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by Cherie Logan
I have this incredible marriage. My husband and I have the same tastes in most things. If he reads a book and hates it, so will I. If I like a food, so will he. Except for peanut butter. I could be eloquent and say that the peanut butter eaters in our home are my children. But that would be a terrible lie. They dabble in it. In fact, my daughter's favorite when-mom-is-not-looking pastime is to dabble with both hands and then run and hide. No, my children are not the peanut butter connoisseurs. The crime belongs to their mother. Perhaps that creamy light brown stuff is a sin to health but is has a revered spot in my cupboard.
Here are peanut butter ideas to cause my husband to rush to the bathroom holding his stomach. Isn't that a delightful thought?
Peanut Butter Sandwiches
There is an art to this. It isn't enough to put the good stuff on the bread. You have to know your diners. Little children should only have a little peanut butter. Too much and they can choke. Heimlech Maneuver on somebody choking on sticky peanut butter would be a disaster.
When they get older, you put a little more on the bread but not too much more. They'll never know what they are missing and you can have more for yourself.
How do I like it? Thick and creamy. And if it is melty from being on warm bread, so much the better.
Peanut Butter
and Jam
Peanut Butter, mayonnaise
and tomatoes
Peanut butter, mayonnaise
and (gag!) baloney (my mother fed this to us. My children think
I'm nuts.)
Don't try
Peanut Butter and
Tuna
The Best Quickie Ever:
90 Second Chocolate
Peanut Swirls
Warm a tortilla
for 15 seconds in the microwave.
Spread with Peanut
Butter
Sprinkle with sugar
or cinnamon sugar
Sprinkle with chocolate
chips
Roll and and put back in the microwave for 15-25 seconds. Take out of oven and gently semi flatten. Slice into pinwheels and let cool. Gooey, rich and deliciously yummy.
Open Faced Peanut Butter Sandwiches
Ok, so some of these
combinations are
only for the Dangerous
and Desperate!
Peanut butter
and Applesauce
Peanut butter and
sliced bananas
Peanut butter and
sliced strawberries
Peanut butter and
sugar
Peanut butter and
cinnamon sugar
Peanut butter and
(gasp!) Honey
Peanut butter and
plain yogurt
Peanut butter and
flavored yogurt
Peanut butter and
cream cheese. Put the cream cheese on first or you'll get frustrated.
Peanut butter and
sour cream
Forget the Bread
Peanut Butter
on tortillas and on crackers.
Peanut Butter on
apple slices.
Peanut Butter on
pineapple chunks.
Peanut Butter on
a banana.
Peanut Butter on celery. Boring but what's a menu list with this tricky way to get children to eat something green. Of course, the children usually just suck off the peanut butter and raisins and leave the celery behind.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Pies
This is a critique, not a recipe. I have tried these pies at any restaurant that offers them. Here is what I think of CP Pies.
My favorite ever was at a little place in La Mesa, San Diego, California. The diner is no longer there and the pie is only a fond memory. This place, Margaret's, made what looked like a chocolate cream pie and added the perfect amount of peanut butter to the mix. It wasn't a faint hint of peanut butter. It was Chocolate Peanut Butter and Don't You Forget It!
My next favorite was at a family owned restaurant in Ramona, San Diego, California called The Telephone Company. My mother once gave me one of these pies as a gift. And it was a perfect gift for nutty tendencies. This style was the same as my third favorite which is found at the chain, Baker's Square. This type has a layer of very thick and rich chocolate topped by a peanut butter custard.
Most restaurants cheat. They make peanut butter pies without the chocolate. Or they use such a thin layer of chocolate that it might as well be absent. And often the custard is so lightly flavored that one wonders exactly what is being eaten. I have found a quick fix though. While dining at Denny's, I requested a side of fudge and dumped it on the pie. Ah! The Band-Aid Surgery worked!
The Ultimate Offense
One last peanut butter idea. Blame this on my mother, on my grandfather, on the Kansas Midwest. Anything but don't throw stones at the messenger!
I was raised with putting peanut butter on pancakes, waffles and french toast and then pouring hot syrup over the top. When I would stay at a friend's home, the family would gather around and be appalled at the sight. When I married my husband all but forbid that concoction to be eaten in his sight. Then we went on vacation.
First we stopped at his childhood friend's home. At breakfast, his wife served...pancakes with peanut butter and syrup.
Then we stopped at Neil's sister's home. For breakfast we had...pancakes with peanut butter and syrup.
Finally we stopped at my grandfather's home. Of course it was pancakes with peanut butter and syrup.
Neil had figured that the world had gone mad.
We lived in Kansas City, Missouri while he finished school to be a chiropractor. When we were on the road, moving to that far away state we stopped at a little restaurant in Kansas. Right on the menu in bold black print...you got it...Pancakes with Peanut Butter and Syrup! Ah-hah! Maybe that is where my Kansas born grandfather got the family tradition!
Writing this inspired me and I just made my Quickie Desert: 90 Second Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirls.
My children hovered as I used the last of my chips. I guarded my concoction like a dog with a bone. But their little hands were quicker then the blink of an eye as they left behind my empty plate.
Please Leave Comments on this article.
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