Chocolate Covered Dates
Ingredients
Peanut Butter:
- 16 medjool dates
- 16 tablespoons of your favorite peanut/almond butter (1 tablespoon per date)
- 8 oz of dark chocolate chips
Maple Caramel Bacon:
- 16 medjool dates
- 1-2 pieces of cooked bacon
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons of butter
- ½ cup of heavy cream
- 1-2 tablespoons of maple extract (you can use vanilla extract too)
- Pinch of salt
- 8 oz of dark chocolate chips
- Finishing salt for topping
Rum infused bananas:
- 16 medjool dates
- 1-2 bananas, peeled. Cut each banana in half, then cut each half lengthwise
- 4 tablespoons of butter
- 4 tablespoons of brown sugar
- 1 shot of white rum
- Pinch of cinnamon
- 8 oz of dark chocolate chips
- Shredded coconut for topping
Instructions
Peanut Butter (easiest):
- Line a baking sheet or a couple of plates with parchment paper. Set aside until needed.
- Cut the dates in half lengthwise, being careful not to slice the date all the way in half, you want to be able to stuff the dates with your filling. Remove the pits.
- Carefully spoon 1 tablespoon of peanut butter inside the date, then set the date on top of the parchment paper. Repeat until all of the dates are stuffed with peanut butter.
- Put the dates into the freezer and chill while you melt the chocolate in a double boiler (or microwave).
- Once the chocolate is completely melted, take the dates out of the freezer, and one by one, dunk the dates into the melted chocolate using a fork. Carefully lift the chocolate covered dates out of the chocolate, allowing the access chocolate to drip off.
- Carefully placed the chocolate cover dates onto the parchment paper and top with finishing salt or any topping you wish. After you topped the dates with whatever topping you enjoy, pop them into the fridge for an hour or until the chocolate firms up and sets.
- Keep stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Enjoy!
Maple Caramel Bacon (medium difficulty):
- Line a baking sheet or a couple of plates with parchment paper. Set aside until needed.
- Cut the dates in half lengthwise, being careful not to slice the date all the way in half, you want to be able to stuff the dates with your filling. Remove the pits.
- Cook the bacon until it reaches the crispness you like best. After the bacon is finished cooking, allow it to drain on a paper towel lined plate. Blot off the excess grease. Cut the bacon into bite size pieces.
- Mix the brown sugar, butter, cream, maple extract, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium-low to medium heat. Cook and whisk the ingredients together until everything is well combined. Let the mixture bubble and cook, whisking occasionally, for 7-8 minutes, so the caramel sauce can thicken up. Take off heat and set aside until needed.
- Carefully stuff each date with bacon, then set the date on top of the parchment paper. Repeat until all of the dates are stuffed. Now spoon some of the caramel sauce into the dates as well. You'll have plenty of sauce left over, so don't worry, use as much caramel sauce as you like.
- Put the dates into the freezer and chill while you melt the chocolate in a double boiler (or microwave). This will help harden the caramel sauce so it doesn't run out of the dates.
- Once the chocolate is completely melted, take the dates out of the freezer, and one by one, dunk the dates into the melted chocolate using a fork. Carefully lift the chocolate covered dates out of the chocolate, allowing the access chocolate to drip off.
- Carefully placed the chocolate cover dates onto the parchment paper and top with finishing salt. Pop the dates into the fridge for an hour or until the chocolate firms up and sets.
- Keep stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Enjoy!
Rum Infused Bananas (most difficult):
- Line a baking sheet or a couple of plates with parchment paper. Set aside until needed.
- Cut the dates in half lengthwise, being careful not to slice the date all the way in half, you want to be able to stuff the dates with your filling. Remove the pits.
- In a large skillet, melt the butter and brown sugar over medium to medium high heat. Whisk together until the butter and sugar are well combined. Don't worry if the mixture looks grainy. Once the butter/sugar start to bubble, carefully add the banana's, flat size down. Cook the banana's for 3 minutes, then using 2 forks, gently flip the banana's and cook for another minute.
- TURN OFF THE HEAT and add the rum. Once the rum is added, turn the heat back on. If you have a gas stove, you can gently tip your pan to one side until the rum ignites. If you're working on an electric stove, get a long fire lighter (or match) and careful ignite the rum. Be careful, but don't panic, your pan will be aflame but will burn out in a minute or two, once the rum burns off.
- Once the fire dies down, sprinkle in some cinnamon, and carefully stir everything together. Set aside and allow banana's to cool and cut into small chunks.
- Once the banana's are cool, stuff the dates with some banana, then spoon over some brown sugar sauce left over in the pan. Repeat until all of the dates are stuffed with banana and sauce.
- Put the dates into the freezer and chill while you melt the chocolate in a double boiler (or microwave).
- Once the chocolate is completely melted, take the dates out of the freezer, and one by one, dunk the dates into the melted chocolate using a fork. Carefully lift the chocolate covered dates out of the chocolate, allowing the access chocolate to drip off.
- Carefully placed the chocolate cover dates onto the parchment paper and top with shredded coconut or any topping you wish. After you topped the dates with whatever topping you enjoy, pop them into the fridge for an hour or until the chocolate firms up and sets.
- Keep stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Enjoy!
Notes
Peanut Butter:
Depending on how thick your peanut/almond butter is, you may not need to freeze the dates after stuffing them. You just want to ensure the peanut butter doesn't spill and run out of the date, before you stuff them. If you're using creamy peanut butter and it's spilling out of the date, pop them in the freezer for about 10 minutes, to help stiffen up the peanut butter, to keep it in place. Maple Caramel Bacon:
You'll have a lot of the maple caramel sauce leftover from this recipe. Store in an airtight container in the fridge, it should last for a couple of weeks. The caramel sauce would go great over cake or ice cream! Rum Infused Bananas:
You may have extra bananas and brown sugar rum sauce. Spoon it over some ice cream and now you have Banana's Foster! Delicious!!! No calorie breakdown this week folks, as soon as I have more energy I’ll be posting calorie counts per usual. I hope you understand!!
Depending on how thick your peanut/almond butter is, you may not need to freeze the dates after stuffing them. You just want to ensure the peanut butter doesn't spill and run out of the date, before you stuff them. If you're using creamy peanut butter and it's spilling out of the date, pop them in the freezer for about 10 minutes, to help stiffen up the peanut butter, to keep it in place. Maple Caramel Bacon:
You'll have a lot of the maple caramel sauce leftover from this recipe. Store in an airtight container in the fridge, it should last for a couple of weeks. The caramel sauce would go great over cake or ice cream! Rum Infused Bananas:
You may have extra bananas and brown sugar rum sauce. Spoon it over some ice cream and now you have Banana's Foster! Delicious!!! No calorie breakdown this week folks, as soon as I have more energy I’ll be posting calorie counts per usual. I hope you understand!!