Peanut Butter Jelly Time!!

  When you think of America you get the visuals of apple pie, hot dogs, and hamburgers; but what about the peanut butter and jelly sandwich?  Every American has shared the experience of this yummy treat that is good for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or even just a snack.  It's delicious nutritious, and quick, making it great for the busy family.  They've bitten into that gooey mix of bread, peanut butter, and either grape or strawberry jelly.  They have all experienced the jelly squirting out the other side of that first delicious bite, and they have all had the experience of a glob of gooey and delicious peanut butter sticking to the roof of their mouth.  These sandwiches are staple for people of all ages, but how did this treat become so popular?   

    Let's start with peanut butter.  The history of crushing peanuts goes far back, but in 1880 a physician by the name of Dr. Ambrose W. Staub crushed peanuts into a paste for his geriatric patients that had poor teeth and could not chew on tough meat. 

In 1893 Dr. Staub brought his new creation to the Chicago World fair, where it started to gain some popularity.  In 1903 Dr. Staub received a patent for a mill to crush peanuts and he urged a food company by the name of Bayle Food Products in St. Louis, Missouri to process this paste, and he claimed it would be a healthy protein alternative for people who could not eat meat due to bad teeth.  Bayle Food Products took Dr. Staub up on his idea and purchased the rights to his product.  This was the first vendor of what we now call peanut butter.  After the company took peanut butter to the Saint Louis world fair in 1904 it became a huge success, made a lot of money and grocers everywhere began to sell this product.  By the 1920's commercial peanut butter brands were starting to be seen as peanut butter became more and more popular.

    The next step for this delicious treat came during World War 2.  Peanut butter and jelly were both on the ration list during the war.  Peanut butter was a great alternative for protein for the soldiers and they would add jelly to make it more tasty.  This became very popular and the profit from both peanut butter and jelly increased greatly when the soldiers returned home. This was what became the peanut butter and jelly sandwich  Also, during this time peanut butter was cheap for families to buy and was not rationed, making it a popular staple among families.    

Info from:
http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/Sandwiches/PeanutButterJellySandwich.htmm:

Picture from:
http://theobservedblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/frozen-peanut-butter-and-jelly.html