Peanut Butter and Jelly Reinvented

Peanut butter and jelly are staples of almost every American household. If you don't believe me, head to your kitchen right now to confirm this bit of wisdom. If you're interested in "upgrading" your selection of peanut butter and jelly, look no further. The following suggestions will help you improve your experience with two truly American foods. If Peter Pan versus Skippy is the extent of your family's squabbling, you can find new options to argue about below.

Peanut Butter and Co. makes a mouth-watering line of gourmet peanut butter products. My favorite is the Dark Chocolate Dreams, a decadent blend of peanut butter and dark chocolate. This flavor is great on sandwiches or on Saltines or Ritz crackers. Other unique choices include White Chocolate Wonderful and Cinnamon Raisin Swirl. While nuts and nut products are one of the important categories to eat as organic, I can't quite pass up the creative flavors of Peanut Butter & Co. In fact, I love this brand so much, I recently ate at the Sandwich Shop of Peanut Butter & Co. in Greenwich Village (right after I played chess in Washington Square Park in an effort to increase my daughter's interest in this recreational game).

Crazy Richard's peanut butter products are a great option for health-conscious consumers. While they aren't organic, they do come with a nice price tag-less than $3 for a 16-ounce container. This is quite a bargain considering their only ingredient is peanuts. They contain no unnecessary or unhealthy ingredients such as hydrogenated oils, sugar, or corn syrup.

Think beyond grape. It's true, grape seems to be the most popular jelly flavor, but there is no shortage of jelly flavors. Strawberry is probably a close second to grape, but dozens of other choices abound such as blueberry, dark cherry, and peach. Whole Foods sells 365 Organic brand preserves, and apricot and blackberry are two unique and flavorful choices.

Stay away from mainstream jelly brands, you'll have the added benefit of avoiding unnecessary sugar because alternative brands offer fruit-sweetened jellies and preserves. Just remember to read labels. Brands that include the phrase "organic" typically tend to have fewer ingredients or use added flavors of fruit to sweeten rather than sugar. Two unopened products beckoning me from the pantry are Cascadian Farm Sweet Orange Marmalade and Crofter's Organic Raspberry Conserve. While both contain sugar, the sugar is organic. More importantly, not one of these products contains high fructose corn syrup, which is the sweetener of choice for most well-known jelly brands.

If you're looking for new ways to serve your new peanut butter and jelly selections, try the following. Create a double-decker peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but use two different types of bread such as white and wheat or create double-decker cracker "sandwiches." I have a great vegan recipe for Asian noodles bathed in a peanut sauce, and I'm very tempted to try an unusual flavor of peanut butter the next time I make this. Feel free to share your own unique suggestions below.