Devils on Horseback

Bacon pretty much rocks. I eat healthy most of the time, but this is one of my weaknesses. Nothing goes better with bacon than something sweet (check out the post from July 12th) I had something similar at the Spotted Pig, an awesome gastropub in the West Village (on W. 11th & Perry St.) --> my rugby teammate and good friend Robinson works there...give him a hello! The dish is called Devils on Horseback. Traditionally, these are prepared using prunes, but remember something...food is open to interpretation. These actually are the cheaper version of a dish called Angels on Horseback which uses oysters instead of prunes.

So for my version of Devils on Horseback, I'm using dates. I steep the dates in bourbon, black tea, nutmeg, and a couple of dried chilis. Now steeping simply means soaking an ingredient in a liquid until it is saturated. (think of steeping tea leaves) I speed up the process by slightly simmering the dates in the liquid and letting them sit for a few minutes. Once soaked, I wrap them in bacon and bake. I take the liquid that I just used to steep the dates in and reduce it to a thick sauce.

Now go ahead and make these bad boys just like I prepared them or better yet come up with your own version. Use prosciutto or turkey bacon or better yet stuff it with mango chutney, almonds, or goat cheese. I've tried them all and they taste great...just be creative!

Devils on Horseback
40 dates
20 pieces of bacon
1 cup of bourbon
1 cup of black tea
½ tsp. of grated nutmeg
2 dried red chilis

Combine the bourbon, black tea, nutmeg, and red chilis and pour over dates. Simmer on low/med for 20 minutes. Strain the dates and reserve the liquid. Cut the bacon in half so you have 40 pieces as well. Wrap each date with a piece of bacon and pierce with a tootpick. Repeat this 39 more times. Place on a broiler pan and bake at 350º for 25 minutes (or to your liking). While the bacon is in the oven, take the liquid you just strained from the dates and put on low/med heat and reduce it down to a thick sauce.

Take the Devils on Horseback out of the oven and place on a platter. It’s optional whether or not you want to remove the toothpicks. Lastly, either pour the reduced sauce over the dates or use as a dipping sauce. Enjoy!!