Pennsylvania’s iconic mystery meat pâté got gallery-worthy treatment at the Reading Terminal Market today.
Helen Reynolds traveled from Pittsburgh to carve Gritty out of a slab of scrapple. / Photography by Kae Lani Palmisano
The Second Annual Scrapple and Apple Festival is coming to the Reading Terminal Market this weekend, and to kick things off, 12 artists put their carving skills to the test during the Scrapple Sculpting Contest.
The rules were simple: Each contestant was given a five-pound slab of Habbersett and 90 minutes to carve whatever they wanted out of the humble loaf. The judging criteria was not as simple. “The judging rubric entails presentation, creativity, uniqueness, and also difficulty,” Amy Strauss, author of Pennsylvania Scrapple: A Delectable History and the event’s emcee, explained. “So, if you think about carving a five-pound block of scrapple, those are things that are hard to come by.” Whoever earned the most points in each category would bring home a pig-shaped trophy, a gift from Reading Terminal Market, and a year of bragging rights.
A Friendly but Fierce Competition
Scrapple sculptors intently working on their masterpieces.
As soon as the clock started, silence fell on the market as the sculptors took to their slabs, shaving away unruly bits of crumbly pork product. Some were using clay tools, some were using kitchen utensils, and others were using plastic knives they snagged from the market. Ice sculptor Connie Briggs found working with the mushy medium more challenging than the frozen blocks she’s used to carving. “It’s a little less forgiving,” she said.
The Liberty Bell, but make it scrapple.
Onlookers were a mix of family and friends cheering on their favorite creator and delighted passersby who just so happened to stumble upon the delicious art display. “I’m here for a convention, and I thought I’d come by and see what all the commotion was about,” a woman from Ohio told Foobooz.
A scrapple rendition of The Kiss, sculpted by Christianne Kapps.
The entrants did not disappoint with their heart-clogging monuments to all things Philly. There were several Liberty Bells, a very detailed model of the Philadelphia Art Museum (Rocky statue and all), depictions of famous works of local art, and, of course, a scrapple Gritty, created by Helen Reynolds, who traveled all the way from Pittsburgh to take part in today’s event. “I love a niche competition, so when I saw that we were going to be carving scrapple, I was like, ‘God, I have to be there,’” said Reynolds, who once competed in Pittsburg’s Parallel Parking contest.
The Mush Push Masterpiece
The Scrapple Sculpting Contest winner, Patrick Moser’s “Mush Push”
It was a tough decision for Philadelphia Art Museum director and CEO Sasha Suda, who was the judge for today’s event. In the end, it was Patrick Moser who pushed the limits of the meaty medium with his rendition of the Eagles’ Tush Push (cleverly named the Mush Push) that won. “He was like Michelangelo carving a masterpiece out of marble, only this was scrapple,” Suda said of Moser’s ambitious approach.
“I like puns,” Moser said. “I just thought it would be something silly and fun. Something that everybody likes. What’s more Philadelphia than the Tush Push?”
All of the masterpieces will be on display tomorrow during the Scrapple Apple Festival, where you’ll be able to vote for the sculpture you think deserves to be the People’s Choice. There will be a bounty of innovative scrapple dishes to try — like shrimp-andouille scrapple breakfast poboys at Beck’s Cajun Cafe, scrapple hush puppies with apple butter at Fox & Sons, and scrapple apple cookies from The Famous 4th Street Cookie Company — as well as photo ops, scrapple demonstrations, and live music. Stop by the Reading Terminal Market tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to celebrate Pennsylvania’s favorite breakfast meat.
