As a kid, I asked my mom to pack the same lunch for me every single day: a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Even now, few foods make me happier. (Our dear, departed friend Wrigley loved PB&J, too.) And it’s not a bad-for-you lunch, provided you opt for whole-grain bread and not-so-sugary PB.
Allow me to make a public-service announcement on behalf of natural peanut butter. As a kid, I was fanatically devoted to one—and only one—national peanut butter brand. As an adult, I’ve come to love the pure, unadulterated, utterly peanutty taste of natural peanut butter. The fresh-ground version I buy at our local deli has just dry-roasted peanuts; no salt, no sugar, no high-fructose corn syrup or added oils or anything. Nuts.
I’ve also lately discovered the merits of other nut butters, particularly almond butter, which makes a dynamite afternoon snack spread lightly on apple slices, and hazelnut butter—or, more accurately, hazelnut-chocolate spread. Not Nutella, mind you, which has a lot of added sugar, but Justin’s. This stuff is amazing in a bowl of cooked oatmeal with a half a sliced banana. Almond butter is also a great swap for peanut butter in your favorite cookie. Here’s a great recipe for almond-butter cookies.
For more info and great ideas for cooking with nut butters, check out this article I recently wrote for SparkPeople.com: Go Nuts for Nut Butters!
one of our farmer’s market sellers made toasted pecan butter, and the apple guy down the way was serving it with his apple samples. what an amazing flavor!
this has inspired me to make my own nut butter. i’ve never tried it before, and i bet i’m missing out on all kinds of rewarding fun.