Few Deseret News articles have generated as much attention as the article we wrote when Disney released its Dole Whip recipe a month into the COVID-19 pandemic. The article, which included the recipe, went viral, and readers had a lot of thoughts.
Some noted how the recipe Disney Parks released did not mention that the ice cream was dairy-free. While a lot of readers raved about Disney’s frozen pineapple treat, others adamantly believed the official Dole Whip recipe was better.
July 21 is National Dole Whip Day, according to Disney Parks. To celebrate the special day, here’s a look at both the Disney and Dole recipes — and our thoughts on which is better.
Disney Dole Whip recipe
Disney Parks released the Dole Whip recipe in April 2020, at the start of the pandemic, the Deseret News reported.
Below is the recipe for a single serving:
- 1 big scoop of vanilla ice cream.
- 4 ounces of pineapple juice.
- 2 cups of frozen pineapple.
- Add ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Make a swirl to finish it off.
The Deseret News also noted that the original Dole Whip uses dairy-free ice cream. This story from the Disney Parks blog also mentions dairy-free ice cream.
Dole Whip recipe
Dole also has its own Dole Whip recipe, which is a little different from Disney’s recipe, the Deseret News reported.
Below is the recipe:
- 1 cup pineapple juice (frozen).
- 1 banana (peeled and frozen).
- 21⁄2 teaspoons of powdered sugar.
- 1⁄4 to 1⁄2 cups of unsweetened coconut milk.
- Add the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.
Which one is better: Disney or Dole?
Former Deseret News trending editor Herb Scribner wrote that nothing compares to the Dole Whip treat available at Disney parks.
“You can try your best to make the Dole Whip at home — a mix of ice cream, pineapple juice and frozen pineapple — but it doesn’t have the smooth taste that the Disneyland original has,” Scribner wrote last year.
“So if you’ve been craving the Dole Whip and have been making your own at home, just know there’s a better version of the snack waiting for you at the park.”
Brandon Judd, a writer for the Deseret News Sports Express team, recently visited Disneyland and had the chance to enjoy a Dole Whip.
“The magic of Dole Whip comes from its simplicity: it’s smooth, creamy — a kind of creamy that’s difficult to replicate at home — and refreshing on a sweltering sunny California afternoon,” he wrote. “While there’s no bad time to eat a Dole Whip, it’s particularly refreshing to sample in the latter stages of a Disneyland trip, when the feet are sore, the throat is dry and the body is aching.”
Rex Warner, former video director at the Deseret News, made both recipes at home and also concluded that Disney’s version tasted better, with the pineapple flavor being stronger.
“It’s simpler, it has more ingredients that you have on hand,” he said, noting that the Dole Whip recipe involved more ingredients and prep time.
One more thing
Earlier this year, Scribner wrote that Marvel now has a Dole power smoothie, which he described as “the healthy version of a Dole Whip.”
Below is the recipe:
- Two Dole bananas peeled, cut and frozen.
- Two cups of Dole blueberries, frozen.
- 11⁄2 cups of rolled oats.
- 1⁄2 cup of Dole baby spinach.
- Chopped raw almonds.
- Add the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.