Peanut Butter (with recipe)

            The most popularly used “nut” butter is that made from the peanut – usually the small variety known as the Spanish peanut. Because peanut-butter cravers run rampant hereabouts – and because many of them are children – it is important to realize the horrors that are perpetrated by the food industry on this highly nutritious comestible. Many commercially fabricated peanut butters contain as little as 75 percent peanuts. The rest is made up of hydrogenised fats (to prevent oil separation), sugar (for added sweetness and to mask the taste of inferior peanuts), emulsifiers (against oil separation), texturizers (to aid spreadability and counteract the butter’s natural tendency to stick to the roof of the mouth), and degermed (for infinite shelf life) peanuts. Doesn’t that sound appetizing!

            Buy your peanut butter freshly ground and pure. Refrigerate during hot weather, and give it a stir before using, to redistribute the nutritious oils that rise to the top. Small trouble for the rich reward of delicious healthful peanut butter as it once was and still should be. See also Peanut.

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PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES

1 cup pressed vegetable oil or butter

1 cup peanut butter, unhomogenized

1 cup honey or sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups whole wheat flour

1.      Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil two cookie sheets.

2.      Mix oil and peanut butter. Add honey, salt, and baking soda, stir well. Add eggs and vanilla, then flour.

3.      When well blended, spoon onto the cookie sheet by the teaspoonful. Press down with a floured fork if desired. Bake for 10-11 minutes. Let cool on pan several minutes or cookies will crumble.

4.      Makes approximately 50 cookies.

Peanut

            The peanut is not actually a “nut” at all, but a member of the pea, or legume, family that grows in a most interesting manner. A rather low bushlike plant, it bears flowers that then become pods; the branches carrying the pods elongate, bend down, and push their pods into the ground; and when the plant dies, the mature peanuts (or ground nuts, as they are often called) are dug up. Botanists are divided over whether the peanut came originally from Africa or South America. Now, however, it grows prolifically in almost all tropical counties; India and China are large producers, as is the southern United States.

            Peanuts are a very nutritious food. They are extremely high in protein and unsaturated oil. Because their protein is incomplete, however, they should not be relied on as a sole source of protein. They are rich in vitamins E and B, particularly in niacin. The thin brown skin of the peanut contains trace minerals and B vitamins. Its slightly bitter flavor is appreciated by some, denounced by others. Shelled peanuts are available with or without this skin, so take your pick. Peanuts lose nutrients when they are roasted – but gain delicious flavor. It is best to buy raw peanuts and roast them in your own kitchen, for then you can control the temperature, the quality of oil, and the amount of salt used. Many commercially available roasted peanuts are actually deep-fried at high temperatures in low-quality oil and oversalted as well. To roast peanuts properly, place shelled nuts in a heavy frying pan over medium heat; stir until a roasted aroma arises; sprinkle on a few teaspoons of pressed oil, coating all nuts; stir in salt if desired.

            Peanuts lend themselves to a wide variety of treatments – there is peanut oil, peanut meal, peanut butter, boiled peanuts, and roasted peanuts. Peanuts can be used as nutritious snacks or as part of a meal. Sprinkle crushed peanuts on salads; use them as a curry condiment, add them to soybean and grain dishes. Always buy peanuts organic, as they are known to have the highest levels of pesticide saturation among plant foods (besides the infamous raisin).