Author Topic: The economics of the PB&J  (Read 19575 times)

wealthviahealth

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The economics of the PB&J
« on: July 27, 2015, 10:16:41 AM »
I made my first PB&J for the first time in 5 years yesterday. I have been very critical of PB&J's in the past as I felt that they were lacking any real nutrition and that it didn't matter if they were cheap and convenient....Then I moved a big, EXPENSIVE city..
The PB&J suddenly is starting to make sense again; I share a kitchen with 4 roommates and my monthly rate payment could probably buy me a small island. Cooking/ meal prep is just not as practical as it once has been for me and since I am commuting to work by bike, bringing a cooler to work of prepped food also doesn't work out.

 Only problem is.. since I am into health, all of my PB&J ingredients are quite a bit more expensive than your typical pb&j. Ie; natural peanut butter, natural jam, and much healthier bread. I now wonder if the economics of this food vehicle still make sense, though the simplicity is still a no brainer. Technically, a big pot of lentils and ground beef cooked up once a week is still cheaper, same with a thing of beans&rice. I don't want to get in the habit of not cooking at all, as that is a very slippery slope, but as mentioned above, cooking is just not what it used to be given my new situation.

For those with more of a health mindset; how do you look at the pb&j compared to other options.. does it still make sense? What tips do you have to add more nutrition? What other convenient go-to's like this do you recommend?

Scandium

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #1 on: July 27, 2015, 10:36:59 AM »
I've have PB&J for lunch for every single day!
I believe it's considered more nutritious (need to look it up), and it is likely more expensive; but I really like almond butter instead of PB. The $11 jars at the store are insane though. I made my own in a blender from raw almonds and it was awesome, and a bit cheaper. Some natural stores and wegmans have slight cheaper store brand almond butter.

I don't believe there is any scientific backing to "natural" products being better (at least not organic), so I buy the cheapest PB without added salt/sugar/oil etc.

Replacing bread with Wasa cracker-things is also better. Much more fiber for one thing. Again; not sure any cheaper though, probably the opposite.

I'm also in the middle of re-evaluating my lunch routine to improve the health benefits.
Success 1: Added slice of bell pepper to my ham&cheese sandwich for extra veggies.
« Last Edit: July 27, 2015, 11:01:47 AM by Scandium »

forummm

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #2 on: July 27, 2015, 10:45:05 AM »
PB&J is still pretty cheap. The natural PB I get (just nuts + salt) is the store brand and is the same price as the one with the hydrogenated oils and sugar in it. You can skip the jelly and put dried fruit in it. Raisins are pretty cheap.

But you're right that other options are possibly cheaper. I eat homemade granola and almonds for lunch. It's probably a 50 cent lunch.

waffle

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #3 on: July 27, 2015, 10:50:13 AM »
Do you have any food storage options at work (break room fridge or mini fridge at your desk)? You could stockpile a lot of cheap foods and snacks at work every few weeks.


eil

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #5 on: July 27, 2015, 11:17:55 AM »
If you are eating nothing but PBJ all the time for every meal, yeah, you're going to have a bad time. But when you break it down into nutrient categories, you get a bunch of fat (peanut butter), a bunch of carbs (bread and jelly), and some protein (bread and PB).

This is 90% of what you need. The only thing you're really missing are some veggies and other sources of vitamins. Bear in mind that you don't need to follow the food pyramid for every single meal. I'm LCHF, so I'll often have an egg for breakfast, something high-fat for lunch (like peanut butter and celery, a stir-fry, or nuts and cheese) and a large salad for dinner.

Now as to the costs, your sandwiches are not going to be cheap if you insist on all-natural, organic, free-range peanut butter, jam, and bread. You can easily spend 5x more on PBJ ingredients at Whole Paycheck as opposed to Walmart, but you will not be getting a sandwich that tastes 5x better or is 5x more healthy. The whole point of PBJ is that it is delicious and cheap. If supermarket store-brand products are not your thing, I guess you could make your own bread in a bread machine, process your own peanut butter from bulk nuts, and can your own jelly. But to me, all that work would take the fun out of something that's known for being simple, easy, and cheap. :)

Hall11235

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #6 on: July 27, 2015, 11:27:49 AM »
The best  food advice I've ever received:
Get a crockpot. At your grocer, buy the meats that no one else eats (read here: bone-in anything) Usually these cuts are dirt cheap and, when crock-potted, are absolutely delicious. Also, I buy veggies that are in season and real cheap.

sheepstache

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #7 on: July 27, 2015, 11:53:10 AM »
Well, if your initial preference is to cook, I wouldn't give up on that yet. You can batch cook, which helps with the small shared kitchen thing, and then freeze individual portions, which helps with the cooler thing. Or get one of those insulated lunch bag things. People have different ideas about food safety so I don't know what you're looking for, but a bike commute is certainly not an excuse not to bring cooked food (/facepunch).

I hear you about expensive pb&j's. I have to have the smuckers natural, Levi's rye bread, red currant jam...mmm, so good. Even good jams seem to be nutritionally no different from sugar, though, so if I were trying to be healthy, I'd replace it with a sliced banana.

trailrated

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #8 on: July 27, 2015, 12:09:58 PM »
PBJ's are awesome... never tried with honey but im going to now. I usually have 2-3 a week for lunch.

lbmustache

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #9 on: July 27, 2015, 12:21:41 PM »
Change it up once a week and try PB&Honey.  Eating that after it's been in the fridge a few a hours...DELICIOUS.  I eat this daily.  Sometimes on the weekends, too.  Good and cheap.  What's not to like? 

Thanks, forummm, for the PB & Raisins idea.

Yep. Or my favorite: PB, honey, and bananas! A great filling breakfast.

forummm

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #10 on: July 27, 2015, 12:28:08 PM »
Change it up once a week and try PB&Honey.  Eating that after it's been in the fridge a few a hours...DELICIOUS.  I eat this daily.  Sometimes on the weekends, too.  Good and cheap.  What's not to like? 

Thanks, forummm, for the PB & Raisins idea.

PB & apricots, PB & craisins, etc. Lots of options here.

BlueHouse

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #11 on: July 27, 2015, 12:33:50 PM »
but I really like almond butter instead of PB. The $11 jars at the store are insane though. I made my own in a blender from raw almonds and it was awesome, and a bit cheaper. Some natural stores and wegmans have slight cheaper store brand almond butter.


I love almond butter and almond milk.  And then someone told me that a single almond takes 1 gallon of water to grow and all the almond production is killing California.  Now I feel too guilty to eat it.  My remaining jar is on the shelf next to the goose-liver pate.  (just kidding on the last part).

forummm

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #12 on: July 27, 2015, 12:43:36 PM »
but I really like almond butter instead of PB. The $11 jars at the store are insane though. I made my own in a blender from raw almonds and it was awesome, and a bit cheaper. Some natural stores and wegmans have slight cheaper store brand almond butter.


I love almond butter and almond milk.  And then someone told me that a single almond takes 1 gallon of water to grow and all the almond production is killing California.  Now I feel too guilty to eat it.  My remaining jar is on the shelf next to the goose-liver pate.  (just kidding on the last part).

Almonds are not killing California. Eating beef uses much more water than almonds (like over 1000 gallons for a steak). Eat almonds without reservation. The real culprit (other than the drought) is alfalfa which uses like 25% of CA's water and then is exported to China. If they stopped the alfalfa growing, there wouldn't be so much of a water problem there.

Ishmael

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #13 on: July 27, 2015, 12:54:29 PM »
Didn't see anyone mention a really important consideration of PB - make sure you get the kind without any trans fats/hydrogenated oils. These are deadly. See http://www.livestrong.com/article/370054-does-hydrogenated-peanut-butter-have-trans-fat/

IMO, a PB sandwich with a nice, grainy bread (preferably including quinoa) and any fruit you add to it is very healthy. I'm not a doctor/nutritionist though.

Telecaster

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #14 on: July 27, 2015, 01:07:32 PM »
The best  food advice I've ever received:
Get a crockpot. At your grocer, buy the meats that no one else eats (read here: bone-in anything) Usually these cuts are dirt cheap and, when crock-potted, are absolutely delicious. Also, I buy veggies that are in season and real cheap.

^ This.

ysette9

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #15 on: July 27, 2015, 01:18:25 PM »
I am a big fan of sandwiches because they are fast, easy, and transportable. I thikn PB&J can be great if: 1) you use 100% whole grain bread, 2) better if you can eat a natural peanut (or nut) butter, and 3) can use less or low-sugar jam. All of those can be harder to do unless you have access to a fabulous grocery store like Trader Joe's. Their bread is super cheap and has far fewer ingredients and none of the junk that "healthy" breads at places like Safeway have. They have a line of reduced sugar jams that are just that: reduced sugar without replacing the sugar with any creepy fake sugars.

Finally on the natural vs. unnatural peanut butter: I used to buy Skippy in huge quantities at Costco because it was easy and we eat so much of it. When I was pregnant and had to see a nutritionist due to blood sugar issues she advised me to switch to natural peanut butter. Her reasoning was that the peanut oil has a lot of really healthy fats in it that is retained in natural peanut butter. In conventional/unnatural peanut butter they remove the healthy oil, replace it with a different vegetable oil and also add sugar. Both of those steps reduce how healthy the product is for you.

Other sandwiches I enjoy include peanut butter and banana, peanut butter and jelly and banana, my all-time favorite of avocado cheese, as well as egg and avocado and cheese. Have fun!

SuperSecretName

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #16 on: July 27, 2015, 01:42:58 PM »
when made with good ingredients, a pb&j isn't just "not that bad" it's pretty darn good.

I get the natural bread/pb&j, so no HFCS or other additives. It's not that much more expensive that the cheaper options if you pay attention to prices and buy on sale.  bread freezes great, so stock up, and pull some out each week.

Scandium

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #17 on: July 27, 2015, 02:01:28 PM »
but I really like almond butter instead of PB. The $11 jars at the store are insane though. I made my own in a blender from raw almonds and it was awesome, and a bit cheaper. Some natural stores and wegmans have slight cheaper store brand almond butter.


I love almond butter and almond milk.  And then someone told me that a single almond takes 1 gallon of water to grow and all the almond production is killing California.  Now I feel too guilty to eat it.  My remaining jar is on the shelf next to the goose-liver pate.  (just kidding on the last part).

Almonds are not killing California. Eating beef uses much more water than almonds (like over 1000 gallons for a steak). Eat almonds without reservation. The real culprit (other than the drought) is alfalfa which uses like 25% of CA's water and then is exported to China. If they stopped the alfalfa growing, there wouldn't be so much of a water problem there.

Yeah I also heard that the almond hating is mostly bunk. I.e. almonds don't use much more water than anything else. And besides, if almonds were really killing california then they should stop growing it and fix it. I'm not making them do it, not my problem.

zsmith

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #18 on: July 27, 2015, 02:37:23 PM »


Almonds are not killing California. Eating beef uses much more water than almonds (like over 1000 gallons for a steak). Eat almonds without reservation. The real culprit (other than the drought) is alfalfa which uses like 25% of CA's water and then is exported to China. If they stopped the alfalfa growing, there wouldn't be so much of a water problem there.
[/quote]

The best thing people can do for the drought, environment and probably their own health is to eat fewer animal products. Good for the pocket book too. :)

Regarding PBJ, try adding some shredded carrots or a cut up apple to the sandwich to give it a little extra boost of healthfulness. I think it's a great meal, but could use some veggies or fruit on the side. My husband could eat the same thing every day, but I like to change it up and cooking is one of my favorite hobbies.

wealthviahealth

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #19 on: July 27, 2015, 10:02:39 PM »
Lots of great input/ suggestions on here, thanks!
Agreed that fruit, such as a PB&B ( peanut butter and banana)  does make it quite a bit more nutritious as well as filling.
This may sound crazy but since you can put spinach in just about any fruit smootie, I think I might test out putting a bunch of spinach into the PB&J as well, if for nothing else, I will at least feel like I am consuming a more balanced meal.
I will report back on this one to see hoe it goes.

Little Nell

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #20 on: July 28, 2015, 12:04:53 AM »
Bake your bread. Make a good whole wheat/oat bread.

Ocelot

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #21 on: July 28, 2015, 03:10:14 AM »
My breakfast every day is 2x sandwiches each made of quality bread (ie dark and wholemeal, often homemade) toasted, peanutbutter on both sides, then spinach in the middle. Delicious. Sometimes I'll sub the second sandwich as PB&J.

Ishmael

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #22 on: July 28, 2015, 05:17:58 AM »
Lots of great input/ suggestions on here, thanks!
Agreed that fruit, such as a PB&B ( peanut butter and banana)  does make it quite a bit more nutritious as well as filling.
This may sound crazy but since you can put spinach in just about any fruit smootie, I think I might test out putting a bunch of spinach into the PB&J as well, if for nothing else, I will at least feel like I am consuming a more balanced meal.
I will report back on this one to see hoe it goes.
If you have a dehydrator, you can dehydrate spinach. Then, you can crumble it into a "dust" with your hands, and it works nicely as a seasoning, which you can add to pretty much anything. The flavour gets pretty concentrated though, so don't go overboard.

Not sure what (if anything) it does to the nutritional value, but my guess would be not much.

GuitarStv

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #23 on: July 28, 2015, 05:51:32 AM »
I know that it's been mentioned already, but cut the jam from your sandwich.  Peanut butter and banana is a heck of a lot healthier for you . . . and chasing the PB&B with a large glass of milk increases the protein content of your meal to more acceptable levels.

There is no benefit at all to using expensive 'natural' jams or peanut butter.  Just read the ingredients list and look for the cheapest peanut butter you can find with a reasonable carb content (many of the big brand names mix in too much sugar).

forummm

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #24 on: July 28, 2015, 06:23:58 AM »
I know that it's been mentioned already, but cut the jam from your sandwich.  Peanut butter and banana is a heck of a lot healthier for you . . . and chasing the PB&B with a large glass of milk increases the protein content of your meal to more acceptable levels.

There is no benefit at all to using expensive 'natural' jams or peanut butter.  Just read the ingredients list and look for the cheapest peanut butter you can find with a reasonable carb content (many of the big brand names mix in too much sugar).

Any brand that has just peanuts and salt will be perfect. They're probably all made in the same factory anyway.

wealthviahealth

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #25 on: July 28, 2015, 06:26:46 AM »
For clarification: natural peanut butter means that the ingredients are minimal like they should be- peanuts, salt, water. Most of the other peanut butters are laced with 5-10 other ingredients many of which are harmful such as hydrogenated oils.
Agreed though that "natural" usually is a marketing gimmick when it comes to food but in this case, there is an important difference.

forummm

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #26 on: July 28, 2015, 06:48:12 AM »
I've never seen peanut butter with water in it.

trailrated

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #27 on: July 28, 2015, 10:51:44 AM »
you guys inspired me... I have my regular pbj spruced up with some honey. I want to eat it now but it's not even 10:00. How have I never done this before?! Updates to follow.

TheSecondLaw

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #28 on: July 28, 2015, 12:50:28 PM »
I'm with you! I love making a work 2 loaves worth of PB&J assembly line style. I stash them in the freezer and throw one in my backpack along with some fresh fruit for a quick lunch.

Another lazy frugal lunch I love is hummus and raw veggies. You can make your own hummus pretty easily but it is available at 1.99 for 8 oz at my grocery store. I can get 3-4 from one container and the veggies I choose are less than $1/lb.

I also like rolled oats with fruit and/or nuts. This would also be a good lunch option, if you have access to a microwave at work.

dantownehall

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #29 on: July 28, 2015, 01:08:40 PM »
So I think I want to replace my normal lunches with PB and banana sammies.

The easiest way to do this is just keep PB and bread at the office - any recommendations on 100% whole wheat bread that will last a while without getting hard or stale over about 2 weeks, which is probably how long it'll need to last?

FrugalShrew

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #30 on: July 28, 2015, 01:17:38 PM »
So I think I want to replace my normal lunches with PB and banana sammies.

The easiest way to do this is just keep PB and bread at the office - any recommendations on 100% whole wheat bread that will last a while without getting hard or stale over about 2 weeks, which is probably how long it'll need to last?

Do you have an office kitchen with a freezer and a toaster? I keep a loaf of bread in the freezer at work and just pop 2 slices in the toaster whenever I want to make a sandwich.

GuitarStv

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #31 on: July 28, 2015, 01:24:53 PM »
I wouldn't want to eat bread that has enough chemicals pumped into it to avoid going stale after two weeks on a counter.

Freeze half a loaf, bring the other half loaf in every Monday and eat it over the week.  Most store type bagged breads will be OK for about a week in a plastic bag.

dantownehall

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #32 on: July 28, 2015, 01:31:57 PM »
I wouldn't want to eat bread that has enough chemicals pumped into it to avoid going stale after two weeks on a counter.

Freeze half a loaf, bring the other half loaf in every Monday and eat it over the week.  Most store type bagged breads will be OK for about a week in a plastic bag.

That sounds like a good idea.  I feel like every time I buy a loaf, I end up throwing half away because it gets moldy (just cooking for one at present).

Johnez

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #33 on: July 29, 2015, 05:32:26 AM »
I wouldn't be so harsh on the nutritional content of PBJ sandwiches. A look at the nutritional facts of peanuts show a veritable gold mine of many nutrients, especially minerals.

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/legumes-and-legume-products/4357/2

And as others have stated, the jelly/jam can be replaced with fruit for a pretty balanced lunch. I've actually never thought past bananas, but hell now inspired to try sliced strawberries next time around.

forummm

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #34 on: July 29, 2015, 05:46:51 AM »
I wouldn't want to eat bread that has enough chemicals pumped into it to avoid going stale after two weeks on a counter.

Freeze half a loaf, bring the other half loaf in every Monday and eat it over the week.  Most store type bagged breads will be OK for about a week in a plastic bag.

That sounds like a good idea.  I feel like every time I buy a loaf, I end up throwing half away because it gets moldy (just cooking for one at present).

The fridge works just as well for most reasonably healthy store loaves. They'll last for a month or more in there. And then you don't have to deal with the changes to the bread from freezing. We just put the loaves directly into the fridge upon buying them and keep them there until they are done.

GuitarStv

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #35 on: July 29, 2015, 05:54:15 AM »
I wouldn't be so harsh on the nutritional content of PBJ sandwiches. A look at the nutritional facts of peanuts show a veritable gold mine of many nutrients, especially minerals.

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/legumes-and-legume-products/4357/2

And as others have stated, the jelly/jam can be replaced with fruit for a pretty balanced lunch. I've actually never thought past bananas, but hell now inspired to try sliced strawberries next time around.

The quality of bread you use affects your nutrition content quite a bit for a PB&J.  Generic store bought white bread isn't really great for you, high glycemic index, high sugar content, little nutrient value.  Peanuts are a decent source of healthy fats, but some peanut butters are pretty heavily mixed with icing sugar and preservatives.  Jam of course is largely empty calories in the form of sugar.

Can you make some healthy peanut butter sandwiches?  Yes.  The generic PB&J is very heavy on sugar though, and not a great thing to eat all the time.

Merrie

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #36 on: July 29, 2015, 10:59:34 AM »
I like having PBJ as a backup food. We pretty much always have the ingredients, and if I've run out of leftovers or other items, I can always grab one, and thereby avoid buying a meal out. I would get sick of it if I ate it every day, though.

Trudie

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #37 on: July 29, 2015, 11:36:39 AM »
I'd buy all the stuff at Costco, if you're a member.  Their sandwich loaves are a great deal.  They come two to a bag and since they are doublewrapped they freeze well.

The Kirkland brand PB is a good choice.  They usually have huge jars of natural spread.  But if you're really a jam lover making freezer jam is an easy DIY project... just depends on how into it you are.  It's still quite sugary.

Kiwi Mustache

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #38 on: July 29, 2015, 08:40:20 PM »
If you were health conscious why are you eating these?

- Peanuts have all sorts of nasty things in them http://www.marksdailyapple.com/how-bad-is-peanut-butter-really/#axzz3hL2bYQ8q

- Jam, even the fancy kind is 50% sugar. Sugar is terrible for you. Why not just have jellybeans for breakfast instead, it's basically the same thing.

- Bread and grains in general have shown to also be bad for you.

Have an omelette with three eggs with tomatoes and spinach instead. Heaps better for you and still pretty cheap and really filling. I have one of these at 7am and don't feel hungry until lunchtime. If I ate bread or cereal I'd be hungry again at 9am due to the sugar spike and lack of fat and protein.

Jeremy E.

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #39 on: July 29, 2015, 08:51:51 PM »
I like to buy the cheapest whole wheat bread I can find that has 4 grams of fiber and 4 grams of protein per slice, I usually find it for $1.75-$2.00 per loaf, some white breads are only $1 per loaf but have like 1g protein 1g fiber so I stay away from them. Some People pay $5 for a loaf Daves Killer Bread which has about 5 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber, I don't think that is worth it.

I buy Kirkland Natural Peanut Butter for very cheap.

Jelly is basically just sugar so I don't think it matters what kind you get, maybe get one without "added sugar" since they are already pure sugar. Honey is a good alternative too, which is also just sugar.

I also buy almond slices and sprinkle them on, I buy them in the bulk section at winco for about $5.75/lb. I think sprinkling almond slices on natural peanut butter is a lot more economical than buying almond butter(very expensive) or making your own(takes effort and a fancy blender or similar).

forummm

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #40 on: July 30, 2015, 07:41:38 AM »
If you were health conscious why are you eating these?

- Peanuts have all sorts of nasty things in them http://www.marksdailyapple.com/how-bad-is-peanut-butter-really/#axzz3hL2bYQ8q

- Jam, even the fancy kind is 50% sugar. Sugar is terrible for you. Why not just have jellybeans for breakfast instead, it's basically the same thing.

- Bread and grains in general have shown to also be bad for you.

Have an omelette with three eggs with tomatoes and spinach instead. Heaps better for you and still pretty cheap and really filling. I have one of these at 7am and don't feel hungry until lunchtime. If I ate bread or cereal I'd be hungry again at 9am due to the sugar spike and lack of fat and protein.

I agree that jam is sugar--but it's really about 100% sugar. When you process the fruit like that the fructose in the fruit is more readily available, and there's less containment of it inside the fiber to delay absorption into the blood stream. And eating too much refined carbohydrates is similar in that they quickly turn into sugar in your stomach. However, I was not convinced by that link that peanut butter is problematic. As long as it's just nuts and salt, it should be fine for you. I use peanut butter as part of my granola. So I'm eating unprocessed complex carbohydrates, nuts, and dried fruit. This doesn't have the issues you raised (other than the peanut butter issue I'm not buying into).

Bob W

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #41 on: July 30, 2015, 09:16:05 AM »
An alternative that is even easier and probably healthier is the old knife, apple and PB.   I love some PB on an apple.  Just bite --- spread some on the bite spot, bite repeat.  mmmm

Also consider the PB on celery.

Then there is the PB from a spoon.

PB on crackers -- mmmm

I also think your overthinking it by buying expensive organic schmanic stuff.  Plan old "all natural" is fine.  It is cheap as well. 

Rural

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #42 on: July 30, 2015, 05:29:49 PM »
An alternative that is even easier and probably healthier is the old knife, apple and PB.   I love some PB on an apple.  Just bite --- spread some on the bite spot, bite repeat.  mmmm

Also consider the PB on celery.

Then there is the PB from a spoon.

PB on crackers -- mmmm

I also think your overthinking it by buying expensive organic schmanic stuff.  Plan old "all natural" is fine.  It is cheap as well.


PB on a banana is pretty fab.


If you put PB on celery, though, I think you have a moral obligation to stick some raisins on top for ants on a log.

FrugalShrew

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #43 on: July 30, 2015, 06:05:27 PM »
If you put PB on celery, though, I think you have a moral obligation to stick some raisins on top for ants on a log.

Ha, this made me chuckle!

Little Nell

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #44 on: July 30, 2015, 10:15:53 PM »
There is also PB on a chocolate bar...which takes us pretty far from a healthy lunch!

PurpleEi

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #45 on: July 30, 2015, 11:18:42 PM »
As a student I survived on peanut butter, tomato and cucumber sandwiches.

The cafeteria had a buffet that didn't cater well for vegetarians, so that was the most nutritious/edible combination I could come up with. It works.


Trifle

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #46 on: July 31, 2015, 05:22:21 AM »
If you put PB on celery, though, I think you have a moral obligation to stick some raisins on top for ants on a log.

Ha, this made me chuckle!


Or -- core an apple, slice it, spread PB on, then add raisins for what we used to call 'ants on a toilet seat'

Rural

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #47 on: July 31, 2015, 05:38:02 AM »
If you put PB on celery, though, I think you have a moral obligation to stick some raisins on top for ants on a log.

Ha, this made me chuckle!


Or -- core an apple, slice it, spread PB on, then add raisins for what we used to call 'ants on a toilet seat'


That would save children everywhere the trouble of making "log" jokes.

Rollin

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #48 on: July 31, 2015, 06:01:37 AM »
Not helping you answer your question, but I am careful to exclude peanuts from my diet due to the acidification they cause and the mold that they carry.  However, everything in moderation right?

http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/id/QAA115491

catccc

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Re: The economics of the PB&J
« Reply #49 on: July 31, 2015, 09:53:00 AM »
I don't eat a ton of PB&J, but here are my tips:
Costco's Kirkland Brand Natural Peanut Butter is a fave in my household.  Just peanuts, maybe a bit of salt?  I can't remember.
Kirkland's Organic Strawberry Jam is our go to "jelly."  It is one of the lowest in sugar that we could find, including the "low sugar" varieties we've seen elsewhere.  We won't do artificial sweeteners, and btw, I've seen sucralose (splenda) sneaking into foods that are advertised to be lower in sugar, but there aren't any other requirements to warn that this is in foods.  Maybe you don't care, but just in case.
We store bread in the freezer.   It thaws so quickly, you can use it straight out of the freezer.  By the time I'm done spreading, the bread is thawed.  But I take my time getting the filling neatly to the edge...