Creating Sweet Memories: Meet the Cast Members Behind a Fan‑Favorite Treat
Whether you’re a Disney Foodie or just love a sweet treat, there’s a good chance you’ve heard about the Cookie Dough Brownie Ice Cream Sandwich at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Inspired by childhood nostalgia and brought to life through collaboration, Pastry Chef Kellie Matthews and Pastry Cook Joe Vella shared with us the sweet details of how this buzzworthy treat came to be.
Kellie and Joe’s cast stories have been intertwined for some time. When Joe started his Disney career in 2018 as a Cook at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, Kellie was an Assistant Sous Chef in the same kitchen. Nearly a decade later, the duo shared a full-circle moment when they ideated this treat together at the Animal Kingdom bakery.
Chef Kellie, who is celebrating her 10-year anniversary as a cast member this year, spearheaded the creation of this tasty treat. When given the opportunity to introduce a new ice cream sandwich concept to the park, Kellie’s goal was to introduce a dessert that was better than any she had tasted before. To do that, Kellie looked to her own memories, which she credits as the first thing she goes to when creating food.
First, she knew she wanted to incorporate her childhood obsession with cookie dough into this ice cream sandwich. From there, she reminisced about the 1940s-style ice cream truck that drove around her childhood neighborhood. She recalled the kind old man who drove the truck and the variety of rectangular ice cream bars he sold.
“That shape was just nostalgic,” she said. “Unwrapping an ice cream bar that was in that parchment paper, like you just bought it off this old-world ice cream truck. It awoke my inner child when making it.”
With that inspiration, the table was set with a delicious idea. Then came the challenge: figuring out how to produce this nostalgic creation in high volumes for the thousands of guests that visit our parks each day. Kellie credits Joe as the magic that brought it all together.
From the speed and temperature at which ice cream melts, to how to transport the ice cream bars from kitchen to market stand, determining how to produce this dessert at scale while keeping those nostalgic flavors was a challenge – but when Joe and Kellie tasted the final recipe for the first time they knew overcoming those obstacles had been worth it. Kellie couldn’t contain her excitement and even began jumping up and down shouting with joy. She was quickly joined by other pastry chefs once they had a taste.
“I knew once I bit into it, this was going to go viral,” Joe said.
For Joe and Kellie, the popularity around this sweet treat has been surreal.
“Seeing all the videos out there of guest reactions… it really just warms my heart, because that’s exactly what I want for our guests: to be able to enjoy something they’re crazy about,” Kellie said.
Joe agreed, sharing how one of his favorite parts of being a cast member is seeing the genuine reactions of guests tasting the items that his team produces when he’s visiting the parks.
“The lasting impacts that we have on guests is profound,” Kellie said. “That’s what I love about being a Chef at Disney.”
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