Tag: disney

Monstrous Sushi (Vegan MoFo #9)

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Mike Wazowski! If you can hear that in your head, then you’re probably a Monster’s Inc. fan too. Or you’re hearing voices and should get that checked out.

Monster’s Inc. is probably my favorite Pixar movie to date. The story focuses on two friends, Mike and Sulley, who work at a factory together. Their jobs involve taking closet doors through to children’s rooms and scaring them at night. They then capture their screams, which is a power source for the monster world. The problem is that they believe humans are toxic to touch, so it is considered a dangerous job.

monstersincWhen a little girl, Boo, follows them back through the door, the buddies are sent on an adventure while attempting to keep themselves safe and also send her back home. One of the best scenes is when Mike and his girlfriend are out on a sushi date. The restaurant soon turns into chaos when Boo pops up and scares all of the customers away.

IMG_0289.JPG

IMG_0288.JPGImages property of Disney Enterprises, Inc. 

This was my first time making sushi, and I could look at the first and final roll next to each other (I made a total of four) and see how fast my rolling skills had improved. I think the key is to have just enough filling, not too much or too little. These rolls had avocado and cucumber in them and were served with soy sauce and wasabi.

monsters inc sushi

Non-Poisoned Baked Apples (Vegan MoFo #8)

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Though I haven’t had a ton of time to blog about it this Vegan MoFo, I have been making a lot of yummy Disney themed foods. So though we’re close to the end, there is still more to come!

Snow White has always been one of those films that creeped me out a bit. The story is just strange (heck, she’s living in the wild with seven men) because of the poisoned apple, the prince kissing a corpse he finds in the woods, etc. Plus nothing compares to the ride at Disney World, which is way too dark and crap-your-pants scary as a kid. Anyway, it’s still considered a Disney classic, so I felt compelled to cook from it.

snow white

Image property of Disney Enterprises, Inc. 

I’ve never been a huge raw apple fan (except for the granny smith kind) so when I was young I always wondered why Snow White was tempted by the poisoned apple. So I decided to make something I would be tempted to eat, even when given by a weird old witch: baked apples with caramel sauce.

snow white apples

I just sliced up a few apples and baked them until tender. Then I made some caramel sauce, with a dash of imitation butter extract for a butterscotch flavor, and drizzled it over. Super delicious.

Outlaw Stew (Vegan MoFo #7)

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Not to be biased, but I think Robin Hood is the best Disney movie. Ever. Case closed. If you or your children haven’t seen it, please go watch it now.

I was surprised to learn a few years ago that it was one of the lowest costing Disney films ever made because they reused drawings from other Disney movies ranging from the Aristocats to Snow White. Nonetheless, it’s still an amazing movie with a play on the classic Robin Hood story, but with adorable animals.

robin hood

From the dashing Robin Hood, lumbering Little John, loyal Friar Tuck, and beautiful Maid Marrion, to the thumb sucking King John, conniving Sheriff, and sneaky Hiss — all the characters are well-rounded, the plot is hilarious, and the movie boasts an awesome soundtrack.

little johnImages property of Disney Enterprises, Inc. 

Being an outlaw is a tough life though, which means it’s no surprise Robin and Little John’s dinner consists of a simple veggie stew cooked in their woodland hide-out. For my take on it I used whatever was sitting in my veggie drawer or pantry and at the point of expiration. The stew ended up containing potatoes, onions, carrots, green beans, tomatoes, garlic, and barley. I love barley in stews because it adds a chewy texture while also thickening the broth. Delicious!

outlaw stew

Cinderella’s Porridge (Vegan MoFo #6)

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For some reason the word “porridge” has always been a put off for me. Then once I realized it was essentially runny oatmeal, I was definitely gung-ho for making Cinderella’s porridge.

Cinderella is the quintessential Disney princess. Her castle is the main focal point in Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, and her popularity has spanned through many generations of little girls. I’m gonna skip doing a run-down of the movie plot, since I’m assuming everyone knows the gist of it.

If you’re in the mood for a less light-hearted version though, check out the Brother’s Grimm version. It involves the stepsisters cutting their toes off to fit into the glass slipper. What a surprise Disney didn’t include that part of the story!

Poor Cinderella though, in-between cleaning, must make tea and porridge for her mean stepmother and stepsisters.

disney_movie_food_tea_cinderellaImage property of Disney Enterprises, Inc. 

I’m sure what she made was plain oats and milk, but I decided to jazz it up by adding agave, orange zest, and dried cranberries. Definitely better tasting than anything those stepsisters and stepmother deserved.

porridge

Ponyo Ham Ramen (Vegan MoFo #5)

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Ending a rough Monday with an easy and tasty meal is ideal, so today I relied upon a dish coveted by many college students: ramen. A Disney film that features this is Ponyo, a light-hearted Studio Ghibli movie that focuses on a friendship and fish.

Ponyo starts as a cute little fish-girl living with her alchemist father under the sea. Her curiosity is never ending and because of this she loves visiting the human world. As Ponyo keeps interacting with humans, especially her new friend Sosuke, she evolves into an adorable little person. The problems arise when she risks becoming too human, and her father tries to return her to the sea.

Despite all this, Ponyo is always one to have a good time. Especially when it involves ham. Throughout the film she is fed ham at various times and is usually followed by her screaming “HAAAMM!” enthusiastically. It’s quite adorable, and inspired me to try an oddly tasty food combination from the film: ham and ramen.

ponyosplit

The following recipe might be a bit on the spicy side for some, so adjust the sriracha as needed. I skipped making a mock hard boiled egg, but if you prefer one for authenticity’s sake then Meet the Shannons has a good recipe.

Ponyo Ramen

Makes 2 servings

Ingredients:

  • 4 oz. uncooked ramen noodles
  • 2 cups vegetable broth
  • 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon agave nectar
  • 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sriracha
  • 2 green onions, sliced
  • 4 pieces of vegan ham (I used Yves brand)

Directions:

  1. In a pot mix the vegetable broth, sesame oil, agave, soy sauce, and sriracha. Bring to a boil and stir in the ramen noodles. Cook for 3 minutes, then set aside for 5 minute.
  2. Place each serving in a bowl and top with green onions and ham. Serve while watching this whimsical movie!

Nutrition per serving:
Calories: 324 Fat: 4.7g Saturated Fat: 0.7g Protein: 15g Carbohydrates: 55g Sugars: 10.7g

Sally’s Soup (Vegan MoFo #4)

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Although Disney originally wanted some distance from it, I still consider Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas a staple Disney film. With the amazing animation, addicting soundtrack, and quirky character lineup, Nightmare Before Christmas is one of my favorite movies of all. Although I do have a hard time figuring out whether I should watch it around the Halloween or Christmas season… So I just don’t worry about it and watch it several times a year.

One of my favorite scenes from the film (which Youtube sadly has no clip of) is when Sally makes some frog’s breath soup laced with deadly nightshade for her “creator”, Dr. Finkelstein. The bright green soup causes him to pass out, and allows for Sally to sneak out and go looking for her love, Jack Skellington.

nightmarebfchristmassoupImage property of Disney Enterprises, Inc.

My imitation of the soup was a base of kale and russet potatoes. I sauteed a few garlic cloves and an onion, then added in veggie broth and the vegetables. I seasoned it with basil, rosemary, and thyme. After everything was thoroughly cooked, I added a splash of coconut milk and pureed it down to a smooth texture. It was a bit thinner than most soups I would normally make, but it was great paired with some crusty bread.

sallysoup

Alien Cake (Vegan MoFo #3)

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I gotta admit, Lilo and Stitch wasn’t one of my favorite Disney movies growing up, though it did have its cute scenes (see below). Surprisingly, I did really enjoy the spin-off television series that followed a few years after.

Stitch is an energetic alien who crashes on Earth and finds a home with a Hawaiian family and befriends Lilo, a sometimes lonely little girl. As alien bounty hunters begin hunting for Stitch, Lilo tries to train him and teach him the meaning of family (ohana).

 

Based on the well-known scene of Stitch eating cake and then “sharing” it with Lilo, I baked a chocolate cake! I used my go-to chocolate cake recipe, and topped it with vanilla frosting and sliced fresh cherries. No regurgitation necessary.

It was good luck that I decided to take a picture immediately after frosting it. Our air conditioner broke over the weekend, so the southern heat was ridiculous, even indoors. Because of this, the frosting melted and slid off just after a few minutes of sitting at room temperature. But it still tasted good!

stitchcake

Ratatouille (Vegan MoFo #2)

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By far one of my favorite Disney movies to come out in the last few years is Ratatouille. This adorable film features Remy, a rat with a refined palate and a love for French cooking. It’s a really sweet story of someone pursuing their passion, even if the people around them think it’s not possible… Also it’s about food, which is always a plus for me.

Remy teams up with a human lacking cooking skills, Linguini, and lets him take credit for his delicious creations in a popular French restaurant. When a notorious food critic comes to town, it’s up to Remy and Linguini to team up and impress him. Their recipe of choice is ratatouille.

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IMG_0278.JPGImages property of Disney Enterprises, Inc.

I used this recipe as inspiration for my ratatouille. The only changes were that I subbed basil for the rosemary and left out the eggplant. I tried my hardest to make it neat looking like the movie’s version, but obviously my veggie stacking skills lack in comparison to Remy’s. I served it over steamed brown rice and it was delicious! I’ll have this recipe in my back pocket as a way to use up the overabundance of zucchini and yellow squash that seem to flood the farmer’s markets each summer.

ratatouille

Pizza Planet (Vegan MoFo #1)

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Happy Vegan MoFo 2014, everyone! I am very excited to kick off my theme for this year, Disney movies. I’ll have a good mix of old and new, plus popular and obscure Disney films to feature yummy dishes from.

To start off, we’ll stick with a 90’s classic, Toy Story. In the original movie, Woody and Buzz Lightyear get stranded in a gas station, but manage to snag a ride to the Pizza Planet restaurant/arcade in search of their owner, Andy. I’ve always loved the idea of this kind of space-themed Chuck E. Cheese, so it inspired me to make pizza from it!

Since most kids seem to drift towards classic cheese pizza, I decided to lay low on the veggies and keep to the theme. I was quite proud of this pizza, due to everything being homemade.

toystorypizzaI used a whole wheat crust (which Peter proclaimed delicious), oil-free pizza sauce, and cashew mozzarella cheese with a sprinkle of fresh basil from my windowsill. The pizza sauce turned out a bit on the sweet side, but everything else was great.

The crust was chewy and used only whole wheat flour, so there was no guilt with making it. I was skeptical about the cheese, but once baked it firmed up and had a good texture for those craving cheese pizza, but not wanting to splurge on store-bought vegan cheeses. I may play around with the agave ratio in the sauce next time I make this, but I’ll definitely be baking up this pizza again.