Stuffed Dates

Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or spray with nonstick cooking spray.

Slice the dates lengthwise, taking care not to cut them completely in half. Remove the pit. Take a heaping tablespoon of soy-rizo (more if the dates are rather large or you like things extra spicy) and stuff it into a pitted date. Smoosh the date back together and set aside. Repeat with the remaining dates.

Next take a slice of bacon and wrap it around the stuffed date. Pin it in place with a toothpick. Place wrapped dates on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dates.

Give the wrapped dates a quick spray with nonstick vegetable spray and place in the oven for 10-15 minutes, turning dates halfway through to ensure even cooking. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving. Serve warm or cold, either way they’re darn tasty.

Serves 4-5.

Note: I used a combination of frozen Morningstar brand bacon and homemade. The Morningstar bacon was crunchy, which added a nice textural element to the dates, but the homemade was more bacon-y (if that’s a word) and a little chewier, so pick depending on your personal bacon preference.