Peanut butter and jelly sandwich

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A peanut butter and jelly sandwich with a glass of milk
A peanut butter and jelly sandwich with a glass of milk

The peanut butter and jelly sandwich, (PB&J), also known as a peanut butter and jam sandwich in the UK, Canada and Australia, is a sandwich that includes a layer of peanut butter and either jelly or jam on bread, commonly between two slices. Jars of pre-mixed peanut butter and jelly are commercially available for making these sandwiches.[1] It appears to have been invented by GIs during World War II.[2] The sandwich has the advantage that it does not contain any perishable ingredients, so it does not require refrigeration in hot weather, making it suitable for lunch bags. The peanut butter and jelly sandwich is very popular with both adults and children in the US and Canada. A 2002 survey showed the average American will have eaten 1,500 of the sandwiches before graduating from high school.[3]

Contents

Variations

Other nut butters, such as almond, cashew, soybean, sunflower, or hazelnut/nutella are sometimes used to make sandwiches similar to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Some known variants include the addition of one or more of the following ingredients: honey, syrup, marshmallows, raisins, bananas, butter, marshmallow fluff, Miracle Whip, other dried fruit, or another slice of bread. A combination of peanut butter and Nutella (cocoa flavored hazelnut butter) is also popular as is peanut butter with honey, or bananas instead of the jelly.

Sealed crustless sandwich

A peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
A peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

In December 1999, two independent inventors, Len Kretchman and David Geske, were granted a U.S. patent,[4] "Sealed Crustless Sandwich" for an improved peanut butter sandwich that would have a long shelf life. The J.M. Smucker Co. bought the patent from the inventors and developed a commercial product based on the patent called Uncrustables. Smuckers then made a US$17 million dollar investment in a new factory[5] to produce the product. By 2005, sales of Uncrustables grew to $60 million a year with a 20% per year growth rate.

Smuckers attempted to enforce their patent rights by sending out cease and desist letters to competitors, and by expanding their intellectual property coverage via the patenting of a machine to produce Uncrustables sandwiches in high volume U.S. Patent 6,874,409  "Method and apparatus for making commercial crustless sandwiches and the crustless sandwich made thereby". The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, however, rejected the viability of the patent citing its similarity to existing processes such as that of fashioning ravioli or a pie crust.[6]

Popular Culture, Colloquialisms and the PB&J

The sandwich has often been called, PB&J, Peanut Butter and J, Peanut Butter and Jam, Jammin' with Uncle Peanut Sam, or Blood and Mud (colloquial in Canada).

The TV series Family Guy has portrayed the dog Brian, dancing in a banana suit singing, "It's Peanut Butter Jelly Time!," a parody of Peanut Butter Jelly Time.

A popular kids song is named after the sandwich, where its lyrics tell steps to make one. This song has been sung on many children's TV shows, but the most common show is Barney & Friends.

The sandwich was referenced in the Star Trek universe in episodes such as in Star Trek Voyager's "The Void" .

In the TV series Seinfeld, episode The Friars Club, Kramer came up with the idea for a restaurant called PB&J's, which would only serve peanut butter and jelly sandwiches[7]. This idea actually came to fruition in 1998 when a restaurant named Peanut Butter & Co. emerged in Manhattan. In the same vein, an eatery with the actual name of PB&J's opened in a Boston food court[8] in 2005.

In "Fun Run," the first episode of season 4 of "The Office", Kevin makes a comment that Pam and Jim are perfect for each other, as proven by the fact that "Pam Beesly and Jim" can be abbreviated as "PB&J."

During his presidential campaign in 2000, President George W. Bush (then a candidate) revealed on The Oprah Winfrey Show that his favorite sandwich is peanut butter and jelly on white bread. [9]

See also

References

  1. ^ Smucker's Goober
  2. ^ The History of the Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
  3. ^ PB&J is A-OK. Prepared Foods 171.10 (Oct 2002): p.32(1).
  4. ^ U.S. Patent 6,004,596 
  5. ^ Bakingbusiness.com
  6. ^ Court rejects J.M. Smucker’s PB&J patent - Food Inc. - MSNBC.com
  7. ^ Kramer's Business Ideas.
  8. ^ Boston Globe PB&J's.
  9. ^ BBC News | ELECTION NEWS | Bush kisses Oprah and tells all
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