Today my friend Camila and I strolled-over to the local, LJ Farmers Market. I have been going to this one for years to enjoy fresh finds & having a chance to chat with the growers themselves. Crops and offerings change with the season, but you can always count on fresh organic produce, samples, and unique recipe inspiration! Today’s eclectic farmer finds ranged from winter squashes and CA dates, all the way to awesome organic food-inspired t-shirts, from Locally Grown Clothing Co. This sustainable company has great shirts and even donates to support local family farms with each purchase– a double-plus in my book. (www.locallygrownclothing.com)

We stopped by local Futterman Farms‘ stand & sampled some CA grown dates. I am a fan, but don’t eat dates too often. These were delicious, sweet & pack more flavor than I’d ever thought to give a date credit for! Futterman Farms is a local CA grower based in Indio, and in addition to growing several date varieties, they also grow figs and pomegranates. Today we sampled & bought some of the Bahri variety of  dates. These were amazing solo, but can you imagine them wrapped in bacon? Well I can, and it sounds down-right delicious!

I would recommend stopping by and supporting a local CA farm like Futterman, next time you are at the LJ farmers market (Sunday mornings). They will be more than happy to offer you a sample and some good recipes to try! Here is my recipe for dates.. though you probably already guessed there would be some bacon! Enjoy!

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Stuffed Bacon Wrapped Dates

The contrast of salty bacon and sweet carmalized date is perfect! A clean tray every time.

Serves: 30 awesome wrapped dates

Prep time:  15 mins

Cook time:  20 mins

Total time:  35 mins

What to get:

(enough for a party appetizer)

• 30 dried pitted dates (1 package)
• Gruyère cheese (wedge)
• 1 lb bacon (lean, sliced thin- cut shorter, into halves)

What to do:

1. Optional: Stuff date with Gruyère. (Slice size = pencil-width, length of date)
2. Lay a stuffed date onto half strip of bacon & wrap to close
3. On baking sheet, bake til bacon is crispy (~10 min), flip & bake another 10 min
4. Transfer cooked dates to drain on paper towels
5. Serve warm & good luck not eating them all !!

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