Popcorn Soup

All of us have a favorite comfort food. One food that takes us back in time to when we were young.
Maybe that food comforted you from the cold or during sickness. Perhaps it is just a dish that brings back happy memories. Whatever the reason I occasionally crave this and for me it is popcorn soup !
Now it goes by other names but my Great Grandfather almost always referred to it as that. Samp is the more common name but it is also a gruel or porridge. Traditionally made from Indian corn that is coarsely ground or pounded. The dried corn is placed in a large kettle with a little water,navy beans and a chunk of salt pork. Placed on the stove and left to simmer for hours. The longer the better. My Great Grandfather had a wood stove that was constantly burning and I have seen a pot of Popcorn soup set on the back burner for days.
Salted to taste with a big slab of real butter right in the center a bowl of this is most comforting. It sticks to your ribs,as the saying goes. Gives you that warm fulfilled feeling. A big piece of warm homemade bread just adds to it.
In the early fall of the year the delicatessen would have this Indian corn for sale. You would find it in a 35 gallon galvanized trash can by the front door. It was a new can ! You would scoop out as much corn as you needed and place it in a bag. It got weighed and you paid by the pound. You didn't need much though,a little goes a long way. You could buy it throughout the long New England winter. It has been many years since I have been able to buy this corn as I no longer live in my birth home. I wonder if it is still available in this fashion or would I have to go to some specialty store?
The leaves are falling now and there is a chill in the air. I find myself craving some Popcorn Soup.