3-Ingredient Devils on Horseback

These tiny bacon-wrapped delights are perfect for parties.

By

Leah Colins

Senior Culinary Editor

Leah is the Senior Culinary Editor at Serious Eats, and was previously a recipe developer and editor with America’s Test Kitchen for almost 9 years. She has developed recipes for and edited over 20 cookbooks ranging in topic from bread baking to plant-based eating to outdoor grilling and so much more. While there, she also developed recipes and articles for Cooks Illustrated Magazine, Cooks Country Magazine, and ATK’s digital platform.Before her life as a recipe developer, she cooked in 5-star and Michelin-starred fine dining establishments from coast to coast such as The Herbfarm and Aubergine Restaurant at L’Auberge Carmel; she also treasures her time flipping burgers on flattops in her teenage years, and baking and boxing cookies and pies at a wonderful family-owned German bakery in her early professional life.

Published December 08, 2025

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

Why It Works

• A brief soak in water plumps the dates for easier stuffing and prevents them from drying out.
• Par-cooking center-cut bacon ensures it crisps evenly in the final bake.

Devils on Horseback may sound like a Victorian parlor game gone off the rails, but it’s actually an old-fashioned appetizer that’s very much on the rails. The name likely comes from 19th-century Britain, where hot, bacon-wrapped prune bites were said to resemble little “devils” riding on “horseback”—a playful companion to the Angels on Horseback, which used oysters instead of dried fruit. The dish evolved over the years, and by 1970s, this version—dates stuffed with blue cheese and wrapped in bacon—had risen to prominence in the American entertaining scene. And honestly, once you taste the combination of sticky, caramelly fruit, pleasantly pungent cheese, and crisp bacon, it’s hard to imagine it any other way.

These cute little two-bite parcels deliver disproportionate joy—the exact kind of appetizer you want during the holidays. The recipe below, developed by our colleague Renu Dhar in our Birmingham, Alabama, test kitchen, is sweet, salty, savory, a little funky, and shockingly easy for something that seems so decadent. Devils on horseback require only three main ingredients, so success hinges on a few key techniques to ensure the dates stay moist and plump, the cheese melts evenly, the bacon turns crisp, and the fruit doesn’t scorch.

The key is having control over each component. Dates vary widely in texture depending on variety and freshness. Medjools, which are the most common in most US markets and typically two inches long, are ideal here. They are soft enough to stuff, sturdy enough to hold their shape, and rich and sweet enough to balance the sharp blue cheese. A brief soak in warm water softens their skins and makes them easier to slit open and fill without tearing.

Meanwhile, the bacon needs a head start. In testing, Renu found that starting with raw bacon left the dates shriveled and overcooked by the time the bacon fat fully rendered. Center-cut bacon parcooked for 8 to 10 minutes before wrapping the dates proved perfect. Parcooking the bacon allows it to shrink slightly and start firming up, so it crisps at the same rate the cheese melts once it’s wrapped around the stuffed dates and baked. The trick with the bacon is not to go too far during this first bake. The strips should still bend easily at this stage so that you can wrap them snugly with only a slight overlap. A wooden pick keeps everything secure.

These can be fully assembled—stuffed, wrapped in parcooked bacon, toothpicked—and refrigerated for up to three days before the final bake. Come party time, all that’s left is a short time in a hot oven, where the bacon crisps, the cheese melts, and the dates warm into fudgy, caramel-soft perfection. Playful but deeply flavorful, Devils on Horseback are the holiday appetizer that are sure to disappear first at the party.

This recipe was developed by Renu Dhar; The headnote was written by Leah Colins.

Keep Screen Awake

15 center-cut bacon slices, cut in half crosswise

30 pitted Medjool dates (about 2 inches each), soaked in warm water for 5 minutes, then drained

4 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (about 3/4 cup)

Metal or wooden toothpicks (see notes)

Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions, and preheat oven to 400°F (205 °C). Line 3 rimmed baking sheets with aluminum foil. Arrange bacon halves in a single layer on 2 prepared baking sheets. Bake both sheets at same time until edges begin to curl and fat begins to render, 8 to 10 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let cool on baking sheet until cool enough to handle, about 5 minutes.

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano 1.

While bacon cooks, use a paring knife to cut a slit lengthwise in each date to create an opening, taking care not to cut all the way through.

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano 1.

Stuff each date with about 3/4 teaspoon blue cheese; press lightly to pack in, then pinch to close.

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano 1.

Wrap 1 cooled bacon half around each stuffed date. Secure with toothpick, if needed, and arrange seam-side down on the remaining prepared baking sheet.

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano 1.

Bake on lower-middle rack until bacon is browned and crisp, 12 to 14 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

Special Equipment

2 rimmed baking sheets, aluminum foil, metal or wooden toothpicks

Make-Ahead and Storage

The dates can be stuffed with the blue cheese, wrapped in the parcooked bacon, and refrigerated, covered on a plate or in an airtight container, for up to 3 days before cooking and serving.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
153	Calories
8g	Fat
15g	Carbs
7g	Protein

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Nutrition Facts Servings: 10 to 12 Amount per serving Calories 153 % Daily Value* 8g 10% Saturated Fat 3g 17% 21mg 7% 339mg 15% 15g 6% Dietary Fiber 2g 6% Total Sugars 13g 7g Vitamin C 0mg 0% Calcium 54mg 4% Iron 0mg 2% Potassium 224mg 5% *The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)