. Lay shrimp and crab claws on sides of plate, garnishing with radish sprouts.

Disneyland's Blue Bayou Jambalaya

Jambalaya

Blue Bayou, French Market Restaurant

Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

1 lb boneless fresh pork, diced into 1/2 inch cubes
3 T. vegetable oil
1/4 t. black pepper, freshly ground
1/4 t. thyme, dried
1/4 t. garlic powder
1 16-oz. can tomatoes, crushed
4 c. water
1 1/4 c. rice, uncooked
2 chicken bouillon cubes
1 1/2 c. onion, diced
1 c. celery, diced
1 c. green bell pepper, diced
3/4 c. zucchini, diced
1 t. yellow chili pepper
1/4 c. scallions, chopped
1 T. parsley, chopped
1 c. ham, diced
1 c. Polish sausage, cooked & diced
1 c. Italian sausage, cooked & diced
1 c. okra, frozen, cut
1 1/2 c. small shrimp, cooked

Directions

In a large saucepan, sauté pork in oil over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add pepper, thyme, garlic powder, and tomatoes. Cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Add water, rice, bouillon cubes, onions, celery, green pepper, zucchini, chili peppers, scallions, and parsley. Bring to a boil.

Stir to blend ingredients, cover and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Stir once or twice and add remaining meat ingredients.

Cook for another 10 minutes and add okra and shrimp.

Heat well and serve hot.

Disneyland's Blue Bayou Monte Cristo Sandwich

Blue Bayou, Café Orleans

Disneyland's Blue Bayou Monte Cristo Sandwich

Yield: 1 sandwich
Ingredients

• 1 oz sliced turkey meat
• 1 oz sliced Swiss cheese
• 1 oz sliced ham
• 2 slices white bread

Cooking Directions

1. Make a sandwich using first turkey, then Swiss cheese, then ham.
2. Cut sandwich into quarters. Use toothpicks to hold sandwich together.
3. Dip sandwich in egg batter (below) and fry in 360 degree oil until golden brown.
4. Remove toothpicks and sprinkle with powdered sugar.
5. Serve with whipped raspberry jelly (below).

Batter

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 1/3 cup water
• 1 egg

Cooking Directions

1. Sift flour, salt and baking powder together. Add water to beaten egg and add to flour mixture and mix well. Set aside. (Yields 2 c. batter)

Whipped Jelly

Ingredients

• 8 oz apple jelly
• 8 oz raspberry jam
• 8 oz half and half

Cooking Directions

1. Combine apple jelly and raspberry jam in blender at slow speed.
2. Add half and half, and whip in blender at high speed.

Egg Foo Yung

I never had Egg Foo Yung before moving to the northeast. Maybe it's just a thing here, part of the super Americanized Chinese cuisine that a lot of people love.

I personally like more authentic Asian dishes, which is what you're more likely to get out west because I've never seen this dish on a menu in any Chinatown anywhere. But there is something to be said for this sub-genre as well. Americanized dishes do have their place, and they're obviously popular for a reason. Either the native dishes themselves don't have appealing flavors or those ingredients are hard to come by. That's my best guess, at least. Maybe there's some other reason for it - I'd certainly love to find out. Perhaps that's a great idea for another post: how foods become Americanized.

But I digress. This dish is really flavorful. Helped along not just by the savory sauce but by the blend and composition of the Egg Foo Yung itself. For those with nostalgic memories of Chinese egg dishes, this is for you. Enjoy!