Decadence for a dollar

Ever wonder how much flavor you can get for the least number of ingredients? There should be an acronym for that…like QPI…yes, Quality Per Ingredient. I mean, sometimes less is more. Well, this past weekend I had the great fortune of attending a great tasting at the Whole Foods in Duluth. I’ll post about that tomorrow, as it will take more time than I’m willing to give it right this second.

After the tasting, we did some shopping. While picking up a couple of cheeses for the evening dinner, we spotted something in the cheese case. Three ingredients, a price of $.99 and more flavorful than even anticipated. They were so darn tasty, I didn’t even think to grab the camera and take a picture. Honestly, I doubt I’d have posted it anyways, as these were not the most attractive looking of gasto-delights.

Okay, enough filler. They were prosciutto wrapped, gorgonzola stuffed dates. First, you get the smoky aroma of the prosciutto, along with a slight saline quality and the creamy texture. The sweetness of the date quickly takes over in about 5 seconds, candied without being overwhelmingly sweet. Finally, the gorgonzola waves farewell, like it was waving from the flavor train caboose. I love gorgonzola and the first bite, it was missing in action. I must have missed it in that bite because every bite after that went through the same evolution.

These were paired with a sparkling wine, but if served as their own course, I’d do something else. I’m thinking a nice 4 puttonyo Tokaji Aszu that was on the younger side. The stone fruit flavors and vibrant acidity would work well with all the components. Guess I’ll have to try one next time I have one of these tasty treats. If I did sparkling wine again, I think I’d go with a California rosé sparkler.

While I really loved these little delectable morsels, I’d cap myself at two. They just became too rich for my blood after the second one. I love simple dishes like this and plan on discovering more of them. I’ve got this one, bacon wrapped grilled scallops, and thanks to Hardy, fig and goat cheese bites served with Fume (aka Sauvignon Blanc). Now I’m off to create and or discover some more.