National Peanut Butter Day

Whether you prefer crunchy or creamy, on toast, with jelly or eating it straight out of the jar, peanut butter is one of America's favorite foods. More than 3 pounds per person is consumed in the U.S. every year - that's enough to cover the floor of the Grand Canyon!

The very first peanut butter was created 3,000 years ago when peanut growers combined it with cocoa. The Spanish took the peanut back to Europe in the 1500s and it spread around the world after that.

Modern peanut butter can trace it's beginning to 1890 when a St. Louis physician wanted to find a way to find a way for his elderly patients to eat peanuts because of their high protein count. He turned to a food processor who whipped up some barrels of peanut butter. By the early 20th century there were a few manufacturers of peanut butter, but it still faced one problem - it spoiled easily. In 1922 Joseph L. Rosefield patented a process to keep it fresh longer. The brands we know today, Skippy, Jif and Peter Pan, all had their start then.

To celebrate National Peanut Butter day on January 24th, check out the websites and books relating to all things peanut butter-y!

From the Catalog:

-- Peanut Butter Comfort: Recipes for Breakfasts, Brownies, Cakes, Cookies, Candies and Frozen Treats Featuring America's Favorite Sandwich Spread by Averie Sunshine.

-- Peanut Butter Planet: Around the World in 80 Recipes, From Starters to Main Dishes to Desserts by Robin Robertson

-- The Ultimate Peanut Butter Book: Savory and Sweet, Breakfast to Dessert, Hundreds of Ways to Use America's Favorite Spread by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough

-- 101 Things to do with Peanut Butter by Pamela Bennett

-- Creamy & Crunchy: An Informal History of Peanut Butter, The All-American Food by Jon Krampner

From the Web:

-- Peanut Butter Lovers - This website includes recipes, nutrition information and fun facts from the Southern Peanut Growers.

-- Homemade Peanut Butter Recipe - Food Network's Alton Brown shares his recipe for making your own peanut butter.

-- 10 Ways to Use Peanut Butter - This website shares some hints on what to look for when buying peanut butter and also shares different ways to incorporate it into your diet.

-- Classic Peanut Butter Cookie recipe - This is my go-to recipe from Better Homes and Gardens.

--Post by Tracy

To Market, To Market To Buy A Fat Pig

Summer is officially here and so are the local farmer's markets. And judging by the number of markets in the area and the number of people who are at them every week, they are more popular than ever. Who can resist all of the fresh fruit and vegetables. Not to mention the baked goods!

The hardest part, though, is figuring out what to do with all of that wonderful, fresh food. To help everyone out, here are some cookbooks from the library and several websites with shopping and cooking tips. Enjoy!

From the Catalog:

-- At The Farmers' Market With Kids: Recipes and Projects For Little Hands by Leslie Jonath and Ethel Brennan

-- The Farmstand Favorites Cookbook: Over 300 Recipes Celebrating Local, Farm-Fresh Food with foreword by Avis Richards

-- EatingWell In Season: The Farmers' Market Cookbook by Jessie Price

-- The Farm to Table Cookbook: The Art of Eating Locally by Ivy Manning

-- Local Flavors: Cooking and Eating From America's Farmers' Markets by Deborah Madison

-- The Locavore Way: Discover and Enjoy The Pleasures of Locally Grown Food by Amy Cotler

-- To Market, To Market To Buy a Fat Pig [DVD] - Rick Sebak special

From the Web:

-- Western Pennsylvania Farmers Market Interactive Map -- from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

-- 10 Farmers Market Shopping Tips -  from About.com

-- 6 Steps to Mastering the Farmers' Market - from Good Housekeeping

-- The Crisper Whisperer: 10 Tips to Take to the Farmers' Market - from Serious Eats

-- From Farm to Table: Farmers' Markets - recipes from AllRecipes.com

-- Cooking from the Farmer's Market - recipes and tips from Epicurious.com

-- Farmers Market Recipes - from FarmFresh.org


--Post by Tracy