It’s hard to feel comfortable naming any recipe “stuffed” something or other. But honestly, there is no better way to describe this recipe. It uses delicate and delicious Mejdool dates filled to the brim (i.e., stuffed) with vegan cream cheese and lavender. The good news about this recipe? You can eat several of these tasty morsels and not feel so stuffed yourself. I like that in a recipe.
I probably would have never considered this recipe on my own, but my lovely cousin Margie was hosting a family dinner and she introduced us to it. How perfect!
She’s one of my cousins with that Martha Stewart gene. She has such a flair for serving unique and delicious dishes on beautiful platters.
The good news is this recipe is so simple to make. A low-maintenance, delicious appetizer with lots of plate appeal? Now we’re talking my kind of dish!
My cousin also sets a pretty mean table. See? More proof of that Martha Stewart gene of hers. I think it was a recessive trait that never had a chance to develop in my DNA mix. Either that or it was crowded out from watching too many episodes of Happy Days.
Although these Lavender Stuffed Dates didn’t leave us to feeling stuffed before dinner, we certainly left that evening feeling filled to the brim with memories of yet another magical family dinner.
Lavender Stuffed Dates
Ingredients:
- 12 Medjool Dates
- 1 package Vegan Cream Cheese (Tofutti makes one of our favorites)
- 1 teaspoon lavender, chopped
- 2 – 4 tablespoons sugar
Directions:
Slice date to open it up. You want to make the cut on the long side of the date. Be careful not to cut all the way through. Although I did this on the first couple and it worked to make it more like a sandwich. I like recipes that make it difficult to fail. If your dates still have pits, remove those now.
Combine the cream cheese with the lavender and stir well. Fill the dates with the cream cheese mixture. If you don’t have any lavender handy, don’t stress out about it. These will taste just fine with plain vegan cream cheese stuffing as well. Just be sure not to call them Lavender Stuffed Dates. You don’t want to confuse your guests…or maybe you do!
Pour the 2 – 4 tablespoons of sugar on a plate. Roll the stuffed date in the sugar until adequately covered.
Place the dates on a serving dish. Garnish with lavender flowers if you have them handy. Enjoy!
Oh…oh good grief yes….
October 26, 2011
11:05 am
cannot get enough dates lately. i’ve been craving this turkey/date/goat cheese sandwich I had at a cafe about a month ago. this looks delicious!
October 26, 2011
8:41 pm
Marly, oh how I love you! These dates might just be my new favorite thing. Making this weekend!
October 27, 2011
10:18 am
This looks magical!
November 3, 2011
9:19 pm