Must-Do Disneyland Christmas Desserts

My loyal fans out there (all 2 of you–hi, mom and dad!) are probably wondering where I’ve been the last couple of weeks. No, Len did not suspend me because I dominated him in the annual TouringPlans.com “Feats of Strength.” I was having a life-altering experience. I was experiencing Disneyland at Christmas-time.

Disneyland Resort at Christmas is an amazing place. From “Believe… In Holiday Magic” fireworks to “it’s a small world” holiday to Haunted Mansion Holiday, you can’t help but get into the festive spirit! We loved it so much that we’re planning on making Disneyland at Christmas an annual tradition, and we really can’t wait to see Buena Vista Street decked out for Christmas next year.

One of our favorite aspects of the trip was the many festive foods (by foods, I mean decadent desserts) sold at Disneyland during the holiday season. Don’t get me wrong, I love Walt Disney World snacks, but the Disneyland dessert team really takes it to the next level during the holidays. About the only treat that scared me away was this large gingerbread house. But given that he was in the Haunted Mansion, had devilish eyes and  razor-sharp teeth, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have been able to eat him, anyway.

Here are some of the holiday treats we liked best:

Tres Leches Cakes – Tres Leches Cake translates to “Three Milks Cake.” Given that it contains three different types of milks–evaporated milk, condensed milk, and heavy cream–this is unsurprising. Tres Leches Cakes is popular throughout Mexico and Central America, making it a perfect dessert to try at Rancho del Zocalo or Cocina Cucamonga. We found the Tres Leches Cake to be moist, and the Santa’s Reindeer design made it a fun treat, especially as the perfect conclusion to a Christmas Tamales meal!

Holiday Demitasse Dessert – At $6.99, Disneyland’s Holiday Demitasse Dessert would be an expensive snack for its size, were it not served in a very nice keepsake Mickey Mouse mug. Given the keepsake mug and the delicious taste of this peppermint chocolate pot de crème inside that festive Mickey mug, for $6.99, it’s quite a
steal!

Yule Log – It was quite fortunate that we inadvertently saved the Yule Log for the last night of our first Disneyland Christmas trip, or else we probably wouldn’t have sampled any other desserts! My expectations when originally hearing about this dessert weren’t all that high–apparently I didn’t realize there was a difference between a yule log and a fruit-cake, and an especially poignant episode of South Park featuring the latter turned me off to it! Suffice to say, the yule log had us saying “yum” and “wow” about every seven seconds! If you’re visiting in December, the chocolate cake and chocolate hazelnut mousse is available. If it’s anything like the Pumpkin Yule Log we had, you won’t be disappointed!

Peppermint Stick Ice Cream with Crushed Candy Cane Waffle Cone – Because I was an only child, my wife has had to teach me the “joys” of sharing (kids out there reading this: there are no joys of sharing!!!). As with all foods we sample at Disneyland, my wife and I started by sharing this ice cream. This was short-lived, as I guess my ways have rubbed off a bit on her, and she wanted to get her own! We’re both ice cream fiends and we each had to have our own cones. It was actually so good that we each ended up with our own double scoops!

Gingerbread Mickey – Much ado is made about Coke’s secret formula for Original Coke. It’s thus surprising to me that no one really discusses the Walt Disney Company’s secret formula for gingerbread.Okay, it’s unlike that there really is some company-wide secret gingerbread formula, but on several occasions when we’ve ordered gingerbread at Walt Disney World or Disneyland for the novelty of the item (gingerbread shingles from the life-size gingerbread house at the Grand Floridian, Mickey  Mouse gingerbread men, etc.) the results have always been delicious. Almost too delicious! This was no exception, and I’m now convinced that Disney has some magical gingerbread recipe. And I thought only magical brownies were legal in California!

Snowman Caramel Apples – Available at Marceline’s Confectionary in Downtown Disney and Pooh Corner in Critter Country, the presentation on these snowman-treats is quite impressive. I’m not big on caramel apples or mashmallow, nor am I big on $9.99 snacks, but at least it looks cool!

Chocolate Peppermint Cupcake – At $4.99, this cupcake was a bit overpriced, even by Disney standards, especially compared to the $2.99 similarly-sized Pumpkin Muffins right next to it in the display case where we purchased it. Additionally, it wasn’t all that large, and it had a very strong mint taste. That said, if you love chocolate and mint as much as I do, you’re bound to love this cupcake. Think of it as an Andes Mint in cupcake form!

Disneyland Handmade Candy Canes – I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the Disneyland handmade candy canes that are made on various days throughout the holiday season. I’m not a huge candy cane fan (I always seem to end up with sticky hands after eating them–maybe I just don’t know how?!), so I wasn’t particularly enthused about waiting in a long line 45 minutes before the park opened to get a ticket for a candy cane that cost $12.95. Perhaps your sensibilities are different than mine. For what it’s worth, these are very large candy canes, and they have a huge following. So if you really like candy canes, disregard my cheeky remarks and line up early for one!

Other Disneyland Resort Holiday Snacks – Unless you’re able to visit everyday of the holiday season or you want to seriously spike your blood-sugar levels, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to sample every dessert available at Disneyland for the holidays. With that said, here are some other desserts you might consider trying: the Holiday Brownie, available at multiple locations; the Marshmallow Snowman “Tigger Tail,” available at Pooh Corner; Snowman Mickey bucket of popcorn, available at multiple locations; Gingerbread Cookie, available at multiple locations; Peppermint Fudge, available at Candy Palace; Snowflake Rice Crispie Treat, available at multiple locations; and, Snowman Shortbread Cookies, available at multiple locations. You’ll likely find other holiday desserts in addition to these, but these are the ones we believe are the “next best” options to those described above.

Between the two parks, three resort hotels, and Downtown Disney, there should be more than enough desserts to delight your taste buds throughout the holiday season!

For more information and photos of Disneyland at Christmas, including additional dessert reviews, check out my new eBook, A Disneyland Christmas!

What do you think of this list? Like these desserts? Loathe these desserts? Share your favorite Disneyland and Walt Disney World holiday treats in the comments!