Appetizer question

I wanted to make bacon-wrapped dates stuffed with Marcona Almonds for an appetizer at an upcoming event. The client liked the idea of dates stuffed with the almonds but not the bacon wrapping.

Can anyone suggest a substitute for the bacon? And please, not turkey bacon strips! Thanks in Advance

How are you cooking them?

Duck proscuitto (though I hate that term) springs to mind, but I'd be concerned that it's too lean and would dry out.

Is it the porkyness altogether that she's not a fan of? If she's okay with pork but wants something a little more sophisticated than plain old bacon you could always do proscuitto or pancetta.

Honestly, I think the bacon is sort of the whole point of that app, but i'm very pro-bacon

bananasandwiches wrote:Honestly, I think the bacon is sort of the whole point of that app, but i'm very pro-bacon

Total agreement here

I think the key is why bacon is a no-go... because it's pork, because it's too fatty, or because it isn't "fancy" enough.

Finding a satisfying non-meat wrapper is going to be next to impossible... the only thing that comes to mind would be bean curd skins, but that just kind of sounds gross, even if you smoke or grill the things.

Alternative preps might be to stuff with a nice sharp blue or goat cheese -- I'd still grill them (carefully). Keep the almonds too. You definitely want that salt-and-umami combo in there somewhere.

What, you say, it's got to be vegan? *sigh*
I'm trying to think what might work here. A miso+ginger glaze on the dates might just work. I've never tried it, but it sounds intriguing.

Well now you can see my problem. I'm thinking of now completely changing the appetizer or eliminating it altogether.

I sort of object to people having this reaction to bacon. Unless its for religious reasons, its only one bite at a cocktail party. But catering by definition is catering. The appetizer in question just won't be the same with out that salty, smokey component.

I'm could try to wrap a grilled veggie (say zuchini) around the stuffed date but I think that something would be amiss there.

Oh well thanks for trying.

What about a smoked cheese?

Obviously, you'd have to place it atop the date and secure it, but there are some lovely smoked cheeses, such as Damski, from Poland; Gouda; or mozzarella.

Is your client anti-pig, anti-meat or is it just the bacon by itself? To make a stuffed date work, you need one counterpoint for the sweet flavor and another for the soft texture, right? Hmm.

If it's strictly about bacon, what about subbing chicharron? Or, for that matter, chicken skin? I suppose you could bring out a flavor counterpoint by dusting or marinating with some kind of chili. (though chicken-skin-wrapped dates might be a tough sell; non-LTHers would need a euphemism)

Going vegetarian is really tough, since fatty, crispy and flavorful are a tough combo for whole veggies - maybe deep-frying would help? Flavored panko breading? Tempura?

I've encountered this little "problem" before (the reason, in my case was to make it vegetarian)... The coating fatty coating is essential to this, so my solution was very thinly sliced sauteed portabellas. Experiment with it and see if it's to your liking.

It may be too late for the OP, but what about thinly sliced smoked cheese?

I recently had a delightful fish dish at The Epicurean, Mosoni-style perch, a pair of pan-fried perch fillets topped with sauteed mushrooms and wrapped smoked cheese, then baked till the cheese was chewy and slightly crisped, and it worked really well.

The Epicurean
4431 W. Roosevelt Road
Hillside
(708) 449-1000
www.thehungarianrestaurant.com