A Dose of the Delightful

DIY Peanut Butter:Tastier, Safer, & Just How You Like It

Ever since my colleague Neal brought his own homemade peanut butter to our office, I've been dying to make my own. There are so many great reasons to avoid commercially made peanut butter - chief among them that homemade tastes wayyyy better!  Plus, most of us don't have time to make things from scratch and therefore have to sacrifice knowing exactly how our food is prepared and what's in it. I like that it's so easy to make such a staple food myself - I know exactly what's in it and under what conditions it was made. No salmonella here! Finally, it's insanely cheap to make.

I decided to try my first batch with a few thoughts in mind. I'm not a huge fan of having to stir the oil that usually sits at the top of natural peanut butter, and I know a ton of people who won't eat natural peanut butter because of this, so I wanted to make it as smooth and solid as possible. Coconut oil, in addition to being super good for you, is also solid at room temperature, so would theoretically help me achieve the consistency I was after. Just so you know, it's the partially hydrogenated oil added to commercial PB that keeps it solid but also makes it pretty bad for you (it turns into trans fats). 

I also wanted to avoid using refined sugars, so I chose to sweeten mine with honey! Maple syrup seems like it would be another yummy option. 

You can also avoid using oil altogether and just process the peanuts until they're nice and smooth - but the peanut butter will be a bit more difficult to spread.

You'll just need the ingredients below and a food processor! 

Ingredients:
3 cups unsalted roasted peanuts
2 tbsps coconut oil - Try a different oil if you don't like a hint of coconut - safflower oil is another super healthy alternative that's tasteless. 
Sea salt to taste
Honey to taste

A whopping 4 ingredients, plus my favorite measuring cups 

 Process peanuts one cup at a time; add coconut oil or oil of your choice as you go.

 Once the peanut butter begins to get creamy, add salt and honey (or other sweetener) to taste.

Blend until it's as creamy as you'd like - mine took about 4-5 minutes. How simple is that?

Transfer the peanut butter to an airtight container, and you're done! The PB should last about a month, and up to two months if kept in the fridge.

I really like that this is completely customizable. For example, if you like chunky peanut butter, process one cup of peanuts until they're finely chopped, then set aside while you process the other two cups until creamy. Then mix the chopped peanuts in. You can also sweeten with other ingredients (like maple syrup) - my colleague Lib even suggested mixing in some Nutella!

This really is one of the easiest and most delicious things I've made in a long time - anyone can (and should) try it!

Lady Luck

Hello from gorgeous Savannah, Georgia! I’m here to run the Rock ‘n Roll Marathon tomorrow with Team in Training in memory of my brother Jonathan, and I can’t wait! This will be my second marathon with Team in Training; the first was last year’s Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco. It was such an inspiring experience that I had to commit to another season.

I’m not particularly superstitious—or I only choose to be when I encounter a good omen—but I this week, as I began mentally preparing for the race, I also started thinking about all of the little things we do every day to bring us luck. Maybe we consider it lucky to see our favorite number, knock on wood to prevent something bad from happening, or cross our fingers as we're hoping something will happen. Most elite athletes have a routine like bouncing the ball a certain number of times before a serve or wearing a pair of lucky shorts. We all always seem to be seeking out that extra bit of luck that might make some unforeseeable difference in our lives. 

It’s fun to imagine that there’s some sort of secret to luck that we can tap into, whether it be finding a four-leafed clover, hanging a horseshoe or dreamcatcher, or getting, ahem, dropped on by a bird flying overhead ((I swear, some people say this). I definitely find myself excited when I come across symbols of luck - what do you think is lucky?

 

 

Clockwise from top:
1. Vintage porcelain elephant figurines, Etsy. Ornamental elephants are supposed to bring good luck - plus, they're just cute.
2. Vintage horseshoe print scarf, Etsy. The idea of horseshoes being good luck dates back to a story about Saint Dunstan, who supposedly nailed a horseshoe to the devil's hoof and wouldn't remove it until the devil promised he wouldn't enter a home with a horseshoe hung over the door.
3. Clover shaped table, Oomph. Four-leafed clovers bring luck to their finders, and each leaf has a meaning. One is for faith, the second means hope, the third means love, and the fourth is lucky.
4. Vintage brass grasshopper paperweight, Etsy. Grasshoppers, considered good luck in many cultures, can only jump forward and symbolize moving forward past difficulties.
5.Handmade turquoise and gold dreamcatcher necklace, Etsy. Dreamcatchers ward off evil spirits and bless sleepers with pleasant dreams and good fortune.
6. Star print Night Sky blouse, Anthropologie. Stars are lucky in several ways: the North Star is lucky for sailors and brings guidance, and shooting stars grant the person who sees them a wish.

On the subject of luck, my family’s experience with leukemia, and my personal experience with Team in Training, has taught me that most of us are already incredibly lucky as it is, simply because we are blessed with good health.  I have truly felt that by participating in TNT, I can help a sick person regain the good health that we only realize we are so lucky to have when it’s gone.

Tomorrow I will bring with me to the starting line a few reminders of that, both physical and emotional: I’ll be wearing three rubber bracelets created by Jonathan’s classmates to commemorate his life and to raise money for LLS, and I’ll be thinking of my brother’s courageous battle as I make my way to mile 26.2.