Recipe: bacon-wrapped boursin-stuffed dates
It snoooooowed! It’s snooooooowing! *running around with joy* I can’t tell you how happy this makes me (and Jeremy and Kaweah)! We’ve gotten over a foot at home and more than 18 inches on the local hill the last couple of days. And it’s not just the skiing, it’s the precipitation we desperately needed. But… THE SKIING!!
my first day of the season at the local ski hill
the prettiest morning commute – on the way to get first tracks!
a quick afternoon ski tour before dark
jeremy pretends to take a rest on a trailside bench
sunset from the trail
Despite the jaunts out in the snow, I’ve finished my baking and packaging and most other holiday-related stuffs. The oven has been working overtime (as have I) and the house smells of ginger and spices and baking. Several varieties of cookies are packed, tagged, and nestled in their gift boxes or gift bags to be delivered. We’re looking forward to wrapping up 2012 with some skiing, Kaweah snuggles, work (it never ends), and good food. If you’re in search of an easy appetizer for a holiday party or maybe nibbles to tide folks over for a big holiday meal – might I suggest this super easy little old party in your mouth?
bacon, dates, and boursin cheese
Three ingredients, minimal preparation, and ten to twenty-five minutes of baking. Say yes with me. And hello, there’s bacon. Start with the dates. I like to use medjool dates as they are large, sweet, and have a nice chewy, almost velvety texture. They are also sticky as all get out. You can purchase them pitted, but the only organic ones I can find are not pitted. It’s not hard to pit them, though. Just take a sharp knife and slit the side open and pop the pit out.
slice the date open and remove the pit
pitted dates, sliced bacon, and boursin in a pastry bag
I made the mistake of cutting my bacon into thirds. In hindsight, I should have cut the bacon into halves since it shrinks when cooked. As for the Boursin, you can let it soften to room temperature and put it in a pastry bag, or keep it cold and crumble it. Either way, the goal is to stuff some Boursin into each date.
piping cheese into the date
wrapping the bacon around the stuffed date
If the bacon barely wraps around the date when it is raw, then it will likely unravel in the oven as it shrinks. In this case, a toothpick or enough overlap (i.e. a longer slice of bacon) helps to keep everything in place. Set the dates in a baking dish or rimmed baking sheet so the grease doesn’t drip off onto your oven floor. It takes about ten to twenty-five minutes to bake and you are done.
ready for the oven
serve with toothpicks to avoid greasy fingers
salty, sweet, and creamy
It’s a decadent nugget of co*cktail party wonder. Low-risk, high payoff, and did I mention bacon? Also, if you make a batch, Kaweah will follow you around forever.
try it, you’ll like it
Bacon-Wrapped Boursin-Stuffed Dates
[print recipe]
24 dried dates (medjool is a good variety)
12 bacon slices
3 oz. Boursin cheese
Preheat oven to 450°F. If the dates are not pitted, slit them open lengthwise with a sharp knife and remove the pit without mangling the date too much. Cut the bacon slices in half so you have 24 pieces (you could go with thirds and use less bacon, but I found it shrunk too much in the oven and some of the dates became unwrapped). You can stuff the dates with the Boursin cheese in one of two ways: 1) keep it cold and crumble the cheese, quickly inserting the crumbled pieces into the dates or 2) letting the cheese come to room temperature and piping it into the dates with a piping bag. Totally up to you, just don’t overstuff the dates. Close each date over the cheese and then wrap each date with a piece of bacon. You can use a toothpick to secure the bacon around the date if you like (I didn’t and they worked out fine). Place the bacon-wrapped dates in a baking dish about an inch apart. Bake for 5 minutes, then flip the dates and bake another 5 minutes for lightly baked bacon (it will be a little chewy) or 10-12 minutes each side for crispy bacon and caramelized date sugar (this is amazing). Bake to your desired texture. Remove from oven and serve hot. Makes 24.
December 20th, 2012: 8:34 am
filed under appetizers, cheese, fruit, gluten-free, meat, recipes, savory, sweet
