Shall We Discuss Peanut Butter? And, p'raps Jelly? Yes. We Shall.

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

A moment of your time, if I may? Allow me to wax poetic over the beauty, the perfection that is a peanut butter and jelly sammich.

The endless iterations, the variations on the theme, the altered states of pb&j-dom, the ratios. Ah yes, the ratios.

This might be an IMHO, so move if needed.

I was spreading my personal fave, chunky, onto whole wheat the other day when I got wondering. At what point does the peanut butter and jelly overtake the bread? When do the two slices of bread become nothing more than a peanut butter delivery system ( much in the same way that a lobster tail is nothing more than a deliver system for drawn butter, but I digress ) ?

Now, just as we might observe the ratio of bread:peanut butter:jelly, we might similarly touch upon Brand snobbiness. What brand must you have, forsaking all other brands? Me, I am a store-brand whore. I don’t care if it’s Shop-Rite, Jewel, Pathmark or any other darned store brand just as long as it’s chunky. Super-chunky is preferable. OTOH, I am a damned snob about my jelly. I home-make my jams and so I think that the last time I had commercially made jams or jellies, Richard Nixon was in hot water for some break-in or somesuch.

Bread? Never been too picky. It’s the time of year when I set aside my low-carb lifestyle so I can enjoy one of life’s most incredible culinary gifts: Peanut Butter and homemade Spiced Peach Jamm on matzoh. Oh yes, chunky pb & j on matzoh. A gift. SUCH a gift !!! ;j

What do you love? What must you have? What combinations make you blissful? Which are barely palatable? Yes, bring in the oddities and offshoots. What have you done with peanut butter that might frighten those not as open-minded as, say, your average Doper?

I happen to adore peanut butter and banana sandwiches. They contain the same caloric content as fourteen TastyKake pies, but what of it? We’re talking peanut butter and banana. Please. :smiley:

My daughter, the Fem-Bot ™, went through a phase where she ate peanut butter, jam and ham sandwiches. This frightened me and yet, I had to respect her adventurous spirit.

How do you take yours?

Cartooniverse

2

Toasted peanut butter and banana sandwiches are the secret that escaped from the gods. I’ve eaten them as far back as I can remember. I was never very big into PB&J, because PB&B is so much better. I am having to get used to American peanut butter, which is sweet. Canadian peanut butter, which I grew up on, is salty. Now and then I will ask my brother to send me a jar of Kraft Smooth. How odd that you can get Kraft cheese and other items down here, but not peanut butter.

I’ve never done anything unusual with PB. I just put it on toast. It’s also good on Ritz crackers, with milk. Milk is required when having peanut butter. It just is.

My mother told me of people she knew who ate peanut butter and lettuce sandwiches, and peanut butter and onion. This woman swore by them, but I don’t think my mom was brave enough to try it. I’m not, either!

3

Now, I really only like to eat peanut butter straight from the jar with a spoon, accompanied by a a glass of cold milk.

But when I was a child I loved peanut butter and sharp cheddar cheese sandwiches.

4

I am a big guy, so for the last 8 or so years i couldn’t just have a regular PB&J, i had to have the triple decker. I have refined my tastes as of late. Only white bread, peter pan, and smuckers stawberry JAM, never jelly. I once made a quadruple decker, but that was ridiculous… jam everwhere.

5

Mmmmm…pb&j! Open faced on (shhh) Wonder Bread, lightly toasted, crusts removed. Extra chunky Jiff or Skippy, and either high end conserves (spendy and kept well hidden from the children who scarf Smuckers and Danish Orchards) or, preferably, my homemade jam. I make an awfully good peach jam, as well as both a Salmonberry and a Wild Blueberry Jam. I also am fond of apple butter.

When I was a kid, I preferred either pb&mustard, or pb&dill pickle. Also pb&banana, but that’s not weird like the two previous combinations!

6

I’m a peanut butter and honey fan, myself. Extra crunchy.

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Whole wheat bread
butter
chunky peanut butter
strawberry jam
tabasco sauce

No really, you should try it.

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I really shouldn’t have the stuff in the house. When it comes to peanut butter, my stomach doesn’t know the meaning of the word ‘moderation’.

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I’m a smooth pb man myself, though right now I have a big jar of chunky because somebody bought it by mistake and since somebody doesn’t eat peanut butter I now have a jar of chunky to get through. Ok, he was being sweet when he bought it because he noticed I was almost out of pb, so I can’t really get mad about it, but still, chunky?!

Anyways I like PB&Js with strawberry or grape gelly the best. Peach preserves are good too. Oh and PB&Bs with mayo! MMMMMMMMM!!! And PB on toast is a breakfast of champions.

Like Cartooniverse I am a store brand whore. I buy what’s on sale. I’m the same way with jelly too. I guess that makes me a PB&J slut. :smiley: White or wheat bread is acceptable but wheat is preferable for PB on toast.

Milk is the only correct beverage with a PBJ or a PBB. Coffee is acceptable for pb on toast.

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Peanut butter - natural. I’ve been having a craving for chunky recently, which is odd for me, because usually I’m a smooth fan. Running low - have to restock!

Jelly - all-fruit spreads.

Bread - Whole Wheat - hopefully homemade.

Serving - Sprayed on outside surfaces with Pam & grilled, if I have the time. Makes a nice breakfast.

Susan

11

A piece of toast
honey (just a drizzle, don’t go too crazy)
bananner (no jelly, so the banana stands in)
peanut butter (smooth for me- you do whatcha want)
a bottom piece of toast
That’s the sammich. While you’re toasting the bread (I use white because that’s generally what we have around here) heat up a skillet on the stove. Melt some butter in the skillet and then fry the sammich. Yum, and yum.

12

A big glob of peanut butter spread down the middle of a flour tortilla, a squirt of Smucker’s strawberry jam or honey on top of that, wrapped like a burrito and nuked for 10 seconds. Yum!!

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I love Peanut Butter in any form I can get it.

I usually eat a PB& J with smooth PB and homemade jam or jelly on Roman Meal bread.

I also eat it straight out of the jar on a spoon in the middle of the night… :o

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I have toast and peanut butter for lunch almost every day. Chunky peanut butter, preferably Skippy. I like my peanut butter a little melty, so when I’m done spreading it on the toast, I stick it back in the toaster oven for a few seconds. Ah, the joy of toaster ovens!

Most of the time I go jelly-free, but when I do have some, I prefer peach or strawberry preserves. Any jelly is good, though. I also love honey. Warning: One must be careful when using honey in front of kitchen television sets. The static from the TV pulls the honey onto the screen. Trust me.

We also enjoy grilled peanut butter sandwiches at our house. It’s my husband’s specialty, made just like grilled cheese except with peanut butter. For these, I do like jelly. Must be eaten with a fork.

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PBJ down (breakfast)

PB: Teddie’s or Maple Grove All Natural Smooth.
J: Polaner Sugar Free Black Raspberry.
Delivery platform: Pepperidge Farm Oatmeal or Light Style Seven Grain, just barely toasted.
Beverage: Coffee black.

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My sister-in-law makes homemade jellies. Thanks to her I haven’t had to have store-bought in awhile. She usually makes muscadine, plum and peach. All three are good but her plum is the best jelly you’re likely to eat other than my grandmother’s strawberry. But she hasn’t made strawberry jam in so long it’s disqualified from competition anymore. The farmer she used to get her strawberries from got too old to care for the work anymore so he plowed them over. She hasn’t even looked for an alternative. And that’s why I don’t visit her much. (okay the real reason is that she’s 500 miles away, but the strawberry story is better.)

Anyway, now that the jelly issue is settled we’ll move on to the bread. Personally, I prefer whole wheat bread.

As for the peanut butter, only Peter Pan will do. I like both smooth and crunchy and usually have a jar of each in my pantry. Smooth is essential for pancakes, as crunchy just interferes with the texture and taste thereof. But for PB&J sandwiches crunchy and smooth battle it out for Top Dog. I actually go through phases when I prefer one over the other for a time. But I am brand-loyal to Peter Pan.

When you’re talking about PB&'nanner, crunchy rules with an iron fist. Smooth doesn’t even come close. Sometimes you don’t even need the bread.

17

My father used to eat peanut butter and pickle sandwiches. And peanut butter and pickled hot pepper sandwiches, too.

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Dang it! I forgot the sandwich that eclipes both PB&J and PB&'nanner: Peanut Butter and Syrup. Put both in a jar and mix well. Slather onto bread (open-face is a treat sometimes) and enjoy. Sublime. The aforementioned grandmother used to keep peanut butter on hand just to feed me when I’d come over as a kid.

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Good, hearty whole grain bread
JIF peanut butter
Smuckers Strawberry Jam

.
.
.

Grilled. Guaranteed to send you straight to hell, but oh, soooo worth the trip.

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Is it bad that this sounds REALLY good to me?

Then again, I often have my PB&J with Sun Harvest Honey Roasted Chunky Style PB and Strawberry-Habenaro Preserves on Whole Wheat.