Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Place the three pieces of bacon in a large pan (I use a tall 10 by 14 inch roasting pan). Cook in the oven for 6 minutes, then flip the bacon and cook for another 6 to 8 minutes (or until just cooked - lightly browned but not very crispy).

Carefully remove the bacon to a cutting board. Place the pan on a cooling rack, and leave the bacon grease in the pan to cool a bit. (Note: There should be 2 to 3 tablespoons of bacon grease. If your bacon didn’t generate that much grease, you’ll need to cook a little more bacon to get to this amount.)

Pop the popcorn. I use this air popper, but you can use whatever method works for you. Set aside.

Add the maple syrup and salt to the bacon grease in the pan, and stir it all up right there in the pan. Add the popped popcorn to the pan and stir well to coat evenly.

Chop the cooked bacon finely, and add that to the pan. Stir it in.

Lower the temperature of the oven to 300 degrees. Bake the popcorn mixture for about 8 minutes, stirring every few minutes.

Cool the popcorn in the pan on a wire rack. Store in an airtight container.