Blue Cheese Stuffed Prunes

After an extremely productive weekend of apartment organizing, I cracked open The Book of Tapas mentioned in my last post.  The bright yellow book has been quietly chirping at me all weekend, and I finally got the time to crack it open tonight.  Even the pages are yellow!  It makes me want to be a tapa. 

Reading the pages and looking at the pictures has inspired me to eat more creatively ever since it arrived at my doorstep.  I had a snack of artichoke hearts, olives and white wine today.  The other night, for dessert, I dipped a piece of salted chocolate in honey and sesame seeds (upon M's suggestion today, I will post on this some day soon).  I used the mint in the fridge to make a fresh bean salad last week.  So thank you to Simone and Ines Ortega for writing this book.

There is a little glimpse of the yellow pages in the top corner of this picture.  This is the blue cheese right before I mashed it with the other ingredients.  It actually looks like ice cream in this picture.  Hmm, sounds like a good ice cream flavor.  Maybe add some honey and walnuts?  Below is a picture of the walnuts after I pan roasted them and then crushed with a pint glass.

I changed the recipe a tad and cut it in half.  It orginally called for raisins and pine nuts.  I used walnuts instead because they were on sale.  But try any kind...cashews might be nice.  It called for Magala wine or sweet sherry, but I happened to be sipping a Pinot Gris, so that went into the mix instead.   This recipe would also work well with dates or figs.   I had some extra filling, so I added plain yogurt to it, and will use it as a sandwich or toast spread, maybe topped with thin green apple slices.


Blue Cheese Stuffed Prunes
Adapted from The Book of Tapas
Makes six


1 1/2 oz blue cheese
2 Tbsp walnuts, pan roasted and crumbled
1 tsp white wine
1 Tbsp half and half
6 prunes, pitted

Prepare the walnuts first, by heating a small saute pan on medium heat.  Add the walnuts and continually toss until the walnuts become fragrant.  Remove from heat.  Put on a cutting board and use rolling pin or (carefully) pint glass over the walnuts to crush them.   

In a small bowl, crumble the blue cheese and mash with a fork.  Add the walnuts, white wine and half and half.  Stir into a paste. 

Make sure none of the prunes have pits, if so, remove them.  Take a small object like a chopstick to open them.  Carefully spoon the blue cheese mixture into the hole.  I used the opposite end of a small spoon, because the opening is pretty small.  Wipe off any excess blue cheese from the sides.  Place on plate.  Garnish with fresh or dried parsley.  Serve immediately, or refrigerate for a few hours before serving.  Can be eaten as a small bite for a cocktail or wine with friends.