Hot Cocoa Beignets, a fun and favorite treat from the Disneyland Parks that you can now make at home!
Found at the Mint Julep Bar at Café Orleans in Disneyland you can buy these tasty treats for $4.99 for 3 or $8.49 for six.
They are served with marshmallow whipped cream, warm chocolate sauce and topped with a tasty hot cocoa powdered topping. YUM!
Now you can make these tasty treats at home with this easy recipe! This recipe is a variation of my favorite Disneyland Copycat Beignet Recipe!
Check out these other tasty Holiday Disneyland Treats:
I love all things hot cocoa- whether its cookies, bombs, or these tasty beignets! IT's the perfect flavor to welcome in the cooler weather!
How to make hot cocoa beignets:
- Activate yeast
- Mix dough and allow to rest for 30 minutes
- Roll out dough then cut into shapes
- Allow shapes to rise for 1 ½ hours
- Fry until golden brown
- Dust with hot cocoa powder and serve with chocolate sauce and marshmallow whipped cream!
How to make hot cocoa powdered topping:
- Combine hot cocoa powder mix, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar in a bowl. Then sprinkle over the warm beignets!
How to make chocolate sauce:
- Combine heavy cream and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl.
- Microwave at 50% power for 30 seconds, stir and repeat until chocolate chips are fully melted.
- For a thinner chocolate sauce add more heavy cream, 1-2 tablespoon at a time until you get your desired consistency.
How to make marshmallow whipped cream:
- Combine all ingredients except the marshmallow fluff in the bowl of a stand mixer and whip until soft peaks form. Then add in the marshmallow fluff.
- For a stiffer whipped cream add only half the amount of marshmallow fluff.
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What cookie cutter did I use?
I used this Mickey Shaped Cookie Cutter (amazon affiliate link). I like the size and how sturdy this cutter is.
What if you don't have a mickey cookie cutter?
If you don't have a cookie cutter just cut the dough into rectangles- about 2 ½ inches by 3 inches. Then fry those up!
Temperature? How important is it?
Temperature of the water for activating the yeast needs to be between 105°F and 110°F is important. Too hot and it will kill the yeast and you won’t get a rise, too cold and you won’t activate the yeast you won’t get a rise.
If you don’t have a thermometer to check the water temp you can tell if the yeast is activated if the mixture gets very foamy after 10 minutes.
The oil for frying needs to be at 350°F for ideal beignets. Too hot and they will brown too fast (see beignet on the right in the picture below) and not cook all the way through, or will get too dark and overcooked on the outside. Too cold and the beignets will end up too greasy.
I love this thermometer from Thermoworks and is the one you see me use in the video (affiliate link).
Hot cocoa beignets tips:
- Activate yeast with warm water and sugar- but make sure the water is between 105°F and 110°F. If the water is too hot you will kill the yeast and if it’s too cold you won’t activate it.
- To tell if the yeast is working properly, let it sit for ~10 minutes after adding the warm water and sugar and it should be foamy/bubbly (see picture).
- I like to fold the dough in on itself after it rests for 30 minutes to get a nice smooth surface. This isn’t absolutely necessary, but it will make for a smoother and more uniform beignet after frying.
- Make sure your cut out dough rise in a warm place. If your house is cold simply preheat your oven to the lowest temperature (mine goes as low as 170°F for example), then once preheated turn our oven off and place your cut out beignets in the oven to rise. This is what I did since my house is pretty cold.
- When frying, keep your oil around 350°F. If it gets too much hotter it will cook the beignets too fast and if gets too much cooler it will take too long to cook the beignets and they will get too greasy.
- Fry your beignets for 15-30 seconds a side- until they are golden brown.
- Beignets are best when eaten fresh and warm.
What is your favorite treat at Disneyland? What is your favorite holiday treat? Let me know in the comments below!
Watch how to make this recipe!
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Hot Cocoa Beignets
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast (or 1 package of active dry yeast)
- 2 teaspoon sugar
- ¼ cup warm water 105°
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 egg
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup boiling water
- Vegetable oil for frying
Marshmallow Whipped Cream
- 1 cup cold heaving whipping cream
- ⅓ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
- 7 oz marshmallow cream 1 jar
Hot Cocoa Powder Topping
- 5 Hot Cocoa Packets ~1 ¼ cup hot cocoa powder
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- ½ cup powdered sugar
Chocolate Sauce
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- ¾ cup heavy cream
Instructions
- In a small bowl combine yeast, sugar, and warm water. Make sure the water is no hotter than 110°F or else you will kill the yeast. Let the mixture sit for ~10 minutes, the mixture should get bubbly and foam will appear- this is a sign the yeast is working!2 ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast, 2 teaspoon sugar, ¼ cup warm water
- In the bowl of stand mixer (or you can use an electric hand mixer) with the paddle attachment combine the sugar, shortening, salt, heavy cream, egg, flour and boiling water. Once combined mix in the yeast mixture.¼ cup sugar, 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ cup heavy cream, 1 egg, 4 cups all-purpose flour, ½ cup boiling water
- Using the dough hook attachment mix on medium speed, mix the dough until just combined. Cover with a light towel and let dough rest for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, remove dough to a clean surface and roll to ¼-inch thickness. I like to roll out the dough to a small rectangle then fold it in half, then half again. This will create a smooth surface. Then roll out to a ¼ of an inch thickness.
- Cut beignets either into 2 ½ to 3-inch squares or with a Mickey Mouse cookie cutter.
- Lightly cover cut dough with a towel and let dough rise in a warm area for 1 ½ hours. They will grow taller but they don’t spread too much.
- While rising make the whipped cream, hot cocoa powder topping, and chocolate sauce.
- Fill a large pot fill with 3 inches of vegetable oil. Heat oil to 350°F over medium-high heat.Vegetable oil for frying
- Fry beignets until golden brown for 2-3 minutes total, flipping over each beignet as soon as they brown on the first side, about 1-1.5 minutes. Once golden brown on both sides carefully remove each beignet with tongs and place on paper towels to soak up extra grease.
- While beignets are still warm sprinkle with the hot cocoa powdered topping, chocolate sauce and marshmallow whipped cream.
Hot Cocoa Powder Toping
- In a medium sized bowl combine hot cocoa powder, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar.5 Hot Cocoa Packets, ½ cup cocoa powder, ½ cup powdered sugar
Marshmallow Whipped Cream
- Add the heavy cream, powdered sugar, vanilla, and a pinch of salt to the bowl of an electric mixer. Whip on medium high until soft peaks form.1 cup cold heaving whipping cream, ⅓ cup powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, Pinch salt
- Add the marshmallow fluff and whip on high until incorporated. For a stiffer whipped cream add only half of the marshmallow fluff.7 oz marshmallow cream
Chocolate Sauce
- In a medium sized microwave safe bowl combine the chocolate chips and heavy cream. Microwave at 50% power for 30 seconds, stir and repeat until chocolate chips are fully melted.1 cup chocolate chips, ¾ cup heavy cream
- If your sauce is to think add a little more heavy cream. If it gets cold it will thicken and you can just reheat to warm in up.
Notes
- If your house is cold simply preheat your oven to the lowest temperature, for example my oven’s lowest temperature is 170°F. Once preheated turn oven off and put the cut-out beignets inside and allow to rise. With the oven off it will stay warm but won’t be too hot for the dough.
- I kept my sauce fairly thick but I know at the parks it’s much thinner. Simply add more heavy cream 1-2 tbs at a time until you get the consistency you need.
- For whatever reason my first attempt at the chocolate sauce didn’t mix well- I think it’s because of the brand of chocolate chips I used, so the sauce was broken. I simply used my immersion blender to reincorporate the sauce in to a smooth sauce and it worked like a charm. This probably won’t happen to you but just incase I thought I’d share how to fix it.
- The original beignet recipe found on the Disney Parks site worked ok but I found that adding a little more yeast and sugar to the yeast mixture really helped with a better rise.
- Nutrition info is for the beignets only, not the oil it was fried in, powdered topping, marshmallow cream, or chocolate sauce.
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