Peanut butter - what am I doing wrong?

[OakLeaf]

Well I'm lazy and buy my peanut butter. But the same principles apply to chickpeas (which is about all I use my food processor for). You want a powerful motor, since you'll be putting a lot of stress on it, way more than chopping herbs and vegetables would. A heavy base is nice so it doesn't skitter all over your counter. I don't know of any food processor that all the removable parts aren't dishwasher safe - the only part that's a hassle to clean is up inside the blade assembly where it fits over the drive shaft. The little brush that Camelbak sells to clean water bottle drink tubes is handy for that (the rigid plastic brush, not the flexible brush for drink tubes on wearable reservoirs). Also, like any kitchen appliance, if it has a flexible plastic cover so you can wipe right over the controls, rather than buttons that go through the case where crud accumulates, that's a plus.

But what I was wondering is, is anyone else having an increasingly hard time finding peanut butter in glass jars? I'm not zero-tolerance when it comes to plastic packaging, but anything that's either high in acid or high in oil, I much prefer to buy in glass. Especially foods with a long shelf life that can sit around for months absorbing plasticizers.

[Catrin]

Oakleaf hits the important parts - the more powerful the better. The motor on mine is good, but not quite powerful enough so that what I actually get is extremely finely ground nuts that are almost butter - but it serves my purposes just fine. I like doing it this way so that I can choose the nuts and any other ingredients - but it isn't for everyone.

I hadn't noticed that Oakleaf. Do you have a local Trader Joes or Whole Foods? Both of them have most their nut butters in glass jars, at least around here.

[IBrakeforPastry]

I don't think I need a food processor. I'll just buy my peanut butter.

The jar I have now is glass, but it's local, from the farmers market.

[Catrin]

I don't think I need a food processor. I'll just buy my peanut butter.

The jar I have now is glass, but it's local, from the farmers market.

I only make mine because I can't have peanuts (which are legumes, not nuts), and it allows me to make nut butter out of my preferred nut - usually pecans. Pecan butter made from roasted nuts is just incredible

[Crankin]

I buy my nut butters (almond, sunflower, and cashew) all in glass jars, at the natural foods grocery. Expensive, but worth it. Every time I've tried buying this stuff at my grocery store (which is quite good, overall), the taste sucks, or I find some hidden horrible ingredient.
I don't refrigerate, because they just turn into hard rocks. I haven't died yet (been doing this for years). You scared me, Oakleaf.

[ny biker]

The peanut butter I've been buying is the Harris Teeter store brand. The ingredients are roasted peanuts and salt. It is in a plastic jar. I can't say if it tastes better or worse than other brands because I've rarely eaten peanut butter before recently.

[BikeDutchess]

I buy Adams Peanut Butter in our regular grocery store. Not too expensive. Just peanuts and salt and comes in glass jars.

I'd never heard of aflatoxin before, OakLeaf, and your comment made me curious enough to look it up. At least in the US there have been no reported cases in humans and only sporadic cases in animals (per the FDA), so I'm not too worried and I'll go on keeping my PB at room temp for now. Our PB gets consumed pretty quickly anyway.

Rebecca - thanks for the great tip on the peanut butter hand mixers! My knife has served me well so far, but that gadget looks tempting!

Who knew that peanut butter would be the subject of such a lively and interesting discussion!

[rebeccaC]

At least in the US there have been no reported cases in humans and only sporadic cases in animals (per the FDA), so I'm not too worried and I'll go on keeping my PB at room temp for now. Our PB gets consumed pretty quickly anyway.

Rebecca - thanks for the great tip on the peanut butter hand mixers! My knife has served me well so far, but that gadget looks tempting!

you're welcome

and yes....U.S.D.A. labs have done rigorous testing for aflatoxin in peanut crops for a few decades now. If someone is actually worried about it apiaceous vegetables would help reduce a perceived problem….and they are good for us in any case. Peanut butter and celery ftw! If there was a problem we would have seen problems with liver cancer in U.S. kids who are adults now and probably ate/eat the most peanut butter of any of us. I also like the Ralph Waldo Emerson quote “Moderation in all things, especially moderation.”

Personally I usually use almond butter because it has a better fatty acid profile than peanut butter.

[IBrakeforPastry]

Oh good, mine's coming out of the refrigerator. I just remember reading the "refrigerate after opening" label and never questioned why.

[rebeccaC]

Oh good, mine's coming out of the refrigerator. I just remember reading the "refrigerate after opening" label and never questioned why.

refrigeration is about the oil separation especially in all natural peanut butter and the possibility of the oil going rancid. That takes awhile. It's not about aflatoxins. I don't refrigerate mine but i finish a jar within a month when i have it around. If I wasn't finishing it within a month or so or lived in a hot or humid area I personally would refrigerate it after opening.

[rebeccaC]

(we use PB and little bits of bread to feed them pills, make little bedtime treats, etc.). They don't care that its icky.

When I was really young I use to feed my golden retriever pieces of a breakfast sandwich made of French toast with an almond butter and banana center…..cuz he loved it…and me .....Thanks for making me think of that!!

I make almond butter….yeah easy! just takes me time/patience and some side scraping. I learned to heat the almonds a bit just before to help release the oil which saves a little time and food processor work.

[Aromig]

When I was really young I use to feed my golden retriever pieces of a breakfast sandwich made of French toast with an almond butter and banana center…..cuz he loved it…and me .....Thanks for making me think of that!!

One of our dogs is a golden retriever. I can guarantee that she would love French toast with almond butter and banana because she LOVES any people food she can get (and chicken food, and cat food, and well, really anything not nailed down) :-) luckily I think she's active enough that she's not getting fat like some goldens can do (she's about five years old now).

[OakLeaf]

My dogs figured out how to suck the peanut butter off the pill and spit the pill out anyway