What about this?

“Release the cracklin’! Hands up over your head! Step back slowly now and no one will get hurt!” Those harsh words I aimed at my husband when I caught him red-handed in my kitchen toying with a sweet and spicy creation. After admitting his guilt, he ashamedly lamented that he had been seduced by the sight, smell, and seductive curves of the cracklin’ sweet and spicy bacon spirals I’d made that morning. Yeah, they were hot and twisted pieces of meat, alright . . . just the kind a man likes . . . Oops! . . . better get back on track . . . These very delicious bacon spirals can put a new twist (sorry, I can’t help myself!) on breakfast or brunch menus. With minimum effort you are rewarded with maximum flavor. What could go wrong with bacon, brown sugar, and pepper anyway?

Here’s my adaptation of Tori Ritchie’s Corkscrew Bacon recipe:

12 strips bacon
Brown sugar
Freshly ground black pepper
12 bamboo skewers

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line up the strips of bacon on a piece on waxed paper. Put about 3-4 tablespoons of brown sugar in a small bowl and some freshly ground black pepper in another small bowl. Rub the entire length of each slice of bacon with brown sugar and pepper. Turn over the slices and repeat. Stick the pointed end of a skewer into one end of bacon and wrap bacon around and around the skewer until the bacon has reached the bottom end of the skewer. Attach the bacon end to the blunt end of the skewer by poking it through the meat. Repeat with the remaining slices of bacon.

Have a broiler pan with a slotted top or a rack set over a baking pan ready. Transfer the bacon spirals to the baking sheet trying not to let them touch. Bake until bacon is golden brown and crisp, turning with tongs about half way through – about 15-25 minutes total (depending on the efficiency of your oven and the thickness of the bacon strips).

This recipe is easy enough for kids to make. Why not release the cracklin’ for Mother’s Day? Enjoy!