Beauty and the Beast Inspired Recipes & Crafts with Williams Sonoma #MyWilliamsSonoma

I was honored to be invited to the #BeOurGuestEvent, a Disney press junket for Beauty and the Beast, Moana Bluray, and other Disney and ABC TV programming. As a guest, my expenses were covered in return for a series of articles about my experiences and reviews of the programming.

Last week, I started sharing the experiences I had during a magical few days in LA to celebrate not only the release of Beauty and the Beast in theaters, but also a number of other Disney movies and shows as well as ABC shows being launched or returning to TV. You can find all our stories, past and upcoming by clicking on #BeOurGuestEvent. We started the week sharing our Beauty and the Beast interviews. Today, though we’re sharing something different. We’re sharing Beauty and the Beast inspired crafts and recipes we learned during a Williams Sonoma blogger event.

After a day of interviewing the Beauty and the Beast cast, we headed over to the Williams Sonoma store in Beverly Hills. A bit hungry from the day’s meetings, I was looking forward to tasting Beauty and the Beast inspired recipes. I had no idea though that not only would we be learning how to cook up a meal worthy of kids with a beastly appetite, but we would also be making paper roses inspired by Beauty and the Beast.

Beauty and the Beast is available in theaters nationwide beginning this Friday, March 17, 2017. Avoid waiting in lines at the theater or having tickets sold out. Buy your Beauty and the Beast tickets in advance by clicking HERE to buy your tickets through Fandango.

An evening of tasting and creating with Williams Sonoma

When you walk in to Williams Sonoma you can’t help but feel inspired to be creative. There is innovative bakeware and cookware and unique elements to add to your home decor. I wanted a front row seat for the cooking demonstration of Beauty and the Beast inspired recipes, so I quickly made my way to the cooking counter.

The chefs were ready to teach and the photographer was ready to capture us capturing the event.

Beauty and the Beast inspired recipes

We were introduced to 5 Beauty and the Beast inspired recipes: Meat Ragu, Cheese Souffle, Squash Soup du Jour, Rose Petal Lemonade, and Edible Roses. We learned how to make the Meat Ragu.

Meat Ragu

A meal to fit a beastly appetite needs to be balanced out with something pretty. Might we suggest the Le Creuset’s Limited-Edition “Be Our Guest” cookware. It’s perfect for cooking soups, roasts, or this Meat Ragu. We weren’t gifted these so if anyone wants to gift this blogger one, I’d be so delighted. ;-)

Created in honor of Disney’s live-action adaptation of Beauty and the Beast, this vibrant blue-enameled chef’s oven by Le Creuset casts an enchanting spell over the kitchen. Featuring an iconic red rose design and a golden knob engraved with “Be Our Guest,” this special-edition piece is available in limited quantities.

I was surprised a dish with so many ingredients, was quite simple to make. There are some steps involved but they aren’t overly complicated. It’s also gluten-free and you can easily adjust the meats and seasonings based on your preferences and your family’s. I am sure my boys would love this meal. Consider this as a comfort food that cooks over a few hours while your family enjoys an afternoon of movies or family games.

You can find the full Meat Ragu recipe on the Le Creuset site, here.

Cheese Souffle

I did miss my chance to taste the Cheese Souffle. Doesn’t it look delicious?

You can find the full Cheese Souffle recipe on the Le Creuset site, here.

Squash Soup du Jour

I’m not normally a fan of squash, but this squash soup definitely had me considering giving squash another chance. The soup was thick. It almost reminded me of a tomato soup, but with squash. I would certainly try to cook this with my boys.

You can find the full Squash Soup du Jour recipe on the Le Creuset site, here.

Other Beauty and the Beast themed recipes

I saw these edible roses when I first walked up to the cooking counter at Williams Sonoma. How gorgeous! How perfect for a Beauty and the Beast recipe.

Unfortunately, we didn’t learn how to make them or take home a recipe to make Edible Roses BUT I did do some research to see what I could discover. The basic idea behind making these Edible Roses is a few simple steps.

1. Cut pastry dough into strips or unroll crescent rolls.
2. Determine what you’ll use for the red color. Will you use sausage or a meat to create an Edible Rose appetizer? Or will you use apples to make a sweet pastry? What ever you use, cut it into crescent shapes. Then, layer those crescent shapes along the pastry strip.
3. Roll the strip up.
4. Bake.

Watch the best Edible Roses recipe demonstration I found on YouTube.

Another Beauty and the Beast themed recipe we tried was Rose Petal Lemonade. Again, we don’t have a recipe, but making your own Rose Petal Lemonade doesn’t have to be difficult. It’s all in the presentation. Take your favorite lemonade and add in some slices of strawberry to represent the roses. Better yet, add in edible roses. (Yes, you can actually order Edible Pink Rose Petals on Amazon. Use our link to get a jar of 40 edible rose petals for less than $10 on Amazon.) Then, serve on a tray covered in what else, rose petals.

Beauty and the Beast inspired craft, making paper roses

After sampling the delicious recipes we moved onto making Beauty and the Beast inspired crafts. Sara Kim of Handmade by Sara Kim lead us in a paper rose making workshop. It’s one of the new crafting workshops coming to Williams Sonoma store. You can learn more about Williams Sonoma events here and more about Handmade by Sara Kim here.

I saw this vase of paper roses, the ones I would be learning how to make, and I thought no way. I’m not going to be able to make something like that.

I won’t lie there is some level of difficulty, but not like I expected. If you can cut paper, you can pull off making paper roses. It will take some patience, but you can do it. Look at my paper rose creation.

How to make paper roses

Supplies to make paper roses

• 1 sheet of Red card stock or cover stock paper, about 5″ x8″, for each rose
• 1 sheet of Green card stock or cover stock paper, about the size of an index card, for each rose
• Hot glue gun with glue sticks
• Scissors
• Pencil
• Green floral wire or one green pipe cleaner
• Green floral tape or green duct tape.

Directions to make paper roses

• Cut three strips, lengthwise on the red paper. They do not all have to be equal widths. In fact, it can work better if you have a small, medium, and large width strip.

• Take the medium strip and fold it in half lengthwise, and then in half again. This should result in 4 equal areas overlapping each other.
• With your medium strip that has been folded, cut out a circular/oval shape. You can see my examples in the pictures below. It’s not quite an oval or a circle. It’s more like a square with the edges curved. You want to cut through all 4 layers. Make sure to cut off the folded edges so you have 4 petals.

• Repeat step 3 with your larger paper strip. Then, repeat it again with your smallest strip. Be sue to keep all petals in separate piles by shape.
• Now, this next step can be a little tricky. You are going to take each pile of 4 petals and cut a small slit in the bottom. The biggest petals get the smallest cut, like a small slit. The medium petals get a cut that is slightly longer. The smallest petals will get a cut almost halfway up the petal. Use the picture below to serve as an example.

• In this step, we are going to start puckering up our petals and forming layers of petals. Start with your largest 4 rose petals. The edge of the petal with the slit will be your bottom. Take your first petal. At the slit, gentle push the right edge next to the slit, under the left edge of the slit. Your petal should curve a bit, like in the pictures above and below. You do not want a hard fold or line, rather a curve of the rose petal. Use your glue gun to hold the base of each petal in place. Once the 4 large petals are done, you can begin the process of gently overlapping them to create a layer of rose petals. Use the glue gun to attach each rose petal to the next one. Leave a small hole at the bottom to allow your stem to pass through. See the picture below.

• Repeat the step you did with the large petals. Only this time use the medium petals.

• Put the large petal layer and medium petal layer to the side. On your small petals cut the edge of that had a slit. Cut it so that the small rose petals have a straight edge while the rest are curved.
• Take one of the small petals and roll it around a pencil to create a tight bud. Remove the bud from the petal. Hot glue the edges together. Be sure to still leave a small hole for your stem to go through.
• With the other 3 small rose petals, curve them in the same manner. BUT do not glue those petals into a close bud. Instead, layer each of the 3 petals around the bud, so that they slightly overlap. Glue each paper rose petal in place.

• It’s time to put together your rose. With a green pipe cleaner or floral wire, cut it to be a length you’d like for your stem. Bend or shape a little scrunched up section at one end of your stem. You want it thin enough to get through the bud, but thick enough that it won’t easily fall out. Thread your stem through the bud from the top. Glue in place.
• Slide up your layer of medium petals from the bottom of the stem upwards. Glue in place. Repeat the process for your large petals again sliding up from the base of the stem to being flush against your medium rose petal layer.
• Add glue as you feel your rose needs it to be securely attached. For added effect you can gently curve the top edges of the rose petals outward. I had difficulty with trying to get the paper to curve without causing creases. You might notice that in the picture, but I still believe my rose came out great.
• Using your green paper, cut out as many leaves as you like. You can apply them with hot glue to the base of the rose like I did. You can also attach leaves up and down your stem using green floral tape or green duct tape.

Are you inspired? Comment below and tell me which of these Beauty and the Beast ideas you are inspired to make?

Watch Beauty and the Beast THIS FRIDAY at your local theater!

• Learn more about Beauty and the Beast by clicking over to this post, Disney’s BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Movie Trailers, Behind the Scenes Features & More

• Enjoy Beauty and the Beast coloring sheets and activity pages by clicking over to this post, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast Printables & Coloring Sheets
• Read about our interview with Emma Watson in this article, Get to know Beauty and the Beast’s Belle, Emma Watson
• Read about our interview with Dan Stevens in this article, Get to know Beauty and the Beast’s Beast, Dan Stevens
• Read about our interview with Audra McDonald (Garderobe) and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Plumette) in an article coming soon.
• Read about our interview with Director Bill Condon and Music Composer Extraordinaire Alan Menken in an article coming soon.

Tomorrow, our #BeOurGuestEvent series continues with a look at our interview with Audra McDonald (Garderobe) and Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Plumette). You can get caught up with our #BeOurGuestEvent series anytime by clicking on #BeOurGuestEvent.

Please note Jersey Family Fun does participate in affiliate programs. If you use our link to purchase products, a small commission does go to Jersey Family Fun to support our free services to readers, but this does not affect your price.