Dole Disney and Pixar-Inspired Recipes and Activities For The Whole Family! It’s a Food Adventure! #Dole #DoleRecipes #BehindThePeel #Disney #Pixar

I am an official ambassador for Dole. Dole provided me with product samples and or prize merchandise for the purpose of this post, as well as compensation for my time. As always, all opinions expressed are mine.

Dole is collaborating with Pixar to show kids that, just as they learned that monsters weren’t scary, neither are new fruits and vegetables that we’ve never eaten before! Dragon fruit, star fruit, horned melon: these are not fruits from a scary movie, but rather delicious-tasting healthy items for us to enjoy and expand our palate!

Dole’s passion for produce includes not only America’s favorites – bananas, apples, lettuces, celery, carrots and broccoli – but dozens of more diverse and exotic fruits and vegetables liked horned melon, dragonfruit and artichokes,” said William Goldfield, Dole’s director of communications. “Whether it’s their angry names and thorny exteriors, or simply a misperception about taste and preparation, produce paranoia has become a very real phenomenon.

I remember when our son was younger and he saw a dragon fruit at an Asian market downtown. He insisted we buy it since, he was far more adventurous then we were! We took it home and loved the fruit! We later introduced it to his cousins, who were indeed scared of this weird looking fruit, but one bite, and deliciousness overcame fear!

Disney and Pixar Monster’s, Inc. is the perfect example of a journey where you find out what seemed scary, was in fact, not at all scary! I met Mike and Sully, and they are super friendly!

What could be scarier than a human child infiltrating Monstropolis, the city at the center of Disney and Pixar’s Monsters, Inc., requiring a distress call to the Child Detection Agency (CDA)? For many North American kids and even some of their parents, the answer is produce paranoia, defined as the prospect of having to eat an unfamiliar fruit or vegetable beyond the everyday mealtime routine.

We can use the lesson learned from Pixar’s Monster’s, Inc. and apply it to fruits and vegetables that look different then what or kids are used to, or something new that we never tried before! Overcome your fear, have an adventure, and try these great Pixar-inspired recipes from Dole! And remember, ask your children’s school how to get homeschool credits for this — after all,  the kids are learning nutrition through the science of cooking! And the activity sheets at the end of this article can be used for Art credits!

It is time to try new specialty fruits and veggies with the following fun recipes, activity sheets, and fun family activities! Perfect for the entire family. (All inspired by Disney and Pixar’s Monster’s, Inc. Images of Sulley and Mike started appearing on millions of DOLE® Bananas and Pineapples in U.S. and Canadian supermarkets, I am trying not to treat these foods as collectibles!)

She is watching, always watching. Roz is my favorite character. Check out this recipe for Chicken Stuffed Roz Heads:

INGREDIENTS:https://bit.ly/2P8E9Q0
1 1/3 cup cubed cooked chicken breast (about 7 ounces)
2/3 cup DOLE® green grapes, halved
1/3 cup chopped DOLE® celery
1/2 cup non-fat plain Greek yogurt
1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
2 DOLE® avocados, halved, pitted and peeled
8 small whole wheat pretzel twists
24 whole wheat pretzel sticks
1 DOLE® strawberry
4 dried sweetened blueberries

DIRECTIONS:
-STIR together chicken, grapes, celery, yogurt, salt and pepper.
-SCOOP four equal portions (about ½ cup) onto a serving plate to make 4 servings. Shape each into an oval.
-TOP with upside down avocado half.
-DECORATE each avocado half to resemble Roz’s face. Using a sharp paring knife, trim each pretzel twist to create the lens of her horn-rimmed glasses (cut off the double loop section of each pretzel twist and discard or enjoy as a snack, keeping the single loop portion which will become one lens. You will need 2 lenses per Roz Head). Place two pretzel lenses on each avocado to form her glasses. Add a pretzel stick to each side of avocado to form the arms of her glasses. Push 4 pretzel sticks into the top of each avocado to form her hair. Add a strawberry slice, trimmed to look like lips for her mouth and a dried blueberry to the lower left side of her face to form her mole.

Thank goodness for becoming a parent, having a child is how we got to know the Pixar world. Turns out I am a bigger kid than my son, I can’t get enough of these guys!

The next delicious recipe we have is Mike Wazowski Fruit Stack:

INGREDIENTS:
2 DOLE® kiwis, peeled and cut in half lengthwise
1/2 DOLE® kiwi, peeled
4 DOLE® oval pineapple slices, about 3 inches in diameter, cut out with an oval cookie cutter
4 large oval slices green melon/honey dew melon, about 4 inches in diameter
1 peeled 1-inch slice dragon fruit
16 almond slivers
1 horned melon
4 dried unsweetened blueberries

DIRECTIONS:
-PLACE kiwi ovals upside down on top of each oval pineapple slice to resemble Mike’s head. Place each pineapple sliced on a melon oval on a plate.
-SCOOP out 4 balls from dragon fruit slice with 1/4 tsp for Mike’s l bulging eyeball (snack on scraps). Place each dragon fruit eyeball on top third of kiwi. Add a dried blueberry to form the pupil.
-WITH a sharp paring knife, trim half kiwi into Mike’s dangly legs and arms and add to sides and bottom of kiwi, draped over the pineapple. Add two almond slivers to top of each kiwi to form the smiling mouth and two more almond slivers protruding out of the top of Mike’s head to his horns.
-SCOOP out horned melon and drizzle around Mike directly onto the plate.

We don’t want to leave Sulley out, so try the Sully Banana Dip:

INGREDIENTS:
1 DOLE® banana
6 Tbsp all-natural peanut butter
1 tsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp natural teal gel food coloring
1 Tbsp dried unsweetened blueberries
1 Tbsp dried unsweetened cherries
1 DOLE® green apple, cored and cut into wedges
1/2 cup each DOLE® red and green grapes
Optional: 1/8 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS:
-PUREE banana, peanut butter, maple syrup, vanilla, and teal food coloring in blender until blended – dip will be a bright teal color. Stir in dried blueberries and cherries.
-SERVE dip with apple wedges and grapes.

There are a total of 10 Dole recipes inspired by Disney and Pixar Monster’s, Inc. Scroll to the bottom for the list – they are perfect for the whole family, perfect for getting your kids to eat healthier, and all are easy to prepare! Let’s celebrate Dole’s Fruit and Veggies Don’t Have to Be Scary Initiative together, and eat well!

I also have some great activity fun with Dole and Disney and Pixar! Click on each picture for the activity and it’s related recipe!

For original recipes, nutritional insights, and other information, go to www.dole.com or follow Dole’s Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest pages.