Grand Floridian: Victoria & Albert's Carrot-Ginger Cream Soup Recipe & Review...

My husband has been complaining that I don't cook much anymore so he inspired me to try some new recipes. I have never dined at Victoria & Albert's at the Grand Floridian in WDW. My friend recently dined there & said it was exquisite. I'll have to ask her if she ate this soup. I forgot to ask. :)

This is very simple to make. The only thing I had to google was how to peel & chop ginger since I never worked with it before. All you have to do is break off a piece of ginger , peel it w/ vegetable peeler & slice thin. You will just puree everything anyways. :) I didn't realize how long this took to make until I was cooking it. Well worth the wait! I recommend getting a dicer & emulsion blender if you cook a lot. I got both of those things for Christmas & they saved me a lot of time! I stirred it every 20 minutes or so to mix it up.

I cut the recipe in half & it makes 3 very large bowls. It was worth the wait! It was nice to have something different & I served w/ pumpernickel bread & butter. Remember to take out the bay leaf & strain before serving! 

Please feel free to ask me any questions about the recipe. Please let me know if you end up trying to make this & let me know how you like it.

I will be making this again for sure! 

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How to praise/complain to Disney after a trip to the parks...

Ever get home from a trip & want to praise or complain about something from your vacation? I for one prefer to write a nice note about any cast members who made our trip extra special. Being a past cast member I knowit is always nice to hear.

You can email them at:WDW.Guest.Communications@disneyworld.com

Here is our note to WDW:

Good Morning,

I just wanted to write a glowing review for Marnie at PrimeTime 50's
Diner at
Disney Hollywood Studios. She made our first visit to restaurant very
memorable & fun. We were
there in October but I still remember her & wanted to write a quick note
of appreciation of her
services. :) I was visiting with my old 1999 Disney College Program
roommate so it was a fun
time for all of us to share in.

Thank You,
Kate & Marshall


Their Response to me: 

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Jones,

Thank you for writing to us about your visit to Disney's Hollywood
Studios.

I am very glad you had such an enjoyable experience and truly appreciate
the time you took to share your compliments for Marnie from the 50's
Prime Time Cafe. Your email reinforces how our Cast Members can make a
tremendous difference with each Guest. It is heartwarming to know that
Cast Members such as Marnie exemplified Walt Disney?s dream to create
happy and memorable experiences for all of our Guests. Please be assured
your comments will be shared with the appropriate leadership so she can
be commended for the great service she provided you.

Mr. and Mrs. Jones, thank you again for writing to us. We look forward
to future opportunities to entertain you.

Best Regards,

Arianna Morgan
Guest Experience Services
Walt Disney World Resort


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The "Disney Point" which I still use to this day! 

For my review on PrimeTime 50's Diner:

http://yohoyohobloggerslifeforme.blogspot.com/2012/11/primetime-50s-diner-review.html

DisneyStore.com new I Love Mickey Collection & MM LeSportPac Review

Courtesy of cartonnnetworks.com

Happy Valentine's Day Everyone! I recently indulged in the new Disneystore.com "I Love Mickey" Collection. He is my favorite so I cannot resist when I see something that I love! I got the i love mickey T-shirt & iphone case. I wanted the T-shirt before but it was sold out! I love them both so much! I broke down & bought myself a v-day gift for myself. The new Le SportPac Mickey collection purse. It is great quality & I highly recommend it but it was $95.

Me sporting my new MM Gear ;) 

Cute Charm it came w/ tote

It is called the "Everygirl" Tote

Inside Bag LOTS of room! & another pocket 

Inside front pocket

Included this free pouch



My hubby got me this Mickey mug filled with chocolate hearts with a dozen red roses. My Mother-in-Law got me the HUGE Mickey & Minnie's for V-day. They're 2 feet or so. Big but so cute! I thought I would share what I got for my hubby. I saw the "52 ReasonsWhy I love" on Pinterest" so I made one for him this year as well as taking him to the Final Cut Steakhouse at the casino last weekend. :) I got the cards at DollarTree & the rest was SUPER easy to do as you can see. ;)

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Starring Rolls Chocolate peanut butter cupcakes recipe & review...

I wanted to make something new for my office this week so decided to give these a try. I have only had the red velvet cupcake at Starring Rolls myself but wanted to give this recipe a whirl. I followed the recipe to a tee but alas I was not impressed with these at all. They were ok. Honestly the batter tasted better. ha-ha The frosting was HARD To put on these w/o part of the cupcake crumbling. I'm an avid baker so I know it wasn't me. This is a fail for me & I don't think I'll be making these again. It is a shame because I loved the DL pumpkin cupcakes I made a few months ago. I will just have to try a new recipe for you guys next time! This recipe made about 18 for me

Chocolate Cake for Cup Cakes
2 cups all-purpose flour 
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1 cup boiling-hot water 
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup whole milk 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened 
1 1/4 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar 
4 large eggs, warmed in very warm water for 10 minutes 

For the Peanut butter topping mix:
1 cup Peanut Butter
1 cup Chocolate Fudge Icing
Pipe on top the Cup cake
1. Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
2. Combine boiling-hot water and cocoa powder in a separate medium bowl, whisking until smooth. Whisk in milk and vanilla extract. Set aside.
3. Combine butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Reduce mixer speed to low. Alternately add flour mixture and cocoa mixture in 3 batches, beginning and ending with flour. Mixing until just combined. 
Fill Cup Cakes and bake at 340* F. for 25 minutes until cake feels firm to touch.

Mixing butter,sugars,&eggs

Mixing boiling water,vanilla,cocoa,&Vanilla

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What is an ADR???

 You might be wondering what an ADR is? It stands for Advanced Dining Reservation. You can start booking these online or by phone 180 days out at 407-WDW-DINE or disneyworld.com .Some restaurants are easier to get in than others. It normally takes me a few weeks to get into Le Cellier. (That is my hubby's favorite place to eat!) It is pretty simple to get a login & to look up times you want. You can look up by park or cuisine. You might need to try harder for the more popular places but it can be done. If you look 3x day odds are you will eventually book what you want. I think the hardest to get in are:

Cinderella's Royal Table,Chef Mickey's,Be Our Guest, Le Cellier, California Grill, O'Hanas.

If you need to cancel that is easy to do online. Always carry your ADR# with you just in case there is a glitch in the computer system which can happen! Especially if you're on the Disney Dining Plan. I like to be organized myself. I either keep the email or take a picture of the ADR# with my iphone

Disboards.com has a lot of great people to help with questions & their recommendations on what you're looking for. :) Feel free to email me anytime with questions on where to eat or anything else! Sephorachick@gmail.com

Also- you do not need a ADR for the counter service restaurants. I highly recommend making ADR's as far in advance as you can so you can be sure to eat where you want no matter what time of year that you're going. Some of the ADR's you have to pre-pay for like Cinderella's Royal Table but others are dinner shows. Hoop Dee Doo Review & the Aloha show are both pre-paid dinner shows. You will need to pick up tickets for these beforehand so plan accordingly. I do NOT recommend the Aloha show but I did enjoy HDDR last time I went. :)  DO YOUR RESEARCH! I wrote about my Aloha show experience in a previous blog if you are interested:


http://yohoyohobloggerslifeforme.blogspot.com/2012/10/spirit-of-aloha-experience.html

A quick tip is that some of the Signature Restaurants require $10/per person deposit. If you cancel at least 2 hours or more before I believe you get the $$ back. This is to help w/ people making multiple reservations for the same time. Also please note that a lot of the signature restaurants require 2 disney dining credits for 1 table service. There is a lot of information to collect! 

Copy of what the online page looks like when looking up ADR


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The Day My Life Changed...

I haven't written about the Disney College Program in awhile so I thought I'd write on how I was accepted today. Back in the day BEFORE email you were snail mailed an acceptance post card & letter. Below is a copy of the letter. I remember jumping up & down with excitement in my parent's kitchen when I received it.  This would be my very first time living away from home. I had to select three jobs I wanted. I chose: Hotels,Merchandise,Quick-food service. My 1st CP I got quick-food service in a hotel (All Star Music) because I have a degree in Hospitality Mgmt. I was one of the lucky ones who had a job in the cool air conditioning. Most QSFB cast members have to work long hours out in the sun. My first program I attended weekly Disney Seminars. I did the program twice. The second time I was automatically selected to go if I wanted since I was an alumni. I got a better job in Fantasyland Attractions my second time. It was an amazing experience I will never forget & I learned SO much in my Disney Seminars. I shadowed quite a few managers while there as well. You make the best of your time there with partying or using it to your advantage. Disney has helped my career for sure! I grew up a lot & broke out of my shell. I highly recommend the program to everyone in college looking for a good internship.

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Columbia Harbor House Review...

This is by far my favorite quick-service eatery at WDW. I love it so much I made my hubby go there twice the week that we were there. They have a large down stairs & upstairs area so we never had a problem finding a table. We were a four adult group. Later in the afternoon like 3pm-4pmish they block off a certain part of the upstairs unless it is insanely busy I assume. This was the healthiest food we ate all week. :)

Tuna Salad Sandwich 

I heard AWFUL things about the tuna salad sandwich but decided to try it anyway. It is on whole wheat bread. My first tuna sandwich of the week was very good but the second one I ate later in the week hardly had any tuna spread on it? I guess it just comes down to who is making your food.

My friends enjoyed the shrimp & fried fish platters which they really enjoyed. If you sit upstairs there is a good view to look at while you eat. The dessert everyone had was this apple fritter type dessert & it was very good. All in all this place was A+ for us. We will definitely be back for sure!!!!

View 1 from where we sat upstairs

Fried Fish Platter

Fried Shrimp Platter

View 2 from where we sat :) 

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