These fun beignets are fried pastries (similar to donuts), shaped with a Mickey cookie cutter, sprinkled with powdered sugar and served with a vanilla cream sauce. They’re one of our favorite treats to enjoy at the parks!
For more fun Disney treats, be sure to check out our homemade churros, churro funnel cake, and apple pie caramel apples.
delicious Disneyland Beignets
It may be safe to say that we are mildly obsessed with the Disney food and treats!
Which is why, we knew we HAD to try out some Mickey Beignets. They can be found at Disneyland in New Orleans Square inside Cafe Orleans and at the Mint Julep Bar. At Disney World they can be found at Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter.
Disney released their official recipe, but we gave it a go without much luck and decided to try our friend Jamielyn, from I Heart Naptimes, and it was AMAZING!! We made a few changes to the recipe, but we were so happy with how they turned out.
From the get-go we knew we had to serve it with a vanilla cream sauce (Vanilla Crème Anglaise) because it’s our favorite way to enjoy the beignets. We first had them with this sauce on the Disney Wonder Cruise at Tiana’s Place and were instantly hooked. Now I don’t think we will be able to have these Mickey Beignets without it. So, so, so good!
How to Make Disney Beignets
There are a few steps to making these beignets, but we promise they’re worth it!! 😉
Begin by adding ¾ cup warm water to a small bowl. Sprinkle 1 tsp yeast on top and stir to dissolve. Allow the yeast to activate (about 5 minutes).
In a large mixing bowl (or stand mixer), add the sugar, egg, salt, nutmeg, heavy cream and shortening. Mix to combine. Pour in the activated yeast and mix.
Add the flour to the mix. Use the dough hook attachment on a stand mixer and mix on medium speed until all of the ingredients are combined and dough is smooth but still slightly sticky. Form a ball with the dough and place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise for about 1 hour.
Use a deep sided heavy pot and add 3 inches of vegetable oil. Heat over medium high heat until oil reaches 370°F (cooler than this won’t cook the beignets fast enough and hotter than this will burn them quite easily).
On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough until it is ½ inch thick. Use Mickey Cookie cutter to cut out Mickey-shaped pieces of dough.
Working in batches fry the beignets until golden brown, about 1 minute on each side. Use tongs to remove the beignets from the hot oil. Place on a paper towel lined plate to drain. While the beignets are still warm, dust them completely with powdered sugar. Serve immediately.
Mickey Cookie Cutter
Cookie Cutters: You can find Mickey Mouse cookie cutters at specialty stores and online. We bought a few from Amazon and like this one best. Be aware of the size of the cutters you end up using. Anything from 2”-4” cutters work fine just adjust the cook time according to the size.
If you don’t have a mickey mouse ear cutter you can easily use any solid shape cutter you do have.
No cookie cutter? No problem! Circles are particularly great because you don’t need any fancy cookie cutters, simply use the top of a cup or bowl so stamp out the shape. Squares are even easier, use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into squares.
Beignet Tips + FAQ
Here are a few tips to keep in mind when making these beignets…
- Rise time is KEY to create alight pillowy beignet. Depending on the temperature of your kitchen the rise time can easily be at least ONE hour or even longer. So be patient! It will pay off.
- Don’t overwork the dough it will lead to a tougher chewier finish
- Maintain a consistent oil temperature. The beignets should float to the surface quickly after being added to the oil. If they don’t, the oil is not hot enough.
- Fry in small batches. Adding too many at a time could drop the oil temperature too low.
Can you flavor the dough? Yes – You can also flavor the dough itself to create variations. A couple ideas include:
- Chocolate: Add 2 tbsp cocoa powder into dough batter
- Pumpkin Pie: Add 2 tbsp pumpkin pie spice into the dough batter
Why didn’t my dough puff when fried? A couple main reasons could be you didn’t roll the dough thick enough before cutting and/or the oil temperature was too low. It needs to be around 370 degrees.
How to Make Ahead + Store
Making ahead of time: These are best served freshly fried. Here are a few ways you can make/prep these ahead of time
- Dough: You can make the dough and store it covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. Even though it is in the fridge it will slowly rise. Let the dough come to room temperature before rolling and cutting.
- Cut out the dough shapes and place on lined trays. Cover with plastic and keep in the fridge for up to 2 hours, bring to room temperature, then fry.
- Fry and keep warm: You can fry these and keep them warm in a 200°F oven for up to 30 minutes before serving
Storing Leftovers: Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. They may last longer, but will grow stale with time. You can also freeze them for 1-2 months. Reheat: Pop them in the microwave for a few seconds to reheat them quickly, or place in a 350°F oven for about 5 minutes. Eat them before they cool off.
Vanilla Creme Anglaise + MORE SAUCES
At the Disney parks the Mickey Beignets are served with Raspberry Coulis and Vanilla Bean Creme Anglaise. We fell in LOVE with the Vanilla cream sauce and knew we had to make it with our beignets. We promise it’s easy and takes the beignets to a whole new level! Here is how to make it:
- Add the half and half to a small pot on medium heat. Bring it to a low simmer and then turn of the burner.
- Add your egg yolks and ¼ cup sugar to a heat proof bowl and whisk together. Then slowly pour in the hot half and half. Whisk constantly.
- Once it has been combined pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Continue to whisk over low heat until it thickens a bit. (180°F) To check: dip the back of a spoon into the mixture. The creme should evenly coat it without dripping off.
- Pour the custard through a mesh strainer to remove any lumps/skin that can form. Add vanilla and stir well. Cover the creme and place it in the fridge to chill. Serve along side the beignets.
You can definitely serve those sauces alongside your homemade Mickey Beignets, but other sauces would be equally delicious. We have a few recipes from Lil Luna you might like to try.
For more Disney Copycat Recipes:
- Hand Dipped Corn Dogs
- Sweet and Tangy Coleslaw
- Apple Pie Caramel Apples
- Dole Whips
- Mint Julep
- Grey Stuff
Disneyland Beignets Recipe
Equipment
- Mickey Mouse Cookie Cutter
Ingredients
- 1 tsp active dry yeast
- 3/4 cup warm water 105°F
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 egg whisked
- 1/2 tsp salt
- dash nutmeg
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tbsp vegetable shortening
- 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- vegetable oil for frying
- powdered sugar
Vanilla Creme Anglaise
- 3/4 cup half and half
- 2 tsp vanilla extract (or paste)
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1/4 cup sugar
Instructions
- Add ¾ cup warm water to a small bowl. Sprinkle 1 tsp yeast on top and stir to dissolve. Allow the yeast to activate (about 5 minutes).
- In a large mixing bowl (or stand mixer), add the sugar, egg, salt, nutmeg, heavy cream and shortening. Mix to combine.
- Pour in the activated yeast and mix.
- Add the flour to the mix. Use the dough hook attachment on a stand mixer and mix on medium speed until all of the ingredients are combined and dough is smooth but still slightly sticky.
- Form a ball with the dough and place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise for about 1 hour.
- Use a deep sided heavy pot and add 3 inches of vegetable oil. Heat over medium high heat until oil reaches 370°F (cooler than this won't cook the beignets fast enough and hotter than this will burn them quite easily).
- On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough until it is ½ inch thick. Use Mickey Cookie cutter to cut out Mickey-shaped pieces of dough.
- Working in batches fry the beignets until golden brown, about 1 minute on each side.
- Use tongs to remove the beignets from the hot oil. Place on a paper towel lined plate to drain. While the beignets are still warm, dust them completely with powdered sugar. Serve immediately.
Vanilla Creme Anglaise
- While the dough ball is rising, make your vanilla creme sauce.
- Add the half and half to a small pot on medium heat. Bring it to a low simmer and then turn of the burner.
- Add your egg yolks and ¼ cup sugar to a heat proof bowl and whisk together.
- Then slowly pour in the hot half and half. Whisk constantly.
- Once it has been combined pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Continue to whisk over low heat until it thickens a bit. (180°F) To check: dip the back of a spoon into the mixture. The creme should evenly coat it without dripping off.
- Pour the custard through a mesh strainer to remove any lumps/skin that can form.
- Add vanilla and stir well. Cover the creme and place it in the fridge to chill. Serve along side the beignets.
We made these for Mickey Mouse’s birthday this year for my Mickey loving kids! Thank you for the yummy recipe!
We grab one of these every time we are at the parks! They are so soft & pillowy! Happy to bring a little Disney in our home!
A little more work but so worth it. So cute!
Oh my goodness, these are absolutely amazing! SO soft and delicious!!
Thank you!! I’m glad you love them!
These were so cute, the kiddos adored them! I served them with homemade raspberry jam and we ate them all as an after school snack 😊
Oh that sounds so delicious!! Love the raspberry jam addition!
Yum! One of my Disney favorites:) This clone is perfect!
Thank you! One of my favorites as well. Nothing like a classic Mickey Beignet!
Delicious recipe and I love the different recipes you provide for the dipping sauces. Yum!