“Devils on Horseback” is a mysterious, fantastical name for bacon wrapped dates– so of course, I love it! The union of sweet and salty is always joyous, especially when there’s bacon involved. Add in funky blue cheese, maple syrup, and dijon mustard, and this particular batch of devils is a mouthful of enticing flavors, which any good appetizer should be!
Recipe Notes:
Variations:
Devils on Horseback hail from Great Britain, where they are traditionally made with prunes, not dates. I’ve made them both ways, and personally I prefer the sweeter, more tender date to the tangy, chewy prune.
This dish can also be made with an almond or goat cheese on the inside. Classically the dish doesn’t call for any kind of glaze, that was my addition.
Fun fact: apparently there’s also a dish called “Angels on Horseback”, which is bacon wrapped oysters.
Bacon:
I LOVE thick sliced bacon, but for this dish, thin sliced bacon is best.
Thick sliced bacon will not cook up as nicely and the fat may not render enough to be crispy.
No Toothpicks Club:
Man oh man, I was stressing about photographing these bacon wrapped dates because they’re just not very photogenic. Worst of all, nothing looks less glamorous than a baked toothpick. So, I decided to try not using toothpicks to see if the bacon would stay in place– and it did! Bonus, the little devils came out looking really nice and uniform because they didn’t require so much handling.
To get a nice wrap, figure out where to start the first end of the bacon so that the second end is underneath the date on the baking sheet. Then repeat the same wrap on each date. I also like to stretch the bacon slightly as I wrap– the taught-ness helps give it a clean look.
Put out toothpicks for serving of course!
Make Ahead:
Assemble and refrigerate until you are ready to bake, or, fully cook and reheat!
Devils on Horseback Recipe
Devils On Horseback
Ingredients
- 24 medjool dates
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 3 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- black pepper
- 6 oz blue cheese cut into small rectangles/ pieces (1 x 1/4” ish)
- 12 strips thin sliced bacon halved crosswise
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400F.
- Pit the dates: use a sharp paring knife to make a slit down the length of each date. Use your fingers to pull the date open and remove the pit. Remove stems if there are any.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, dijon, brown sugar, and a few cracks of black pepper. Add the dates to the mixture and toss to coat.
- Prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Use your thumb and forefinger to squeeze the end of each date to open it up, and stuff it with blue cheese. Wrap each stuffed date in a piece of bacon, placing the end of the bacon under the date to secure. Arrange the wrapped dates on the parchment lined baking sheet and use a pastry brush to dab the remaining maple mixture on top. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, then broil for 3 minutes more (watch them so they don’t burn!) Serve hot!
