For the Love of Disney Food- Tonga Toast Recipe

August 4, 2021 ,

FOR THE LOVE OF DISNEY FOOD: TONGA TOAST

Our fabulous leader Michele Atwood, has an affection for sharing all things Disney food and it has inspired me to throw in some magical meals to our routine of home life. On this episode, ha! Joking! How fun would it be to have a cooking show? Food at the parks and resorts are an important part of any trip to Disney. With so many options why would you eat anything twice? Well, I’m a creature of habit, I have favorites and I tend to stick to them in some sort of rotation. After being hunkered down for so long, that’s defiantly going to be a habit I’ll quit. I’m making a list and will be eating it all. If you can’t tell, I’m here for the food.

I decided to make Tonga Toast for dinner first. I will be honest; I never had it before making it myself. The shame! A visit to Kona Café is now on top of my list of places to eat. I’ve heard of it, and all the great things said about it, but, like I said before… creature of habit. So, first thing I will say is the list of ingredients is a long one, but I had it all, so it was on!

INGREDIENTS
FOR THE STRAWBERRY COMPOTE
1 1/2 c. chopped strawberries
3 tbsp. sugar
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
FOR THE TOAST
1 loaf white bread, unsliced
2 Bananas, sliced
4 large eggs
1 c. heavy cream
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Vegetable oil, for frying
1 c. cinnamon sugar
sliced strawberries, for serving
Maple syrup, for serving
DIRECTIONS
  1. Make strawberry compote: In a small skillet over medium heat, combine strawberries, sugar, lemon juice and vanilla. Bring mixture to a simmer and cook until the strawberries begin to break down and the mixture has thickened slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and gently mash the compote with the back of a fork (or a potato masher).
  2. Slice bread into 3 to 4 very thick pieces. Use a knife to create a slit in one side of the toast, then stuff banana slices into the toast. Repeat with remaining bread pieces and bananas.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. Dunk each stuffed sliced into the batter mixture, tossing to coat all sides.
  4. Pour a 1/4” of vegetable oil into skillet and heat over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the battered bread and cook until crispy and golden all over, about 2 minutes per side.
  5. Drain toast briefly on a wire rack. Pour cinnamon sugar into a large shallow bowl, then gently shake off excess oil from warm toast and toss in cinnamon sugar.
  6. Garnish with fresh strawberries and serve with strawberry compote and maple syrup.
This was fun to make, and the smells are divine. I’m going to need a candle that smells like Tonga Toast pronto. I had to substitute the star anise with anise extract. I don’t know if I used too much or not enough, either way, I figured that it was the infusing of the flavor the recipe was calling for and it’s all I had. Using extract is most likely a stronger flavor that you would normally have with this, but I love anise, so it was ok. You’ll notice in my photo that my toast is darker than what you’ll see from Kona Café, I went heavy with the cinnamon.

I’m rating Tonga Toast, 5 STARS! It’s a must eat suggestion from me.

Elizabeth Thompson
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