The Story Of How Peanut Butter Met Jelly
The United States is crazy for their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They are well over 100 years old and it seems like just about every person has childhood memories of the quick and easy sandwich. It’s a tender combination of sliced bread, creamy peanut butter, and sweet jelly. The jelly has a cooling effect that contrasts the rich denseness of the peanut butter. Whether you spread yours with smooth or crunchy peanut butter, grape, strawberry or apple jelly, it’s a treat that brings back fond memories.
The First Documented Recipe
During the early 1900s, peanut butter was expensive and seen as a treat that only the upper-class citizens could afford to indulge in. It was regularly served in upscale restaurants and tea rooms on crackers or small pieces of toasted bread. The very first recipe for peanut butter and jelly came out in 1901 in the Boston Cooking School Magazine of Culinary Science and Domestic Economics. The recipe was written by Julia Davis Chandler and consisted of peanut butter and currant or crab-apple jelly on bread.
Since peanut butter was expensive and viewed as a delicacy it took the peanut butter and jelly sandwich a while to trickle down to the masses. As time went on peanut butter manufacturers were able to streamline their production and found ways to make it more affordable and commercialized. Around the same time jelly become more readily available to the general population at prices most could afford. It was during the 1930s that peanut butter and jelly sandwiches started reaching the homes of Americans on a larger scale.
Military Influence
During WWII the US military added peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to their menu and soldiers quickly found themselves eating them on a regular basis. So much so that when the soldiers returned back home they introduced the sandwich to their families and sales for peanut butter, jelly and bread skyrocketed. It became an easy inexpensive meal that even young children could prepare for themselves.
Smucker’s and Goober
Goober was invented in 1968 which is a jar of alternative stripes of peanut butter and jelly. It was formulated by Smucker’s and the jelly comes in two varieties grape and strawberry. It’s a convenient way to grab a single jar to make the beloved peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Then in 1999, Smucker’s introduced the Uncrustable which is a small peanut butter and jelly sandwich with no crusts and pressed edges. They also offer several other flavors including peanut butter, peanut butter and honey, peanut butter and grape jelly, and peanut butter and strawberry jelly.
Today the combination of peanut butter and jelly is so loved that there are tons of products that incorporate the mixture and tons of recipes to add a twist to the classic pairing. There are peanut butter and jelly Oreos, Pop-Tarts, Skippy snack bites, Ritz bites, pretzel bites, alcoholic shots, fat bombs, sandwich cookies, and granola bars. Those are just a few of the commercially sold peanut butter and jelly products. Not to mention the thousands of recipes online that include everything from pies and bars to ice cream and smoothies.
It’s pretty safe to say that people love their peanut butter and jelly sandwiches along with anything else peanut butter and jelly. It’s a multi-billion dollar industry niche that might never slow down. Whether you prefer strawberry, raspberry, grape or apple jelly it pairs perfectly with peanut butter and some sliced bread.
