Pecan-and-Armagnac-Stuffed Dates
When I needed a French appetizer for a French
movie night with friends I turned to Jacques Pepin, one of my favorite French
chefs. I watch him on the local PBS station on Saturday afternoons and
always learn something new. He teaches as much about technique and quality
of ingredients as he does the mechanics of the recipe.
When I needed a French appetizer for a French
movie night with friends I turned to Jacques Pepin, one of my favorite French
chefs. I watch him on the local PBS station on Saturday afternoons and
always learn something new. He teaches as much about technique and quality
of ingredients as he does about the mechanics of the recipe.
And he licks his fingers. Right there on television. I feel right at home.
I've never seen him make Pecan-and-Armagnac-Stuffed Dates, I found it in the only book of his I own, "Encore With Claudine."
The linchpin of taste to this recipe is the Armagnac, a French brandy that Americans for the most part know little about.
Don't think of substituting Cognac for the Armagnac in this recipe. There's a more interesting palette of flavor, depth, and texture in a sip of Armagnac (more on this later). I used a 1978 Marquis de Maniban given to me as a gift by the owner of Chateau du Busca, the producer of this fine spirit, at the conclusion of a personal tour of the Chateau and grounds in 2008.
I had to laugh as I crushed my gingersnap cookies and mixed them with the Armagnac, one of the oldest eau de vie's on the planet with very strict standards for the growing and harvesting of the grapes, as well as production, aging, and bottling.
Written in great big letters on the front of my box of gingersnaps were the words "Made with REAL GINGER & MOLASSES!"
What a concept.
Pecan-and-Armagnac Stuffed Dates
20 regular size dried pitted dates or 12 very large Medjool pitted dates
3 ounces cookies (Pepin recommends gingersnaps, but chocolate chip, tuiles, or even graham crackers can be used)
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons Armagnac or Cognac (don't do it!)
1/3 cup coarsley chopped pecans
1 tablespoon minced fresh mint
20 small spearmint or peppermint leaves, for use as a decoration
1. Using a sharp knife, split the dates, stopping before cutting them in half entirely, and open each one like a book. Crush the cookies coarsely in a small bowl, and lightly mix in the lemon juice and Armagnac. Add the nuts and minced mint, and mix until the ingredients are well combined.
2. To Fill Regular Dates: spoon about 1 teaspoon of the cookie mixture onto each date, then gently fold the date to partially close it around the stuffing. Follow the same procedure to fill Medjool dates, but use 2 teaspoons of the cookie mixture for each date.
3. Decorate the dates by inserting the stem end of a small mint leaf in the center of the stuffed edge. Arrange the dates on a platter, and refrigerate them until serving time.
Sandra's Cooking Notes:
- I used orange juice as a substitute for the lemon juice.
And he licks his fingers. Right there on television. I feel right at home.
I've never seen him make Pecan-and-Armagnac-Stuffed Dates, I found it in the only book of his I own, "Encore With Claudine."
The linchpin of taste to this recipe is the Armagnac, a French brandy that Americans for the most part know little about.
Don't think of substituting Cognac for the Armagnac in this recipe. There's a more interesting palette of flavor, depth, and texture in a sip of Armagnac (more on this later). I used a 1978 Marquis de Maniban given to me as a gift by the owner of Chateau du Busca, the producer of this fine spirit, at the conclusion of a personal tour of the Chateau and grounds in 2008.
I had to laugh as I crushed my gingersnap cookies and mixed them with the Armagnac, one of the oldest eau de vie's on the planet with very strict standards for the growing and harvesting of the grapes, as well as production, aging, and bottling.
Written in great big letters on the front of my box of gingersnaps were the words "Made with REAL GINGER & MOLASSES!"
What a concept.
Pecan-and-Armagnac Stuffed Dates
20 regular size dried pitted dates or 12 very large Medjool pitted dates
3 ounces cookies (Pepin recommends gingersnaps, but chocolate chip, tuiles, or even graham crackers can be used)
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons Armagnac or Cognac (don't do it!)
1/3 cup coarsley chopped pecans
1 tablespoon minced fresh mint
20 small spearmint or peppermint leaves, for use as a decoration
1. Using a sharp knife, split the dates, stopping before cutting them in half entirely, and open each one like a book. Crush the cookies coarsely in a small bowl, and lightly mix in the lemon juice and Armagnac. Add the nuts and minced mint, and mix until the ingredients are well combined.
2. To Fill Regular Dates: spoon about 1 teaspoon of the cookie mixture onto each date, then gently fold the date to partially close it around the stuffing. Follow the same procedure to fill Medjool dates, but use 2 teaspoons of the cookie mixture for each date.
3. Decorate the dates by inserting the stem end of a small mint leaf in the center of the stuffed edge. Arrange the dates on a platter, and refrigerate them until serving time.
Sandra's Cooking Notes:
- I used orange juice as a substitute for the lemon juice.
Posted: Sun - April 19, 2009 at 09:35 AM
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Published On: Apr 19, 2009 09:37 AM
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Published On: Apr 19, 2009 09:37 AM