By Rodin Batcheller
Addendum Editor
Growing up, there have been a number of foods that have tickled my fancy. However, there is one particular dish that stands apart from the rest. That dish is the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Yes, the good old “PB & J” has played a very large role in the nutrition aspect of my life growing up, and if I am being honest, still does to this day. My parents would often pack the classic sandwich with a juice box and send me on my way to school with a smile on my face, as I counted the minutes to when lunch would start.
When making a lunch, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich is always a safe bet and incredibly easy to make. These two simple ingredients create the perfect blend of sweet and savory between two slices of bread. My request to my mother was always to get the smooth peanut butter, because why would anyone eat crunchy peanut butter? The jelly, on the other hand, I had no preference to. Strawberry, raspberry, grape or a mixture of fruit, it did not matter, just as long as I had my smooth peanut butter and an even distribution of both the peanut butter and the jelly. If I were to feel particularly zesty one day, which in that case, I would ask for extra jelly.
I remember the first time I ever made myself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It was a Saturday afternoon and I was about seven years old. My father and I were watching college football as I offered to make us both lunch. I do not remember who won the game, but I do remember being happy in that moment of eating my beloved sandwich with my father on the sunny afternoon.
Another great thing about the “PB & J” is that it is a fairly versatile sandwich. It can go with almost any drink: water, juice, soda, or even a sports drink for days where there was a little league baseball game involved. It can be put with any side: potato chips, vegetable chips, cheetos, or even popcorn.
However, the most versatile aspect of this sandwich also happens to be one of my earlier food memories. When I was about 6, my friend showed me how to open the sandwich up and insert potato chips into the sandwich and close it back up. Safe to say, my elementary mind was blown and I have been putting chips in my sandwiches ever since.
The time machine has yet to be invented, but when I bite into a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, especially if it has chips inside, I am transported back to the first grade. But if it is made with crunchy peanut butter that is a different story.
