Man-Catching Beignets

If I’ve learned one thing in my time visiting the Port Orleans – French Quarter resort, it is that it doesn’t have to be February or March for it to Mardi Gras! The spirit of living life to its fullest is a party that lives on each and every day at this resort on the banks of the Sassagoula River. From the colorfully manors adorned with wrought iron, to the frog fountain, and cobbled avenues with clever names, there is a lot to love. Even the food has a wonderful joie de vie to it, especially the beignets.

Found at Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory, the beignets are made fresh to order. An order, coincidentally, is either three or six beignets, and each beignet is half the size of my head. So, order wisely and remember that you can always come back for more. Each beignet is a pillow of fried dough goodness that is perfectly chewy. The rest of the flavors from the dough may get lost in the mountain of powdered sugar that gets heaped upon the beignets. With these pastries being hot, the powdered sugar makes a nice glaze on them, but there is still an ample amount of powdered sugar for you to devour. Yes, you’re going to get a sugar rush, but it is the best sugar rush you could ask for.

Oh, a word of caution, due to the copious amounts of loose powdered sugar on the beignets, be careful not to inhale the sugary dust. You will start a coughing fit that is sure to dampen the pure joy these are meant to bring to you.

In addition to the beignets themselves, you can opt to add a selection of three sauces to the side for dipping. The sauces include caramel, raspberry, and chicory coffee ganache. For me, the fruitiness of the raspberry won me over, but for my wife it was the chicory coffee ganache. I’m not a coffee fan, so that deterred me from the get go, but even I will admit that this sauce sounded and looked amazing. The caramel is fine, but when there’s already so much sugar in the dessert, it sort of loses is punch. But if you’re a caramel fan, this is a great addition.

The beignets at the Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory may have more sugar per bite than any other dessert in Walt Disney World, but they are worth every single bite. If you don’t like sweet desserts, I hope I’ve discouraged you from trying these, as the beignets will definitely not be your thing. However, if your motto is the sweeter the better, than you definitely need to make your way down to Port Orleans – French Quarter. This’ll be a Mardi Gras for your taste buds!