5 Disney Apple Recipes for the Holidays from the Recipe Vault

Disney is sharing five holiday apple recipes including a never-before-released Holiday Apple Tart from Tomorrowland Skyline Terrace at Disneyland Park. The collection also features a Warm Apple Butter Cake, Apple Tart Tatin from Topolino's Terrace, Apple Butter, and a Szarlotka cocktail from EPCOT.

Disney Parks is rolling out five holiday apple recipes pulled straight from the Disney Recipe Vault, including a never-before-shared Holiday Apple Tart from Tomorrowland Skyline Terrace at Disneyland Park. The roundup spans tarts, cakes, cocktails, and even apple butter drawn from restaurants across Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World, and EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival.

Apples are the star ingredient for fall and winter cooking, and this collection gives home chefs a chance to bring the flavor of Disney restaurants into their own kitchens. Highlights include a caramel-apple tart only previously served as part of the Tomorrowland Skyline Terrace dining package, a buttery Warm Apple Butter Cake from the vault, a French-inspired Apple Tart Tatin from Topolino's Terrace, a classic Apple Butter, and a Szarlotka apple pie cocktail from a past Food & Wine Festival.

Holiday Apple Tart from Tomorrowland Skyline Terrace at Disneyland Park

This never-before-shared tart is typically only available as part of the Tomorrowland Skyline Terrace dining package. The tarts are filled with rich caramel cream, spiced apple filling, and topped with streusel and holiday sprinkles. Makes 12 tarts.

1. Combine flour, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, and salt in medium bowl.
2. Add cubed butter and use a pastry blender or two knives to cut butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse sand. Set aside until ready to assemble tarts.
3. Peel, core, and chop apples into 1/2-inch cubes.
4. Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar, 3 tablespoons of water, and chopped apples. Cook, stirring occasionally for 4-6 minutes, until apples begin to soften.
5. Combine cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl. Add to apple mixture and cook until liquid begins to boil. Boil for one minute, then remove from heat. Set aside to cool completely.
6. For the caramel cream: combine sugar and water in small saucepan. Heat over medium heat, swirling pan occasionally until sugar is melted and a light amber color.
7. Carefully whisk in butter one cube at a time. Remove from heat and slowly stir in heavy cream, whisking constantly. Add salt and set aside to cool to room temperature.
8. Preheat oven to 350°F. Place tart shells on a baking sheet.
9. Spoon 1 tablespoon caramel cream into each tart shell. Add 1/4 cup cooled apple filling to each tart.
10. Top with streusel, covering the top of the apples. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until topping is golden brown.
11. Top with holiday sprinkles before serving.

Warm Apple Butter Cake from the Disney Recipe Vault

A buttery individual cake topped with caramelized apples and a bourbon caramel glaze. Makes 15 cakes — use large muffin tins if you don't have enough ramekins.

1. Cut apples into thin slices. Melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat; add apples and sugar. Cook until golden and softened. Set aside to cool.
2. Combine brown sugar and butter in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.
3. Simmer without stirring until mixture is thick and dark amber, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Carefully whisk in bourbon and heavy cream (mixture will bubble vigorously). Pour caramel into a bowl to cool.
4. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour fifteen 3/4-cup ramekins.
5. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
6. Whisk together sugar, eggs, egg yolks, and melted butter in a separate bowl. Combine buttermilk and almond extract in a small bowl.
7. Fold a third of flour mixture into egg mixture. Stir in half of buttermilk. Fold in another third of flour, then remaining buttermilk, then remaining flour.
8. Ladle 1/2 cup batter into each ramekin. Bake 20-22 minutes until a pick comes out clean.
9. Remove warm cakes from ramekins. Divide caramelized apples over tops and spoon bourbon caramel glaze over apples and cake.
10. Serve with vanilla ice cream and garnish with dried apple slices and cranberries, if desired.

Apple Tart Tatin from Topolino's Terrace at Disney's Riviera Resort

The culinary team at Topolino's Terrace – Flavors of the Riviera reimagines the classic French dessert. Makes 6 servings.

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Peel and core apples, then cut each into 9 slices.
2. Place sugar, water, vanilla extract, and lemon juice in a large sauté pan and cook over medium-low heat for 5 minutes until amber. Add room temperature butter and stir after half is melted.
3. Add apples and cook for 5-7 minutes until tender but still firm. Remove from heat.
4. Line a sheet pan with parchment and place six 4-inch tart pans on it. Divide apple mixture among the tart pans, adding any syrup.
5. Cut puff pastry to fit tops of each tart pan and place on top of apples. Pierce each 10 times with fork.
6. Place parchment on top and press with a sheet pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden. Remove top pan immediately.
7. Whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, vanilla bean, and salt to soft peaks. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
8. Turn warm tarts onto a plate. Serve with Chantilly.

Apple Butter and Szarlotka Cocktail

Round out the menu with a classic apple butter from the vault and a refreshing Szarlotka (Apple Pie) Cocktail originally poured at a past EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival.

Apple Butter (makes 1 pint): Simmer apples, juice, brown sugar, and salt in a saucepan until soft. Stir in lemon juice, vinegar, cloves, and vanilla bean seeds. Puree with an immersion blender. Return to low heat and simmer, stirring every 5 minutes for 30 minutes until a deep amber color forms. Strain and store refrigerated up to 7 days.

Szarlotka Cocktail: Pour vodka and apple cider into a shaker, fill with ice, and shake vigorously for 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled glass and garnish with an apple slice.

Always use caution when handling sharp objects and hot contents. These recipes have been converted from larger quantities in the restaurant kitchens and the flavor profile may vary from the restaurant's version.

What This Means for Disney Parks Fans

This roundup is particularly exciting because it includes a Disneyland recipe that had never been released publicly — the Tomorrowland Skyline Terrace Holiday Apple Tart. Home cooks who can't easily swing a dining package reservation now have a way to experience the flavors, and the rest of the collection spans enough difficulty levels to cover everything from a quick cocktail to a weekend baking project.