Chocolate-Covered Bacon -- The Sweet Reward for a Sunday That Got the Work Done

The Relief Society sisters brought a meal to a young mother in the ward this week, and I contributed the funeral potatoes, because of course I did. The week was a spring week, the kind where the light through the kitchen window arrives at a particular angle and the freezer hums in a different register depending on the temperature in the garage. I made notes in my prep notebook on Sunday afternoon, the way I always do: meal name, ingredient list, cost per serving, prep time, freezer instructions. Twenty-eight bags. Two hours and eleven minutes. A little slow this week, by my standards, but Brandon was helping and the conversation was good, and I have learned, slowly and against my own grain, that the conversation is sometimes the point and the time is sometimes a courtesy I extend to my husband for being willing to chop onions on a Sunday afternoon.

The children are doing what they do, which is the central report of every week of my adult life. Ethan is 21, finishing his mission in the Philippines. We have a countdown calendar on the fridge — Olivia's idea, executed in her handwriting, which is mine. Olivia is 19, at BYU studying elementary education — the path she chose at age seven and has not deviated from once. Mason, 17, is in Brazil on his mission. His weekly emails are short and full of jokes. He does not write much about the work. He writes about the food. Lily is 15, in high school, asking the kind of questions in Sunday School that make the teachers uncomfortable, which I find difficult and also, secretly, admirable. Noah is 12, in high school, deeply involved in the drama program — the Larson kid most likely to make a career out of being looked at. That is the family report. I do not have a system for these reports. I just listen and remember and call back when I said I would call back, which is most of the time and not all of the time, and the difference between most and all is the territory of motherhood.

The recipe of the week was quiche, which I have made some specific number of times in my life and have refined to a system that I now hand to other people in printed form. The version I made this week fed eight, cost under fifteen dollars, and required twenty-six minutes of active prep, which is within my requirements and not a coincidence. The freezer in the garage is the freezer of record. The freezer in the pantry is the freezer of convenience. The distinction matters. I have stopped explaining the freezer-meal philosophy to people who already follow my work, and I have stopped apologizing for it to people who do not. The philosophy is simple: tomorrow is coming whether you are ready or not. You can either be ready or not. I pick ready.

I prayed on Thursday morning for the first time in two weeks, which the therapist would call worth noting. I noted it. I am still a Latter-day Saint. I am also a woman who has sat in front of a casket the size of a bread box. I do not see those two things as contradictions, but I do not pretend they sit easily together either. The bench in the chapel where I sit on Sunday is the same bench. The woman is not. The faith makes room for the woman. That is what I have learned to ask of it.

Dinner is in the freezer. Tomorrow is coming. I am ready.

After twenty-eight bags and two hours and eleven minutes, and after Brandon had put down the chef’s knife and the kitchen had gone quiet in the good way, I made this. Not for the freezer, not for the ward, not for a cost-per-serving calculation — just because the chocolate was in the pantry and the bacon was in the fridge and Noah wandered in asking what smelled good. Some things you make because tomorrow is coming. This one I made because today was still here.

Chocolate-Covered Bacon

Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 1 hr (includes cooling) | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 lb thick-cut bacon (about 12–14 strips)
• 8 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 tsp coconut oil or vegetable shortening
• Flaky sea salt, for finishing (optional)
• 1/4 cup finely chopped toasted pecans or crushed graham crackers (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat and prep. Heat oven to 400°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set a wire rack on top. Arrange bacon strips in a single layer on the rack, not overlapping.
2. Bake the bacon. Bake 18–22 minutes until the bacon is fully cooked, deep golden, and crispy but not brittle. Watch it closely in the last few minutes — thick-cut bacon can go from perfect to overdone fast. Transfer strips to a paper-towel-lined plate and let cool completely, at least 20 minutes.
3. Melt the chocolate. Combine chocolate chips and coconut oil in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring well between each, until fully melted and smooth, about 60–90 seconds total. Do not overheat. Alternatively, melt over a double boiler on the stovetop.
4. Dip the bacon. Line a clean baking sheet or large plate with parchment paper. Dip each cooled bacon strip halfway into the melted chocolate, letting excess drip back into the bowl, then lay flat on the parchment. For a full coat, use a spoon to drizzle chocolate over the top.
5. Add toppings. While chocolate is still wet, sprinkle lightly with flaky sea salt or chopped pecans if desired. Work quickly — the chocolate begins to set fast.
6. Set the chocolate. Refrigerate the tray uncovered for 20–30 minutes until chocolate is fully firm. Once set, strips can be stacked between layers of parchment and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 215 | Protein: 7g | Fat: 16g | Carbs: 11g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 370mg