I don’t think grownups are supposed to like peanut butter and jelly as much as I do. For a lot of my adult life, I wouldn’t touch it – a reaction to the river of pb&j we had as kids. Our school didn’t have a hot lunch program, and with 5 kids to feed, I am sure pb&j was the logical choice. By about 4th grade I was ready to give up lunch forever. Unfortunately, I was starved by lunchtime, since, when my Mom wasn’t looking, I had fed my detested oatmeal to the dog at breakfast. Every day began with this terrible injustice. Unjust, because my mother hated oatmeal and would not have touched it with a ten foot pole, a fact I futilely point out to her every day. I am not sure how she felt about eating pb&j herself, but by lunchtime, starvation thrust me into the arms of whatever was in my lunch bag.
It wasn’t until I had kids of my own that I began to appreciate peanut butter again. Now, I could eat it every day, and if it weren’t so fattening, I would. Buttered toast, piled with crunchy natural peanut butter and slathered with fruity jam. I am sure it is what they have for breakfast in heaven, and when I get there, it is what I am having every day. Somehow, these muffins seem healthier than the toast. They aren’t really, though they do have whole wheat flour, raw sugar and natural peanut butter. Ok, maybe a teensie bit healthier. They are really easy though and I bet kids would love to help make them.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 12 spot muffin tin with paper liners.
Combine:
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup raw sugar [granulated will work fine]
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Use a pastry cutter to blend in:
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
3 tablespoons softened butter
In a small bowl, or large measuring cup, beat together:
2 eggs
1 cup milk [I used skim]
Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients and fold together just until combined. Use a medium cookie scoop, or a large spoon, and put about 2 tablespoons of batter in each muffin cup. Top that with a generous dollop of jam or jelly. I used strawberry, but any kind will work just fine. Use the remaining batter to fill the cups evenly, trying to cover the jam as much as possible. Bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out with no batter on it [there will probably be jam of course, but just make sure there is no raw batter] Remove to a cooling rack for at least 20 minutes before serving. Remember that the jam inside will be very hot, so use caution, especially when serving them to kids.
They keep nicely at room temperature for 2 or 3 days, and reheat quite well. Enjoy!
They look so cute and yummy. LOL I still eat pb&J for lunch almost every day :)
I love peanut butter…and have been known to eat it right out of the container with a spoon. But alas, we discovered that 4YO is allergic to peanuts (whimper, whimper), so I’ve been substituting a lot of peanut butter recipes with sunflower butter. Will give this one a shot. Muffins always get my attention.
p.s. your coconut/lime mini muffins are baking as we speak.
Lori – glad I am not the only grown up who is addicted :)
Amy – ooooh – those Lime Coconut muffins are awesome. Now I’m jealous! Sorry about the peanut allergy – that makes life a lot more difficult I am sure.
Those remind me of the PB&J cupcakes I’ve had at Hill Country, a Texas-style BBQ restaurant in the Flatiron district of Manhattan.
These look really good!
Thatnks Stash – I have PB&J thumbprint cookies I will do next Christmas too – they are really tasty!
This looks like so much fun! Thanks for the recipe… I’m going to copy it down now. :)
These look great! I saw the picture on foodgawker. I am always looking for whole grain, healthy muffins (aka cupcakes) to feed my 2 year old! Thanks for sharing. :)
Thanks Joan & Healthnut Foodie – hope you will come back and tell us how you liked them!
Ooooh, I love PB&J….definitely need to make these!
Thanks for stopping by Heather – I hope you like them :)
I’ve made PB&J Banana bread in loaf form, but I love the idea of individual muffin servings. Delicious!
Lauren – PB&J Banana Bread sounds interesting!
Looks great – I would probably try putting the pb in the middle as well, just because I really love pb.
Bamboo – that is a fantastic idea – an extra little dab in each one. Oh yeah…
Love these, a big thumbs up:)
Thank you Maria :)
They look like a snap to make and the kid would love them.