3-Ingredient Bacon Wrapped Dates | Gimme Some Oven

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My favourite bacon-wrapped dates recipe is made with (really!) crispy bacon, tender Medjool dates, and stuffed along with your selection of cheese. Straightforward to make and at all times a celebration favourite!

Bacon-wrapped dates. ♡

I’ve made this 3-ingredient straightforward appetizer extra occasions than I can depend for completely happy hours, dinner events, vacation gatherings…you title it. It’s a kind of recipes that magically works for nearly any event and is at all times assured to be a crowd favourite. And I personally simply discover that sweet-savory-smoky taste combo to be perfection. That stated, I’ve developed just a few opinions through the years about what takes a bacon-wrapped dates recipe from good to GREAT. So at present I assumed I might pop again in and provides my decade-old recipe right here just a few trendy updates!

First off, we’ve all formally gotta commit any more to taking an additional 10 minutes to pre-cook the bacon earlier than wrapping it across the dates. In any other case, the bacon by no means has time to completely prepare dinner and crisp up whereas baking wrapped across the dates (or you find yourself having to bake the dates so lengthy that the cheese burns or oozes out), which is a tragedy that may simply be averted. Merely pre-cook the bacon within the oven, or you’ll be able to cheat and purchase that pre-cooked tender bacon that’s accessible in most shops these days.

Second, persevering with on with the crispy bacon soapbox, the stuffed dates have to be flipped midway by way of baking so that every facet can get evenly cooked. I’ve experimented with numerous flipping strategies through the years and have discovered it’s merely best to poke the toothpick throughout the date, which makes it straightforward to seize and shortly flip over.

Third, use a good-quality cheese. You solely want a small quantity for this recipe, however a richly-flavored cheese makes such a distinction in balancing out the flavour of the smoky bacon and candy dates. I’m keen on a punchy gorgonzola or a tangy goat cheese, however a superb feta, Manchego, and even an aged cheddar are additionally nice choices right here.

Lastly, don’t neglect to season the dates! I at all times add just a few beneficiant twists of freshly-ground black pepper, and likewise love sprinkling every date with a tiny a pinch of flaky sea salt for crunch. The proper end.

Sound good? Let’s stuff some dates!

Bacon Wrapped Dates Elements

Earlier than we get to the total bacon-wrapped dates recipe beneath, listed below are just a few notes concerning the elements you will have:

• Bacon: I like to recommend primary bacon for this recipe — not thick-cut, not turkey bacon, simply good skinny slices of bacon. We are going to pre-bake the bacon within the oven to the purpose that it’s principally cooked but nonetheless versatile, then wrap it across the dates and bake till crispy.
• Medjool dates: It’s essential to make use of particularly Medjool dates for this recipe, whose giant measurement, tender texture, and scrumptious caramel-y taste work completely on this recipe. When slicing the dates to take away the pits, simply you should definitely solely lower by way of the prime half of the date in order that the filling won’t run out the underside.
• Cheese: It’s essential to use a cheese that received’t instantly soften and ooze out of the stuffed dates! I choose a bacon-wrapped dates with goat cheese, a crumbly blue cheese or feta cheese, however be at liberty to make use of no matter cheese you like greatest. (Manchego, Parmesan, or a superb aged cheddar are additionally nice choices!)
• Flaky sea salt and black pepper: Lastly, I extremely advocate including just a few beneficiant twists of freshly-ground black pepper to the dates, in addition to a tiny sprinkle of flaky sea salt in case you’d like.

How To Make Bacon Wrapped Dates

Full directions for find out how to make bacon-wrapped dates are included within the recipe beneath, however listed below are just a few further suggestions to remember:

• Don’t overstuff the dates. All the time tempting, I do know. 🙂 However I discover it’s greatest to only add a small quantity of stuffing with a purpose to keep a pleasant bacon-to-date-to-cheese ratio, and likewise to maintain the stuffed dates sufficiently small that the bacon can simply wrap round them.
• Pre-cook the bacon. Once more, I actually discover that it’s value the additional step of pre-baking the bacon in order that it may be good and crispy as soon as wrapped round and baked with the dates.
• Serve instantly. These stuffed dates can undoubtedly be loved lukewarm after they’ve sat out awhile. However when served heat recent out of the oven, the mixture of scorching bacon, melty cheese and tender date is downright irresistible.

Recipe Variations

Listed below are just a few extra enjoyable concepts that you just’re welcome to strive with this bacon wrapped stuffed dates recipe:

• Add nuts: Add your favourite nuts (marcona almonds, walnuts or pistachios are my favorites right here) to the middle of the date together with the cheese.
• Add fruit: Add a small fruit (comparable to pomegranate arils or dried cranberries) to the middle of the date together with the cheese.
• Add chocolate: Add chocolate chips or a tiny piece of chocolate bar to the middle of the date together with the cheese.
• Add seasoning: Add some dried or recent herbs/seasonings to the cheese stuffing. (I like including a sprinkle of every thing bagel seasoning or herbs de Provence, particularly when utilizing goat or feta cheese.)
• Add sizzling honey: My straightforward sizzling honey recipe can be improbable drizzled atop these stuffed dates simply earlier than serving.

Extra Straightforward Appetizer Recipes

On the lookout for simpler appetizer recipes which might be positive to be crowd faves? Listed below are just a few winners:

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