Chewy, salty and sweet, Bacon-Wrapped Almond-Stuffed Dates are the perfect, 3-ingredient party appetizer!
Last Tuesday afternoon I found myself madly cramming raw almonds into a handful of pitted medjool dates before repeatedly shoveling them into my mouth. What else is new, right?
Oh wait, I forgot to mention it was 3pm and I was approximately 8 hours into a 3 day juice cleanse. I know.
I’d just gotten back from Napa where I’d been spoiled rotten with good food & wine for 3 days straight. A fellow blogger on the trip told me about this fabulous, one-week juice cleanse she goes on whenever she’s overindulged, and while I knew 5 days without solid food would never fly, surely I could make it a measly 3 days in order to cleanse my olive oil-drenched soul, right?
Wrong. So wrong! In fact it seemed I most definitely could not make it a measly 3 days, as evidenced by the juice cleanse killer carnage taking place just EIGHT HOURS in.
Just like Joey doesn’t share food – Kristin does not do hungry!
Besides a ravenous appetite and huge distaste for liquid celery, one thing I took away from my half-day cleanse was realizing how ridiculously delicious crunchy almonds stuffed inside chewy-sweet dates taste. And not just when you’ve been drinking beet juice all day either.
A few days later I began to wonder how this delectable combo would taste if it were wrapped in salty bacon then baked until warm & chewy. Bacon-Wrapped Almond-Stuffed Dates were immediately prepped, baked, and popped. These babies are mind melting!
Chewy, salty, sweet, incredibly rich and decadent, Bacon-Wrapped Almond-Stuffed Dates are perfect for a party, as an appetizer, or when you’re simply starving after trying to convince yourself that you can live on juice for more than a day. You will LOVE them!
Ingredients
- 20 pitted medjool dates
- 40 raw almonds
- 10 slices center-cut bacon, each sliced cut in half
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil then place a cooling rack on top and spray with nonstick spray.
- Push 1 almond into each opening of each date. Wrap with half a slice of bacon then place seam side down on the cooling wrack. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until bacon is crispy.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
Your recipe says 20 dates, 40 almonds, 1 almond per date. What do you do with the remaining 20 almonds?
You insert one almond into each end of the date, so two almonds per date (as described in step 2 of the recipe).
These are excellent with smoked almonds.
Had this in a nice Italian restaurant and have been making them every since. Dates stuffed with gorgonzola cheese, wrapped in bacon, and then a reduced balsamic drizzle to top them off. They are also gone in a heart beat.
Kraft has a similar recipe that I’ve made before. You stuff the dates with sea salt almonds and feta cheese than wrap in bacon. I LOVE these! I just ate some last week on vacation…
I’ve been making these for years and found them great for parties. You can make them in advance, freeze them and then cook them the day of the party. Delicious!!
That is a brilliant idea – I never thought to prepare then freeze them!
Hi Renee,
I know you commented on this ages ago but I had a question — if I prepare these in advance and freeze them, do you have any recommendations for cook-time adjustments? Is 375 for 30 minutes still ok, or should I cook them longer (or let them defrost first)?
Also, when you freeze them, how do you store them? Just in a sealed container in the freezer? Or do you need to (individually?) wrap them in something before freezing?
Thanks so much!
Delicious! Actually it is typical from my hometown, Elche
These are to die for with cream cheese to dip them in!!!
Yummm! I have made these before, but with cheese in the middle instead of nuts. SO delicious! No one can get enough!
I had something very similar to this at a tapas place in Chicago… I love dates with bacon!!!
My husband and I call these hot dates. Also had them in a tapas restaurant in Vancouver, B.C. with reduced balsamic drizzled on top and sprinkled with crumbled blue cheese. This is one of the greatest apps I’ve had ever.
Throw some blue cheese or goat cheese in there too for a really delicious taste!
I had to do a double take and ask “Am I on the right blog?!?” A juice cleanse definitely doesn’t seem your style!
The dates sound delicious!
It definitely wasn’t! Love to juice, just not LIVE on juice!