Toasted pine nut and kalamata olive tapenade-stuffed dates. The perfect sweet, salty, crunchy bite for your vegan appetizer platter. Naturally gluten-free, grain-free, paleo recipe.
For the pine nut and olive tapenade stuffed dates:
15Medjool datespitted
olive tapenade(see above, or use your favorite recipe with parsley added)
3tbsptoasted pine nuts
Instructions
For the kalamata olive tapenade:
Add the garlic, shallot, parsley, and nutritional yeast to a blender or food processor (smaller is best since this recipe doesn't make a large quantity - I use my Magic Bullet). Pulse until the parsley is finely chopped.
Add the kalamata olives, and pulse just until the olives are broken up into small pieces - you don't want to puree them.
For the pine nut and olive tapenade stuffed dates:
Stir the toasted pine nuts into the olive tapenade.
Open a date and scoop in enough of the tapenade mixture to fill it completely. Sample the first date and see if the date to filling ratio is what you prefer. Increase or decrease it for the rest of the dates, depending on the results. You can also slice them in half and make little boats, to give a higher ratio of filling.
Leftovers keep pretty well in the fridge for a couple of days if needed.
Notes
Any tapenade recipe that you like will be delicious in these. Just make sure it's salty and tangy to stand up against the sweetness of the dates.For a nut-free option, try toasted sunflower seeds or crisped breadcrumbs.Although this recipe is designed to be without cheese, a little dollop of creamy cashew cheese can be quite nice if you have some on hand. A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil is another optional addition for richness and flavor.