Scrapple

Habbersett's Scrapple - Doug Essinger-Hileman
Scrapple - Sue Reynolds
Scrappel as served to Nero Wolfe by Fritz Brenner - Astrid Bear

Habbersett's Scrapple - Doug Essinger-Hileman
One of the presents my father gave to Tom for graduation was a 2-pound block of Habbersett's scrapple. With Sandy's mother and father still here, Tom wanted to have a "full" breakfast (we usually eat merely cereal or toast) in order to introduce them to scrapple. For the final menu, he settled on adding holy eggs and cubed cantaloupe.
Of the joys of scrapple I have shared with this august company. Holy eggs are made by removing the center from a slice of bread and frying an egg in the hole created. With a touch of oregano or basil (today both), and just the right touch in the frying, this is a wonderful way to enjoy eggs and toast.
With a spot of assam tea for me, and coffee of some sort for the rest of the crew, the breakfast was most heavenly!
Habbersett's has a website, and they give a good short history and description:
"More than 200 years ago--long before anyone thought of this clever name -- mothers in Colonial America were "browning and serving" a pre-cooked product. Its name was -- and still is -- 'scrapple.' Those lucky families were Dutch colonists who sailed from Holland in 17th and 18th centuries and settled along the Delaware River after clearing land and building log cabins in the majestic White Oak forests that then lined those lovely shores.
Scrapple is probably the first All American pork food. It was 'invented' in Chester County, Pennsylvania's oldest settlement -- and was the logical result of thriftiness and love of good eating that characterized Chester's early Dutch settlers.
The nourishing liquid and succulent meat bits that remained in the big iron kettle, after liverwurst and other pork products were prepared, could not be wasted. Cornmeal and spices were added, and the mixture was cooked, then jelled in load-shaped tins."
In my opinion, Habbersett's is best because of its spiciness. The scrapple I have had in Iowa and western Pennsylvania farm counties is very bland, almost to the point of being no different from corn-meal mush (or what the Italians would call polenta).

Scrapple - Sue Reynolds
Scrapple, at least according to my mother, who was born in western Pennsylvania, consists of cornmeal mush with suspended bits of bacon or sausage, which is then formed into a loaf and chilled at least overnight. You then slice it and fry it, preferably in bacon grease, until crispy on both sides, and serve with more bacon, fried eggs, and maple syrup for the scrapple. Cholesterol overload, but delicious on cold mornings before shovelling snow or cutting down trees in the north woods or other strenuous activity.

Scrappel as served to Nero Wolfe by Fritz Brenner - Astrid Bear
1 1/2 lb. fresh pork shoulder
1 qt cold water
1 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1 1/4 c. white corn meal
1/3 c. flour
1/2 t. ground fresh sage, or 1 t. crushed dried leaves
1/2 t. fresh oregano, or 1/8 t. dried leaves
Simmer the pork in the water for about 2 hours. Add 1/2 t. salt and 1/4 t. pepper just before turning off heat. Remove the meat from the stock and shred it. Strain the stock and reserve 1 cup: continue to boil the remaining stock. Combine the rest of the ingredients and add the cup of reserved stock very slowly, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Add the mush mixture and the shredded meat to the boiling stock and cook over a low flame for 1 hour, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. When done, put the scrapple into a meatloaf pan and chill. Slice thin and brown in a very small amount of bacon fat. Serve with maple syrup. Makes 1 two pound loaf.