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Did you know that yesterday was National Scrapple Day? I figured the timing was just right for this post. When did I first fall in love? It was about 7 years ago at Scrapplefest in Philadelphia, an event held at Reading Terminal Market that celebrates this wonderful pork offal/cornmeal mush. They even had a wedding cake made of it. In some areas it is also sometimes referred to as pon haus. To learn more:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrapple

Lately, I’ve been incorpoarting it into more dishes at home and at work.  Sure, its great for breakfast with ketchup, syrup or both (Mountie Sauce?), but why can’t it be more versatile?  What I really wanted to explore was the traditional pairing of pork and apples.  Here are a few of my favorite recent dishes:

Crispy Scrapple, Apple Butter & Smoked Gouda Panini

Modern Bánh Mì– Shaved Ras el Hanout Pork Shoulder, Scrapple, Maple/Sriracha Mayo, Pickled Granny Smith Apples & Carrots on a Crusty Roll

Then we have tonight’s dinner special at work.  We had planned on doing a scallop dish with a few different components.  At lunch, when we heard about Scrapple Day, I knew that I had to make this work.  We ended up serving Seared Sea Scallops, Scrapple, Pickled Apples, Chive Aioli, Roasted Fennel, Pretzel/Bacon Soil & Fennel Fronds. I was skeptical about calling out the scrapple on the menu, but surprisingly enough, it actually helped sell the dish.  Having a restaurant in the middle of a working class farming community is something I’m still not used to.  Most of my customers grew up eating this. I’m going to continue working to elevate this humble “breakfast” meat.