April 2nd is National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day. You can have PB&J oatmeal, a PB&J-stuffed omelet or PB&J-topped waffles for breakfast,. For lunch, a PB&J sandwich for lunch, and PB cake or ice cream with a jelly/preserves topping for dessert—or a piece of this peanut butter and jelly fudge.

You can make this PB&J fudge in just 8 minutes, plus 4 hours in the fridge. Then, you’re ready for snacking.

Peanut butter fudge is super-simple to make, but adding jelly makes it more fun, not to mention a perfect way to celebrate National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day.

Made with just peanut butter, jelly, confectioner’s sugar, butter, and white chocolate, this rich, yummy fudge is a treat for kids and grown-ups alike.

The recipe is from ILovePeanutButter.com, the website of Peanut Butter & Co. It was developed by Caroline Wright of TheWrightRecipes.com. She used Peanut Butter & Co.’s Smooth Operator creamy PB.
 
Below:

> Recipe #1 for PB&J fudge.

> Recipe #2 for “crunchy” PB&J fudge with added chopped peanuts.

> 12 more PB&J recipes, from oatmeal to pizza.

Elsewhere on The Nibble:

> The history of peanut butter and jelly.

> The different types of jelly, jam, preserves, and other fruit spreads: a photo glossary.

> The history of peanut butter.

> The history of jelly.

> The history of sandwiches.

> The year’s 13 peanut butter holidays.

> The year’s 60+ candy holidays.
 
 
RECIPE: PEANUT BUTTER & JELLY FUDGE

Prep time is 3 minutes, cook time is 5 minutes, plus 4 hours chilling to set.

Ingredients For 24 Pieces

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE the peanut butter and butter in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium until melted; stir in the confectioners’ sugar and salt until combined.

[2] Grape jelly, a classic pairing in PB&J sandwiches, makes the fudge look a bit odd to us, but others may love the look. This is from Country Fresh Food.

[3] The prettiest peanut butter and jelly fudge. Here’s the recipe (photo © Nutriholist

3. REFRIGERATE until chilled and firm, about 4 hours. Cut into pieces. You can store fudge in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

More recipes follow.

[3] For sweet-and-salty, top the fudge with coarse-grained sea salt or kosher salt (Gemini Photo).
 
 
RECIPE #2: “CRUNCHY” PEANUT BUTTER & JELLY FUDGE

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. LINE an 8-inch square pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan, ensuring that the foil is smooth to prevent creases in the fudge. Spray with cooking spray.

2. HEAT 2/3 cup of the sweetened condensed milk and peanut butter in 2-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, just until it begins to bubble. Remove from the heat.

3. STIR in 1 cup of white chips, mixing until melted and smooth. Stir in the peanuts and almond extract. Spread evenly in prepared pan. Chill.

3. HEAT the remaining sweetened condensed milk, jelly/jam, lemon juice, and food color in 2-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, just until beginning to bubble. Remove from heat. Stir in remaining white chips, mixing until melted and smooth. Spread evenly over peanut butter layer. Chill 1 hour or until firm. Tip: Adding lemon juice brightens the raspberry flavor.

4. REMOVE the fudge from the pan by lifting the edges of the foil. Using a warm knife, trim the uneven edges from the fudge. Cut into 64 squares.
 
 
MORE PEANUT BUTTER & JELLY RECIPES

 
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*Why almond extract? It enhances the nutty flavor of the peanut butter—or any nut butter you substitute.
 
 

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[2] Artisan peanut butter from PB & Co. (photo © PB & Co.).

April 2nd is National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day. If you haven’t tried it yet, a bowl of PB&J Oatmeal hits the spot and the oatmeal is good for you†. If you don’t like jelly, we have a PB-only recipe below.

Not to mention, more than 40 other toppings for your oatmeal, sweet as well as savory. You’ll find them below.

There’s also National Oatmeal Day on October 29th. Here are the different types of oats. Check out the health benefits of oatmeal. Oats are the only major grain proven to help blood cholesterol.
 
 
RECIPE #1: PEANUT BUTTER & JELLY OATMEAL

This recipe is adapted from SimplyQuinoa.com.

Ingredients

 
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*One tablespoon provides a lighter peanut butter flavor, three tablespoons is very peanutty. Try the smaller amount first; you can always stir in more or use add a PB topping when the oats are done cooking.

†Eating three grams of soluble fiber from oats each day, as part of a diet that’s low in fat and cholesterol, has been shown to lower blood cholesterol. This may reduce the risk of heart disease.

1. PREPARE the oatmeal according to package directions. Stir in the peanut butter, maple syrup and spices when the oats have started to soften but are still runny. Cook until thick and creamy.

2. TRANSFER to bowls and top with jam and any optional toppings.
 
 
MORE FAVORITE OATMEAL TOPPINGS

Toppings can be savory or sweet. You can use one or several on your bowl of oatmeal.
 
Sweet Toppings

[4] How about Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal? Here’s the recipe from AlidasKitchen.com (photo © Alida’s Kitchen).

 
 
RECIPE #2: PEANUT BUTTER OATMEAL

Ingredients For 1 Serving

 
Preparation

1. COOK the oatmeal according to package directions.

2. PLACE the peanut butter and optional honey/syrup in a cereal bowl. When the oatmeal is done, add to the bowl and stir to blend.

3. GARNISH as desired.

April 2nd is National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day. For fun, make this Piano PB&J Sandwich. It was one of the winners of the Kids Live Well Recipe Challenge.

Sponsored by McCormick, this initiative challenges restaurants’ culinary ingenuity in creating healthful, appealing, nutritious and delicious menu options for children.

This recipe, called the Do-Re-For-Me Sandwich, was created by Bean Sprouts Café & Cooking School in Seattle. It is delicious with glass of milk.
 
RECIPE: PB&J PIANO SANDWICH

Ingredients

Preparation

1. CUT the crusts off the bread. Spread the bottom slice of oat bread with peanut butter/sunflower butter and jam. Add the top slice and cut into piano-key sized/shaped pieces.

2. CUT the pumpernickel into cut smaller pieces and placed on top of the wheat bread to represent black piano keys.

3. SERVE with a side of grapes or other fruit and a glass of milk.
 
MORE FUN

Watch this art film on the preparation of PB&J sandwiches, courtesy Dave’s Killer Bread.
  

Because it’s April 1st, you may think that it’s a joke. But these Mashed Potato Donuts are real, and really good.

The recipe was developed by Jeremy Spector of Wonder City Coffee & Donut Bar at The Brindle Room in New York City. It was sent to us bythe Idaho Potato Commission.

If you don’t want the salted caramel glaze (top photo), simply garnish the donuts with cinnamon sugar (bottom photo).

Here’s another Mashed Potato Donut recipe from King Arthur Flour.

TIP: This doughnut dough can be refrigerated overnight. Equally good doughnuts will result from making the dough and frying the donuts the next day as frying the same day.

 
RECIPE: MASHED POTATO DONUTS

Ingredients For 24 Donuts

 
Ingredients For 2 Cups Salted Caramel Glaze

Top: Mashed Potato Donuts, photo courtesy IdahoPotato.com. Bottom: Mashed Potato Donuts from TasteOfHome.com.

1. BOIL the potatoes, drain and mash in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar, then the orange zest. Set aside.

2. STEEP the milk, cloves, nutmeg and fat over low heat in a small pot. Strain and discard the cloves.

3. WHISK the eggs; very slowly whisk in the steeped milk. Pour into the potato mixture and stir to combine. Sift in the dry flour, baking powder and salt and gently stir to just combine. Rest for 1 hour.

4. MAKE the salted caramel glaze while the dough rests. In a small pan over medium heat, melt the sugar, stirring constantly until it turns golden brown. In a separate pan, bring the cream to a simmer. Slowly pour the cream into the sugar until combined. Whisk in the salt. Cool to room temperature and set aside.

5. HEAT the oil to 360°F. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and roll to 1/3-inch thickness.

6. CUT the doughnuts and fry them in the oil for 4 minutes, turning once. Using a slotted spoon, transfer them to paper towels to drain. Drizzle with the salted caramel glaze and serve.
  

What’s new about that, you ask? While there’s plenty of all-natural peanut butter on store shelves, Simply Ground is delightfully ground.

Its unique texture lies between creamy and crunchy, reminiscent of finely home-grouund PB. It spreads easily and evenly and is universally useful for everything from sandwiches and soups to baking.

There are two varieties, Original and Honey Roast, the latter with a touch of real honey. There’s not a big flavor difference; eating the peanut butter straight from the spoon is a nuanced experience. The main difference is 3g sugar per serving versus 6g sugar per serving.

It’s a winner! National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day is April 2nd, so head to the nearest store.

FOOD TRIVIA: Peanut butter was developed by a physician to provide a protein food to people who lost their teeth and could no longer chew meat. Here’s the history of peanut butter

This recipe is from Chef Spike Mendelsohn, owner of D.C. restaurant Béarnaise, a Top Chef contestant and consulting chef for Peter Pan Simply Ground.

Ingredients For 4 Sandwiches

 
For The Topping

Preparation

1. MAKE the blackberry topping: Combine the preserves and water in a pot add heat, stirring, until smooth. Serve on the side

2. SPREAD the bread with peanut Butter; fill with bananas and bacon to make 4 sandwiches. Press the edges of sandwiches together to seal.

3. HEAT a large skillet, add the butter and melt over medium heat.

4. WHISK the egg, cinnamon and milk in bowl until well blended. Add the sandwiches, one at a time, turning to evenly moisten the bread.

5. ADD the sandwiches to the skillet and cook for 2 minutes on each side, until golden brown.

ABOUT THE MONTE CRISTO SANDWICH

A Monte Cristo is a fried ham or turkey sandwich with cheese. It’s an American variation of the French Croque Monsieur sandwich.

Traditionally, the sandwich is dipped in batter and deep fried, but there are regional variations. In some regions of the U.S. it’s just grilled; in others, French toast is used as a base, with cheese melted under a broiler.

In this version, the sandwich is fried like French Toast.

Monte Cristo sandwiches originated in southern California; the earliest reference is printed on a 1941 menu from Gordon’s restaurant in Los Angeles and a recipe was published in the 1949 The Brown Derby Cookbook. The sandwich became very popular in the 1950s-1970s.

Check out the different sandwich types in our Sandwich Glossary.

Top: Spike Mendelsohn’s re-interpretation of the Monte Cristo Sandwich. Photo courtesy Peter Pan. Bottom: PB&J Lettuce Wraps. Photo courtesy CoffeeandQuinoa.com.

RECIPE 2: PEANUT BUTTER & JELLY LETTUCE WRAPS

The recipe is adapted from Crofter’s Organic.
 
Ingredients For 2 Servings, 4 Wraps

 
Preparation

1. PREPARE the spring roll wrappers by softening in hot water, one at a time to avoid sticking.

2. SPREAD a teaspoon of peanut butter over each, followed by a teaspoon of fruit spread. Sprinkle the optional crushed nuts over the fruit spread.

3. WRAP the lettuce over the spring roll wrappers. Cut if desired and serve.