my american friend

[atommickbrane]

I simply do not understand how peanut butter and JAM (that is what 'jelly' actually means) is a staple sandwich ingredient! Like how, say, CHEESE is a staple, or ham, or perhaps cheese AND ham (although that is somewhat CONTINENTAL mes amis

Comments

[lion]

I always thought that peanut butter in the US isn't sweet, hence justifying the insanity of putting it with jam. But it seems that this is not the case - what a strange new world.

Mind you, I like nutella sandwiches...

[atommickbrane]

it's like... I suppose you could butter your bread and put jam on it, but SOMEWHERE along the lines, some genius thought "butter isn't healthy, hey but PEANUTS are!!" and lo! The cult of peanut butter and jam sandwiches was born!

I dunno it seems suitable for, like, perhaps when your toddler isn't hyperactive enough?

A nutella sandwich isn't evil but it's not like that is the first thing that would spring to mind when making a packed lunch, is it? (or is it?? if so you are a MUCH BETTER HUMAN THAN I).

[puzzled_anwen]

My favourite packed lunches where when I had nutella sandwiches. Or bacong. Om nom!

[huskyteer]

Peanut butter goes with everything! Not just jam (though it's best with my mum's homemade apple jelly) but honey, cheese and, in my family, Marmite. Yum!

Even I am not sure about Laughing Cow and strawberries, though.

[atommickbrane]

Stop trying to make a strawberry cheesecake out of a sandwich, dudes! Puddings are not main courses!!

[shewho]

but peanut butter isn't really sweet, is it? i quite like a birrov pb&j in a sandwich. but if there's cheese in the fridge it is more likely to be my first port of call. (pb& cheddar isn't terrible...)

but then best sandwich EVER = taramasalata + pickled beetroot so what do i know.

but peanut butter isn't really sweet, is it?

[atommickbrane]

YES!!

Also ergh gross sticky peanut butter mixing with gelatinous jelly, it's almost as if it were some sort of lovecraftian experiment to create the stickiest monster ever (actually it's sounding better the more I go down this route tbh).

[glynnis]

Yeah, peanut butter here isn't super-sweet, but peanut butter and jelly (or jam, because jelly is gross) is more of a kids food here, maybe because kids tend to be picky and prefer sweeter things? Then when you're older, the peanut butter and jelly sandwich becomes kind of a comfort food thing, plus it's quick and easy and peanut butter and jelly both have pretty good shelf lives and are cheap.

The cheese with strawberry slices on a sandwich thing is just weird. Maybe it has something to do with the whole "put berries in EVERYTHING" movement that's been going on for a while.

[atommickbrane]

Wait wait! So 'jelly' and 'jam' are not the same things?? This is a bolt from the blue, please elaborate!

Aye - I would think toddler-desperation food, but it appears (perhaps I am getting the wrong impression), that it's still a basic starting point for sandwiches throughout the lunching lifestyle, which just seems odd!

I must admit here that I don't think I had eaten peanut butter until perhaps I was 20 anyway though so make of that wot you will :)

[kerrypolka]

Jam has seeds in it (or poss even giant berry bits) and tastes like real berries. Jelly is very very sweet and very very thin and has no bits in it, ever. Jam >>>>>> jelly.

[atommickbrane]

Ah! So "jam" = "posh jam"! Now I understand!

[offensive_mango]

MMMMMMMM banana and bacon FTW!

(but only American-style bacon, and with peanut butter.)

[atommickbrane]

Sure it's a thing, provided that your landlady is actually ELVIS.