Pavlova Cupcakes for MOANA At-Home Family Movie Party
Family Movie Night is one of my family’s favorite way to spend an evening, especially when a favorite movie comes out on DVD, like MOANA. Check out this easy recipe for Pavlova Cupcakes for a MOANA At-Home Family Movie Party.
Disney’s new MOANA movie came out on DVD MARCH 7. My daughters have been streaming MOANA on Disney Movies Anywhere, utilizing our Google Chromecast since then! If you haven’t seen Moana yet, you can download directly from Disney Movies Anywhere, and simply stream it through your phone, tablet or laptop via Google Chromecast!
Complimentary movie night kit provided by Disney. All views are my own.
If you are not familiar with Disney Movies Anywhere , check it out. We can literally take all our favorite Disney movies anywhere we go. We spend a lot of time driving to and from music lessons, and sitting and waiting at music lessons. My girls can stream a movie while the other sister is having a lesson. Disney movies can be streamed through a Google Chromecast, Roku, Android TV, iTunes, Google Play, VUDU, Amazon Video, Microsoft Movies and the television. All my kid's favorite movies can be streamed on multiple devices everywhere we go. Disney Movies Anywhere is our new best friend.
MOANA At-Home Family Movie Party
I had all these amazing ideas for treats, food and fun for a MOANA At-Home Family Movie Party. But first, I want to tell you a bit about Disney's MOANA if you have not yet seen the movie.
Disney’s MOANA
The seas are calling and they are calling to a girl named Moana. Disney's Moana is about a teenage girl who courageously embraces her calling and bravely rescues her people. Moana's message of striving to make her mark, dreaming big and overcoming huge obstacles are something I try to {already} teach to my daughters. MOANA is an upbeat film with a strong sprinkling of girl-power.
Moana's father, Chief Tui, has a rule that forbids anyone, especially Moana, from sailing beyond their reef. He thinks it best to stay on their beautiful isle, and to prepare for the day when she will lay a stone on the sacred site to become the first female chief.
Moana does indeed set out on a sea adventure and meets the demi-god Maui, breaking her father's rule in the process. Moana does apologize to her father when she returns for her disobedience and her father saw she was attempting to accomplish a greater good.
Moana is a focused and determined teenage girl who is willing to face death in order to help the Motunui people and to right the wrongs of the past that were created by Maui. Maui does eventually learn some important lessons from Moana, like loyalty and sacrifice. I love that this Disney movie reinforces theory that striving to do what is good and right will result in a better world for everyone. This is something I always try to mirror to my children through my own actions and words.
This is also something that my own grandmother taught me that I can pass along to my own daughters with the same class and respect that she gave to me. In the Disney movie, MOANA, there is a stingray-like spirit that guides Moana along her journey. Moana's ancestors send her visions that had me wishing I could receive visions of my grandmother in my dreams.
MOANA At-Home Party Treats
For as long as I can remember, this dessert has been one of the ultimate special occasion desserts, made by my grandmother, and loved by all of my family members. I am so blessed and privileged to come from a rich heritage and a grandmother who loved to cook and bake. A lot of my earliest memories are centered around helping my grandmother in the kitchen when she was still with us. Now that I have my own family and more importantly, my own children, I love when we can all get together to celebrate and I can make special desserts like my grandmother made for me.
Pavlova Cupcakes
These pavlova cupcakes are incredibly light, with a marshmallow-y texture in the middle. Pavlovas are sweet and crunchy at the same time. A pavlova is the perfect desert for any occasion really and it can be made in advance, which helps when you are as busy as we are.
These MOANA Pavlova Cupcakes baked perfectly and I pulled off the tops gently and scooped some vanilla ice cream in and put the top back on. I put some dollops of homemade frosting with some crushed graham crackers on top and everyone was in pavlova heaven. These are literally the perfect combination in your mouth!
Mini Belgium Waffle Cookies
Have you ever had a pizzelle? They are a traditional waffle cookie that my grandmother used to make all the time during the holidays. The dough is simple to make and you simply pour some on a pizzelle iron or in a waffle iron and you have a delicious crunchy waffle cookie.
I simply took the MOANA Mini Belgium Waffle Cookies and sandwiched two together with some blue homemade frosting. I really should not have, because I literally think I have eaten 30 mini waffles cookies! They are so good!
Beach Nails Manicure
My daughter was perusing Disney all over the internet and located a MOANA inspired manicure and wanted to replicate the nails on her hands. So I obliged! These were so simple and so much fun! She loves them!
MOANA Lavender and Rose Bath Salts
My daughters are all about creating, enjoying life, laughing, and family, but they also love to relax. They love getting mani's and pedi's and they adore a good soak in the tub. We get this magazine every new season that is full of DIY projects. We just received the new one and they have earmarked every single page to complete every single DIY project.
I had them narrow it down to one for our MOANA Family Movie Party and they selected homemade bath salts. The bath salts are great for spring after the cold winter we have had here in The Windy City. MOANA Lavender and Rose Bath Salts are great for getting our skin and feet in shape for the beach!
I owe a special thanks to my grandmother, for teaching me how to cook, for teaching me how to always look for beauty in the smallest of things and for instilling in me the love for family (and food, especially sweets). I truly hope I am instilling these same qualities in my daughters and that I am raising strong, confident girls!
There you have some MOANA Pavlova Cupcakes, MOANA Mini Belgium Waffle Cookies, MOANA Beach Nails Manicure and MOANA Lavender and Rose Bath Salts -- all combined to make the perfect MOANA At-Home Family Movie Party!