Are you a working parent looking for fun activities to do at home with your kids? Are you an adult looking to bring more crafts and projects to bring magic to your daily life? Are you someone who is missing the magic of Walt Disney World and wondering when you will next be able to experience that indescribable feeling of walking to The Magic Kingdom once again? Then it is time to bring Disney magic home with Disney Fanatic!
Main Street U.S.A.
Main Street U.S.A. in the Magic Kingdom of Walt Disney World Park includes City Hall, The Harmony Barber Shop, Main Street Fire Department, Town Square Theater, and the Flag Retreat that proudly waves the stars and stripes. These various city landmarks and businesses are modeled after the real Main Street U.S.A. in Walt Disney’s hometown of Marceline, Missouri, a street where many visit today to experience the streets that once inspired Walt himself. Main Street is the quintessential Disney experience that welcomes guests into the park and immerses them in another place and time. It is a love letter to classic Americana. And though one cannot always feel the magic of walking down Main Street and seeing Cinderella’s Castle rising on the horizon, one can still look for magic in their own hometown.
Main Street Scavenger Hunt
Whether you live in a small town, a big city, or out in the country there are quintessential businesses, civil services, and local infrastructure that contribute to your community. Though they may not all be concentrated into a singular “Main Street” where you live, they are still all around. Can you find your local train station or spot some train tracks in your town? Can you spot your hometown streetcars or buses going up and down the street? Can you see your nearest movie theater and spot what’s playing from the posters out front? Can you go to your local park or municipal gardens and admire the flowers in bloom? Can you find a place in your town where the American flag is waving proudly? Make a checklist of your favorite Main Street U.S.A. sights and find their equivalent where you live. Get in the car, go for a drive, and appreciate the sights and sounds of your own hometown.
Main Street Helpers Thank You Cards
There are many people and places that make a town thrive. These are the many workers and community helpers around us every day, that are known in Disney World as the citizens of Main Street. There are engineers who service our public transportation to keep it running smoothly, and the drivers who get us where we need to go. There are the firefighters, police officers, and doctors who all work to keep our town and its citizens safe from their fire departments, police stations, and hospitals. There are local veterans and active-duty soldiers who have fought to keep our country safe that can be found at the local Veteran Affairs Center. There are librarians and teachers at the local schools who educate us and give us a greater understanding of the world around us. And of course, there are the many individuals who work at the stores we shop in or services that we patronize every single day.
Sit down together with your family and friends and think about the people who help you every day, even if you do not see them every single day. Take a moment and appreciate the people who you know contribute to your community and often go without thanks for the work that they do. Create magic through a little bit of gratitude. Gather your supplies: paper, scissors, glue, markers, pencils, crayons, or paints- and make some thank-you cards for those who works all around you! Make some thank you cards to deliver to your local police station, firehouse, hospital, veterans center, or library. And make some extra cards to hand-deliver in person to the cashier at the checkout counter, the delivery man dropping off a package, or the construction worker or landscaper you see working to make your town more beautiful. Be sure to tell them that you appreciate all they do!
Main Street Food
Main Street U.S.A. has some delicious places to enjoy some signature Disney treats including Casey’s Corner, The Crystal Palace, and the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor. If you have your own favorite place for excellent hometown eats, complete your day of exploring with a good meal, with an extra big tip for your waitress and compliments to the chef. But if you want that real Disney experience, fortunately, some famous Disney recipes can easily be made at home.
Walt’s Chili and Bean Hot Dog from Casey’s Corner
Serves 6 to 8
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup olive oil, divided
- 3/4 pounds beef stew meat
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 medium green pepper, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 plum tomatoes, diced
- 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons beef base
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- Coarse salt, to taste
- 1 pack hot dogs
- 1 pack hot dog buns
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Directions:
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in large Dutch oven, over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add stew meat and sauté for 10 minutes, until meat is browned on all sides. Remove stew meat from pan and set aside.
- Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to pan, heat for 3 minutes over medium heat.
- Add onions and green pepper. Sauté 8-10 minutes, until soft. Add garlic and sauté one minute longer, until garlic is fragrant.
- Add ground beef. Cook, stirring occasionally to break up large chunks of beef, for 10-12 minutes, until beef is no longer pink. Drain excess fat.
- Return stew meat to the Dutch oven with ground beef mixture. Add ground cumin, chili powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, tomato paste, fresh diced plum tomatoes, diced can tomatoes, beef base, and water.
- Bring chili to a simmer. Cover and simmer over low heat for 3 hours, until stew meat is tender.
- Add pinto beans. Simmer for 10 minutes, until beans are warm.
- Season with salt, as needed.
- Cook Hot dogs as directed on packaging, place in buns, and top hot dogs with chili.
- Garnish with shredded cheddar cheese.
Homemade 2 Scoop Waffle Cone From Plaza Ice Cream Parlor
Serves 6
Ingredients:
- 2 egg whites
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 teaspoon pure almond extract
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ⅔ cup all purpose flour
Directions:
- In a small saucepan over low heat, melt butter and then set aside to cool.
- Turn on your waffle cone maker to let it preheat.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together egg whites and heavy cream until combined.
- Add sugar, cinnamon, salt, vanilla bean paste and almond extract and whisk until well combined.
- Add melted butter and whisk to combine.
- Add flour and whisk only until just combined and smooth.
- Spray waffle maker with nonstick spray on both the bottom and top grids.
- Use a ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop batter into the center of prepared waffle cone maker, and cook according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Lay a dishtowel on the counter next to your waffle cone maker. Once the round is cooked to your desired doneness, carefully and quickly remove it and place it on the dishtowel.
- Position the point of the form close to the edge of the round with the form resting across the diameter of the round. Use the cloth to wrap one edge of the round onto the form, and then roll the cone forward until it’s wrapped completely around the form.
- Hold the cone with the seam side down, gently but firmly, against the cloth and allow it to cool for 15 seconds or so. While it’s cooling, make sure to pinch the tip of the cone so that it’s sealed.
- Once cooled, carefully remove it from the form and let cool upright.
- Add 2 scoops of your favorite ice cream and serve immediately.
Main Street Music
While you take a stroll around your town, pass out thank-you cards for helpers around you, and enjoy your chili dog and ice cream, listen to the sounds of classic Disney tunes as heard on Main Street every day.
And that is how to bring home the Disney Magic of Main Street! If you partake in any of these hometown activities and enjoy them, feel free to share them with us on our Facebook page.