By March. Fifty-seven — wait, fifty-eight? No, I turned fifty-seven last year. I'm turning fifty-eight on March 30th. The numbers are getting close together, the way mile markers get close together when you're going fast, and life at fifty-eight feels fast even though the days feel slow, which is the paradox of getting older — each day is long and each year is short and the math doesn't work but the feeling is real.
Connie made meatloaf. Thirty-five years. The same recipe, the same plate, the same woman. I ate it and didn't say anything for a minute because I was counting — thirty-five meatloaves, thirty-five birthdays, thirty-five years of a woman standing in a kitchen making the same thing because her husband asked once and she heard him. That's not cooking. That's a covenant. A covenant sealed in ground beef and ketchup and the understanding that some things you do forever because someone asked you once and the asking was enough.
Earl Thomas is approaching three. He came to the house Saturday and went straight to the kitchen and pointed at the stove and said PawPaw, cook. Two words. A command. The command of a grandson who has learned that the kitchen is where things happen and PawPaw is who makes them happen. I made him scrambled eggs — soft, buttered, plain — and he ate them at the table with the wooden spoon I gave him at Christmas, which he carries everywhere now like a talisman, like a wand, like the tool it will become.
Earl Thomas pointed at that stove and said two words, and I made him scrambled eggs because that’s what felt right in the moment — soft, plain, something he could trust. But there’s a next time coming, and next time I want something on the side that fills the kitchen with a smell worth walking toward. Baked Canadian-style bacon does exactly that: it’s simple enough that a nearly-three-year-old can stand at your hip and watch the whole thing, and it’s the kind of recipe you could make every birthday morning for thirty-five years and never need to apologize for it.
Baked Canadian-Style Bacon
Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 lb Canadian-style bacon, sliced 1/4 inch thick
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Instructions
- Preheat oven. Heat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish or line it with foil for easy cleanup.
- Make the glaze. In a small bowl, whisk together brown sugar, Dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, garlic powder, and black pepper until smooth and combined.
- Arrange the bacon. Lay the Canadian bacon slices in a single layer in the prepared baking dish, overlapping slightly if needed to fit.
- Apply the glaze. Spoon the glaze evenly over the top of the bacon slices, spreading it to coat each piece. Dot the top with the small pieces of butter.
- Bake. Bake uncovered for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges begin to caramelize and the glaze is bubbling and lightly browned.
- Rest and serve. Remove from the oven and let rest for 3 to 4 minutes before serving. Serve warm alongside scrambled eggs or as part of a full breakfast spread.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 130 | Protein: 14g | Fat: 5g | Carbs: 6g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 680mg