by now, many of you are baking pies and brining turkeys. maybe you are battling the crazies at the grocery store or cleaning your kitchen for the third of ten times in the next few days. i feel you friends. we are elbow deep in it.

but i’m sure there are some of you out there, the procrastinators, who still haven’t figured out what appetizer you are bringing to your moms, aunts, second cousin’s house for thanksgiving.

i got you boo.

these one bite, bacon wrapped flavor bombs are sure to shine at any holiday gathering.

bacon wrapped & herbed goat cheese stuffed dates

serves: 20 dates

prep time: 20 minutes

baking time: 20-25 minutes

total time: 45 minutes

ingredients: 20 pitted dates. .5 cup goat cheese (crumbled is easier). 1 green onion, white and green parts chopped fine. 1 large garlic clove, minced. 3 small or 1 large fresh sage leaf, finely chopped. 10 thyme leaves, finely chopped. 8-10 pieces of bacon, (thinner works a bit better so it crisps up well). 20 tooth picks (soak them in water while you work so they don’t get too charred in the oven). baking sheet. optional aluminum foil or parchment paper.

start by preheating the oven to 425 degrees f. combine your onion, garlic, sage & thyme in a bowl with the goat cheese. stir till combined well.

slice each date length wise, three fourths of the way to the bottom of the date. if you are using aluminum foil or parchment paper, line your baking sheet.

place your dates on the baking sheet.

stuff your dates with about .25 tsp of goat cheese filling.

take your bacon, and slice each piece into 3 pieces. wrap each date in a strip of bacon. use a toothpick to secure the bacon. skewer the dates so that the toothpick is sticking out equally on each side of the date so they can easily be flipped and eaten.

bake the dates in the oven for 20-25 minutes, flipping them halfway through to ensure they are crispy on both sides. once crispy all the way around, remove from the oven and allow them to cool for a few minutes till they are cool enough to eat.

place them on a platter and serve hot.

xo, a

bacon wrapped & herbed goat cheese stuffed dates

serves: 20 dates

prep time: 20 minutes

baking time: 20-25 minutes

total time: 45 minutes

ingredients: 20 pitted dates. .5 cup goat cheese (crumbled is easier). 1 green onion, white and green parts chopped fine. 1 large garlic clove, minced. 3 small or 1 large fresh sage leaf, finely chopped. 10 thyme leaves, finely chopped. 8-10 pieces of bacon, (thinner works a bit better so it crisps up well). 20 tooth picks (soak them in water while you work so they don’t get too charred in the oven). baking sheet. optional aluminum foil or parchment paper.

start by preheating the oven to 425 degrees f. combine your onion, garlic, sage & thyme in a bowl with the goat cheese. stir till combined well. slice each date length wise, three fourths of the way to the bottom of the date. if you are using aluminum foil or parchment paper, line your baking sheet. place your dates on the baking sheet. stuff your dates with about .25 tsp of goat cheese filling. take your bacon, and slice each piece into 3 pieces. wrap each date in a strip of bacon. use a toothpick to secure the bacon. skewer the dates so that the toothpick is sticking out equally on each side of the date so they can easily be flipped and eaten. bake the dates in the oven for 20-25 minutes, flipping them halfway through to ensure they are crispy on both sides. once crispy all the way around, remove from the oven and allow them to cool for a few minutes till they are cool enough to eat. place them on a platter and serve hot.

halloween is in our rear view mirror and the season to give thanks is upon us.

i have MUCH to be thankful for this year.

just over three years ago, i took a major leap of faith and let go of my former life in wholesale fashion. i shed my former skin, got certified to teach yoga, started a baking and catering company and got married. the last three years have just been one big first after another.

and sometimes i just burst out in tears with how grateful i truly am. don’t get me wrong, some days, i feel VERY far from where i want to be. financially, with trying to grow our family, with work and personal relationships, sometimes i just feel like i am falling short. but then, i have a moment where i realize that i bake cakes, celebrate people’s special occasions AND get to help people with their physical and mental journeys as a JOB and the tears just come. i am so damn lucky.

i encourage you as you gear up for the holidays, no doubt planning events and searching through recipes just like i am, to take moments here and there to just be grateful. for not just the awesome and wonderful ways your life is sweet, but also those moments where you fall short. it just means your dreams are big and how lucky we are to be able to dream big. to start over. to take that leap of faith.

with that said, with every piece of “wisdom” from this here blog, comes a recipe. i NEVER ate stuffing growing up. until a few years ago i had never even tasted the stuff. and there is no good reason why. as a kid on thanksgiving, it always just seemed like the least appealing of all these amazing food options.

but guess what, stuffing rocks. and part of the reason it rocks, is that you can put a ton of delicious stuff in it, and it’s pretty much always good. i used ingredients i enjoy, but you could easily make a couple tweaks here and there to customize it to make it YOUR perfect stuffing.

kitchen sink stuffing

serves: 10-12

prep time: 15 minutes

active time: 15 minutes

baking time: 30 minutes

total time: 1 hour

ingredients: 16 cups sourdough bread, sliced into 1 inch cubes. 2 brown onions, diced. 5 celery stalks, diced. 2 pink lady apples, diced. 8 oz crimini mushrooms, sliced. 5 garlic cloves, minced. 2 tbs finely chopped rosemary. 2 tbs finely chopped .5 cup butter. 2 cups turkey stock (chicken if you can’t get turkey, or veggie if you want to keep it vegetarian). 1 tbs of kosher salt. 1 tsp freshly ground pepper. large pot. aluminum half pan or baking dish.

start by preheating the oven to 375 degrees f. place your bread cubes in your aluminum pan or baking pan. equally divide up your butter into tablespoon sized dollops and place the butter dollops evenly over your bread cubes.

toast your bread in the oven for 10-15 minutes, stirring halfway through so the bread toasts evenly. when the bread is lightly toasted (some bread pieces will be really crunchy, some will be softer and that’s ok, we want a variety of texture) remove it from the oven and set it aside. while your bread toasts, heat your heavy pot over medium high heat.

when the pot is hot, add in your mushrooms in an even layer and season with a couple pinches of the salt.

let them get really toasty and start to release their juices. about 5 minutes.

when the mushrooms have a nice brown on them, add in the celery, onions and apples. season with half the salt and pepper. sauté your veggies just till the onions are translucent. about 5-7 minutes.

add in the herbs & garlic and stir to combine. cook just till the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. pour a fourth of a cup of stock into the bottom of the pot to scrape up any of the cooked bits off the bottom and allow that the liquid to completely cook off. about 2 minutes.

add your toasted bread and the remaining salt and pepper to the mixture. stir well to combine.

pour the contents of the pot into your baking dish. pour the 2 cups of stock equally over the top of the veggie and bread mixture. now, if you are using the stuffing to actually stuff your bird, here is where you wold stuff the bird with as much of the stuffing as you could get in there.

if not, this is where you bake the stuffing for 25-30 minutes, until the top is lightly golden and crunchy. serve hot and enjoy.

xo, a

kitchen sink stuffing

serves: 10-12

prep time: 15 minutes

active time: 15 minutes

baking time: 30 minutes

total time: 1 hour

ingredients: 16 cups sourdough bread, sliced into 1 inch cubes. 2 brown onions, diced. 5 celery stalks, diced. 2 pink lady apples, diced. 8 oz crimini mushrooms, sliced. 5 garlic cloves, minced. 2 tbs finely chopped rosemary. 2 tbs finely chopped .5 cup butter. 2 cups turkey stock (chicken if you can’t get turkey, or veggie if you want to keep it vegetarian). 1 tbs of kosher salt. 1 tsp freshly ground pepper. large pot. aluminum half pan or baking dish.

start by preheating the oven to 375 degrees f. place your bread cubes in your aluminum pan or baking pan. equally divide up your butter into tablespoon sized dollops and place the butter dollops evenly over your bread cubes. toast your bread in the oven for 10-15 minutes, stirring halfway through so the bread toasts evenly. when the bread is lightly toasted (some bread pieces will be really crunchy, some will be softer and that’s ok, we want a variety of texture) remove it from the oven and set it aside. while your bread toasts, heat your heavy pot over medium high heat. when the pot is hot, add in your mushrooms in an even layer and season with a couple pinches of the salt. let them get really toasty and start to release their juices. about 5 minutes. when the mushrooms have a nice brown on them, add in the celery, onions and apples. season with half the salt and pepper. sauté your veggies just till the onions are translucent. about 5-7 minutes. add in the herbs & garlic and stir to combine. cook just till the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. pour a fourth of a cup of stock into the bottom of the pot to scrape up any of the cooked bits off the bottom and allow that the liquid to completely cook off. about 2 minutes. add your toasted bread and the remaining salt and pepper to the mixture. stir well to combine. pour the contents of the pot into your baking dish. pour the 2 cups of stock equally over the top of the veggie and bread mixture. now, if you are using the stuffing to actually stuff your bird, here is where you wold stuff the bird with as much of the stuffing as you could get in there. if not, this is where you bake the stuffing for 25-30 minutes, until the top is lightly golden and crunchy. serve hot and enjoy.