[1] Chocolate bacon potato chips, a delicious snack or dessert with ice cream (photos #1 and #2 © Castle Ranch Steakhouse [since closed]).

[2] If you prefer, you can cut crinkle chips, but they will be thicker.

[3] Idaho Russet Potato† (photo © Idaho Potato Commission).

[4] Huckleberries are a different species in the same genus as blueberries and cranberrries* (photo © Artem Beliaikin | Unsplash)

September 5th is International Bacon Day, a day to enjoy bacon from all over the world (here are the different types of bacon).

How about food fun with bacon?

You can have these Chocolate Bacon Potato Chips as a snack or as dessert, with chocolate or vanilla ice cream.

This recipe includes homemade huckleberry sauce, which is a berry native to Idaho (and the official state fruit).

Not everybody can get hold of huckleberries. You can substitute blueberries, which are a different genus* in the same species.

Or, use no dipping sauce whatsoever.

And, you can take the easy way out: Buy the potato chips and just make the chocolate-bacon topping.

Thanks to Idaho Potato for sending us this recipe created by Executive Chef Dean Fuller, when he was at Castle Ranch Steakhouse in Boise, Idaho (since closed).
 
 
> The Different Types Of Potatoes

> The History Of Bacon
 
 
RECIPE: CHOCOLATE BACON POTATO CHIPS

Ingredients For 30-35 Chips

 
For The Huckleberry Dipping Sauce

Ingredients For 1 Cup

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the Huckleberry Sauce: Place the sugar and water into a small saucepan over medium high heat. Once the mixture starts bubbling, cook for 2 minutes. Add the huckleberries and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Let the sauce come to room temperature, stirring occasionally.

2. COOK the bacon. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Lay the bacon slices onto the prepared pan. Sprinkle each slice with the brown sugar, then with the red pepper flakes. Bake for 10-12 minutes until they are cooked completely. Set aside to cool. Once cool, dice the bacon into ¼” pieces.

3. HEAT the frying oil to 350°F. Slice the potato on a mandoline to about 1/10th of an inch slices. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

4. BLANCH the potato slices in the oil for 5 seconds, then lay them on the prepared baking sheet in a single layer. Bake them at 350°F for 8-10 minutes until they are all golden brown. Let them cool. Meanwhile…

5. MELT the chocolate in the microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring each time until completely melted. Dip each chip into the chocolate, covering about 85% of the chip. Place back onto the parchment-lined baking sheet.

6. PLACE a few pieces of the bacon onto the chocolate-covered chip. Repeat until you have dipped all of the chips and added all the bacon. Cool for 1 hour at room temperature or place in the refrigerator for one minute. Place chips on a serving platter and serve with the Idaho Huckleberry Sauce.

*The Ericaceae family of flowering plants, commonly known as the heather family, includes 124 genera. The genus Vaccinium includes bilberries, blueberries, cranberries and huckleberries. Blueberries are Vaccinium sect. cyanococcus, huckleberries are Vaccinium parvifolium.

†“Idaho Potato®” is a trademarked variety of russet potato, that ensures the potato has been grown in Idaho soil and its specific terroir. Terroir, pronounced tur-WAH, is a French agricultural term referring to the unique set of environmental factors in a specific habitat that affect a crop’s qualities. It includes climate, elevation, proximity to a body of water, slant of the land, soil type and amount of sun. These environmental characteristics gives the potato (or other agricultural product) its unique character.