Cocktail Bites

by Shauna Sever — March 26, 2008

Everyone needs a quick but impressive cocktail party-type niblet in their repertoire. Something that comes together faster than the time it takes to pick up a few ingredients from the market and gets along with all kinds of drinks and palates. It could be hot and bacon-wrapped, cold, crisp and vegetal or a happy knob of something perched on a cracker. For me, it's a gorgonzola stuffed fig that is at once elegant and yet so delicious that it makes people say the most unelegant things, even before the cocktails start hitting.

Gorgonzola Stuffed Figs

12 ripe figs
6 oz. gorgonzola cheese, crumbled into large chunks
Extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup orange blossom honey
1 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons warm water

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and lightly oil a baking sheet.

Slice the figs in half lengthwise and place them cut side up in a single layer on the baking sheet. Stuff a chunk of gorgonzola cheese into the center of each fig half. Lightly drizzle the stuffed figs with olive oil. Bake for 10-15 minutes until the figs are soft and warm and the cheese has just started to melt.

Meanwhile, make the vinaigrette by whisking together the honey, lemon juice, and water. When the figs are ready, immediately place them on a warmed serving platter, drizzle with vinaigrette, and serve.