Peanutbutter and Everything.

Call me crazy, but I've always been a fan of that age-old classic, peanutbutter. It can be made in cookies, it can be cooked into sauces, but to tell the truth, I only like peanutbutter on a sandwich. There's something about that sticky, fragrant spread that I, and families across America, love.

Now, you can be dreadfully boring and have a plain peanutbutter sandwich. It tastes pretty good by itself with a glass of milk, and I have been known to prepare one on a lonely afternoon in the company of an empty fridge. But if you have ingredients galore, spice it up!

The basic principle of a peanutbutter sandwich is simple. Two slices of bread, peanutbutter, finished. But the nuances available may well boggle your mind!

Let's begin with my bread recommendation, and then work our way down into tips and tricks and sandwich-making techniques! (NOTE: This consists of my PERSONAL OPINONS on sandwiches. Viewer discretion IS advised).


Bread: Oh, I'm sure you know the favorites. "Wonder" Bread, its stale whitey whiteness containing little to no nutritional value, fiber absent in every way an absence is possible. "Wonder" Bread is certainly cheap, but if you want to make your sandwich taste more like a sandwich, and less like peanutbutter spread on styrofoam, there are an amazing number of bread options out there.

White Bread: "Wonder" Bread has been mentioned. Forgive my jibes-- I know many people love it. It is a little dry for my personal taste, so find a fancier white bread in your grocery aisle for a moister peanutbutter sandwich.

Wheat Bread: It's not only white bread that you have to beware of. Wheat bread can add a groovy flavor to your sandwich, but the cheap ones are just as dry as "Wonder" bread can be. Some wheat breads will have excellent textures, contributed by seeds and whole grains that they contain, but this is less popular with kids, so use it at your own discretion. I know I hated it when I was seven. But if you're making a sandwich for yourself, and you like grains, look for bread that says things like "Whole Grain" or "Seven-Grain." Those are generally hearty and delicious.

Others: Potato bread is a sort of white bread made with the water you get after boiling potatoes. It is very moist, but the flavor may conflict too strongly with the peanutbutter.

"Berry wheat" bread is very sweet, but if you have a sweet tooth goin' on, it may be a good one for you.

Cinnamon bread, raisin bread, bread with things in them. They're usually better on their own, but if you're looking for funky, give it a try.

And I know there have been times when bagels have made a scrumptious sandwich, but since they're a little tough, don't bother using it unless you haven't got any other bread.

English muffins are a no-go. They have a strong, imposing flavor, which doesn't lend itself well to such a thing as peanutbutter. Have your English muffins with butter and/or jam instead! Mmm.

Ciabattas are good, but a little tough and flavorful. I like eating them on their own more that as a sandwich bread.

Fancy bread like French baggettes, long skinny loafs, dinner rolls, sesame seed rolls, hamburger buns, and hotdog buns have all been used, but I personally reject them in the form of a peanutbutter sandwich.

Sourdough: NO. NO. AND NO. Sourdough is, as the name suggests, VERY SOUR. While homemade sourdoughs are not, you're going to be buying storebought, and storebought sourdoughs have additives which make them super-sour. If you want a sour peanutbutter sandwich, walk right on ahead. As for myself, I'll be sitting in a corner with my wheat bread.

There are a thousand more varieties of bread I could discuss, but I believe that covers the main ones.


On to fillings!


The most popular is, of course, JAM or JELLY.

My favorite is raspberry jam, preferably a tasty organic variety. A popular flavor among kids is grape jelly, which is really sweet. A really delicious kind to add is the rare and elusive cranberry jelly, but they don't sell it in stores, so you might have to make your own.

Honey of any and all kinds is delicious on a peanutbutter sandwich, or mixed into the peanutbutter itself. Add cinnamon for an exotic flavor.

Fruit is my favorite thing to put on a peanutbutter sandwich!
It depends on what you like, but I've gotten good results with thickly sliced bananas, thinly sliced green apples, and slices of soft, ripe pears. Just choose the fruit you like best! I would steer away from citrus; the flavor may be too acid.

I recently tried a peanutbutter sandwich with marshmallow creme. You can buy marshmallow creme by the jarful in the baking aisle, but the sandwich was really sweet, and the creme leaked out a little. It might be better with a tart fruit to set it off. For a even sweeter flavor, add chocolate chip, or chocolate syrup to be easier on the teeth.

You can also put regular marshmallows in, but you had better make them miniature marshmallows, unless you want to spend the time cutting up the jumbo sized variety!

Finally. There is one ingredient to a peanutbutter sandwich that I have heard tell of, but I have never been brave enough to try myself. Legends tell of great men falling because of this particular kind. I hear that slices of sweet or dill pickles are popular on sandwiches! Maybe you already enjoy this kind, but I have mixed emotions on the subject. Yes, I want to try that sandwich-- for the sake of cooking science and personal integrity! Is it delicious? You tell me! I'm not bold enough to go where some men have gone before. Too intense!


That's all I've got for ingredients. Mix and match! Keep your personal tastes in mind when choosing an ingredient, and don't go too crazy. Unless, of course, crazy is the way you roll!


A few things. Some sandwiches don't preserve as well as others, and other long periods of time will basically begin to decompose. So when you're making a packed lunch, think about just how long you plan to wait before eating. This should be emphasized when using bananas or other fruits, because they tend to brown and soften soon after preparation.

If you make a sandwich with ingredients, there are better ways to go than just piling it all on!

Fruit, bananas: Spread peanutbutter on both sides of the bread. That way, it won't slide out as easily!

Jelly: Jelly tends to soak into bread, so spread peanutbutter on both sides. You don't want any peanutbutter getting into your jelly jar, so use a separate spoon to put the jelly on the bread, and then use your peanutbutter knife to spread it thin.

Marshmallow creme: It's very feisty stuff, so spread peanutbutter on one side of the bread, creme on the other. Use separate utensils for different spreads.

Drizzle honey on in whatever way you please.


Triple-decker sandwiches for the super hungry! Just add a third slice of bread and peanutbutter! It's for the hungry people in your life.



And there you have my confused but adamant statement on peanutbutter, breads, and ingredients. I'm off to eat my squishy peanutbutter & banana sandwich! Should have followed my own advice.


Ciao,
Julianna