California Dates with Baker’s Bacon

Chef Greg Karjala

“This is one of my favorite recipes to make at home because of the ease and the ability to make it in large amounts for dinner parties. This makes an amazing snack that no one can resist. It brings together all of the bounty of the local and seasonal ingredients that California has to offer. Let me walk you through one of the first recipes I learned as a young cook.” - Chef Greg Karjala

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Cook Time 20

Course Appetizer

Servings 6 people

Ingredients

3 lbs medjool dates
½ lb Baker’s Bacon
1 lemon
4 garlic cloves
2 scallions
¼ bunch Italian parsley
1 Tbsp crushed red pepper flakes
1-2 oz unsalted butter
Salt and pepper for finishing

Instructions

Prepare the dates and the aromatics:

Cut the dates in half and remove the seed
Thinly slice the garlic and scallions
Thinly slice the parsley and set aside for the final garnish
Lastly slice the bacon into nice little strips

Main Recipe

You will need a medium sized sauté pan for this, a non-stick would work the best. Start at medium heat and add bacon to the dry pan.
Let the bacon render its fat and become crispy.
Add the garlic and the scallions, and cook until tender.
Add the chili flake, if you like spice you can always add more at the end.
Toast the chili flakes for about a minute and then add the dates.
Cook the dates until they begin to soften up.
To finish squeeze the juice of one lemon and deglaze all the good stuff on the pan.
Do a final seasoning and finish with the fresh Italian parsley.

Notes

You can go straight from the pan to one of your favorite large plates or platters. I would recommend serving this dish with toothpicks as it makes it easy to handle the hot dates and makes for a fun dinner party snack.”

Keyword Bacon, Bacon Appetizer, dates

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