Everyday my husband goes to work with pretty much the same lunch: peanut butter and jelly sandwich, bag of chips and 3 cookies of various types. Personally, I would go insane. He on the other hand does not seemed phased at all to eat the same thing day in and day out.
The peanut butter and jelly sandwich is a classic lunch staple. I can’t even begin to count how many times over the years that it has shown up in my lunch pail. As a teacher, I used to eat lunch with the kids, a lot(I was cheap and the rule at our school was that if you ate lunch with the kids your meal was free). I would say half of the table of kids were more than likely eating a pb and j. Mine of course must be made with Jif peanut butter and I usually enjoy it most with good ol’ grape jelly(which is funny because I don’t like grape jelly on anything else).
School is starting back up in Arizona(they have another month up here in the Seattle area), but since I taught in AZ, I tend to keep that schedule. Though I am now 3 years out of teaching I still seem to rule my life by the school calendar…I even use a student planner instead of a grown up one…so my year always starts in August.
So to honour the new school year and all my poor teacher friends who are back to school next week, I made this peanut butter and jelly tart. It is basically a peanut butter cookie dough that has been modified to roll out a little better. Simply topped with some of my mom’s really good homemade jam. And then topped with some peanut butter ganache. So to all you teachers who are heading back into the trenches, I wish you the following:
I hope you have a good class this year.
I hope you have parents who will be supportive and actually show up to parent/teacher conferences and all the other stuff that a parent should show up to.
I wish you quick staff meetings, so that your entire afternoons are not sucked up into a 2 hour drone of your principal sounding like the teacher from Charlie Brown.
I hope that “that kid” is stuck in some one else’s classroom this year, and not yours.
I hope that when a kid doesn’t show up with homework he/she has come up with some interesting and original excuse.
I hope you have enough school supplies so that it doesn’t have to come from your own bank account.
I hope your principal backs you when a kid is being a snot and so are his/her parents.
I hope your school district magically decides to give you a pay raise or at least a bonus 🙂
And last but not least I hope you have a stress free year(yeah, right!)
Have a great school year everybody!
Peanut Butter and Jelly Tart
4 peanut butter tart shells(recipe follows)
homemade jam
peanut butter ganache(recipe follows)
Peanut Butter Cookie Tart Dough
½ cup unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 10 pieces
1/3 cup granulated sugar
½ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
½ cup peanut butter
1 extra large egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
In a food processor, blend together butter and sugars. Add egg and vanilla. Add the peanut butter and pulse until completely mixed together.
Sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Add to food processor. Pulse until it starts to form a ball. Take out and roll into two balls. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator and chill for at least 1 hour.
Take dough out of refrigerator, divide ball into two parts, place onto a heavily floured surface and roll out into a circle. You might have to pat it back together a few times. Carefully lift and place into a greased and floured tart pan(I used 3-inch diameter ones). You will most likely have to do some patch work, which is easily done. Using a fork, poke the bottom of the tart, I did it about 10 times. Place a piece of parchment paper and then pie weights or dried beans.
Bake at 375F for 10 minutes. Take weights and parchment paper off and bake for another 6 minutes.
Makes 4 small tarts shells.
Peanut Butter Ganache
1 cup peanut butter chips
3 TBSP heavy whipping cream
In a saucepan, on low heat, melt together peanut butter chips and heavy whipping cream.
To assemble tart:
Place desired amount of jam/jelly into tart shell. Take peanut butter ganache and place in a piping bag. Pip ganache in whatever pattern you would like. These are best eaten the day of.
Meeta says
Funny I used to eat PBJ sandwiches at school quite often, but as a mommy I think I have actually only offered it to Soeren twice in his almost 5 years!!! The tart – well wow this is a whole new take on PBJ! Looks great!
sognatrice says
Mmm…I love tarts, peanut butter, *and* jelly. Not seeing how I could wrong with this one 😉
I also still use a student planner, although I’ve never really been a teacher (I do ESL now, but not year-round) so my excuse is just that I always think student planners are cuter and laid out better than adult ones. Perhaps I’m just looking in the wrong place for adult ones, or perhaps I just like glitter and flowers a bit too much 😉
To you and your readers, I personally invite you to come over to my very first blog e-party and contest–there are cute bags involved 🙂
Kristine says
That looks yummy! Thanks for all of your hopes and wihes for teachers this year! I start back teaching grade 6/7 in 4 weeks….and I am hoping for a good year!
Sylvia says
Looks pretty good ,and a wonderful idea too
veron says
That looks too cute! A great tribute to the teachers and to Peanut butter and Jelly!
Lynn says
Beautiful tart! What student or teacher wouldn’t be happy to find this tucked into their lunch?
Janet says
I would give anything to be able to pack a PB&J sandwich for my kids lunch. It would be so easy! But peanuts are banned at their school… It’s a real struggle to come up with other ideas that are somewhat healthy, that don’t taste gross at room temperature and that they will actually eat…
Tarah says
Mmm, delicious. I’ve always loved PBJ’s, though, the only time I ever would eat jelly was on a sandwich. Haha. This looks so yummy!
Belinda says
You couldn’t pay me any amount to work with kids, no way, no how! But this tart…I’d eat it just as soon as I was handed a plate and a fork! It looks super! And its so appropriate from the original little Jif girl. 🙂
Mari says
what an original idea! they are cute as pie (no pun intended) and i’m sure that they taste just as good as they are cute. my mom is a former elementary school teacher turned principle, and i’m going to share this recipe with her. she loves to cook for her staff..lucky folks!
Sarah says
Not only do these look delicious, it is such a yummy idea!
Kate says
My husband’s lunch consists of peanut butter and jelly, applesauce, and a bag of cookies. And of course, always JIF.
The Domestic Diva says
oh what a great idea. adds to recipe list.
Mehgan says
Peabody, you are my hero!! I’m the same way about my planners! My years run August to August, not January to January like most “adults”. I also LOVE school supply season. I like to walk down the school supply aisle inhaling deeply the rich aroma of bundles of pencils and boxes of crayola. I also love the plastic-y smell of those zipper pouches for pencils. Am I crazy?
Anyways, I totally want to make this tart for my neice and nephew, they’d LOVE it. But, maybe I’ll just make it for myself, since it’ll be Back to School for me this Fall, too. Oh, and long live JIF!!
ashley says
oh my goodness that sounds and looks so good! the crust looks amazing. i’ve never tried a peanut butter crust before. and peanut butter ganache! ahhh. i must try this. thanks for posting the recipe. 🙂
Lisa says
Now that’s the best looking PB&J that I’ve ever seen!
I’ll bet your hubby was a happy camper, yes? 😀
xoxo
Deborah says
What a wonderful and original tart!!
Jenny says
I wish my children attended a school where pb and j was allowed, instead of one that has an epi pen in every class, attached to a child’s picture, and is a nut free zone. My son would be like your husband – peanut butter every day!
Fruittart says
How cute!
Oh, Peabody, I thought of you when I saw this advertised in the Sunday paper:
http://jif.com/promos/great_american_pbj/
You *must* enter an essay! You could be the face of Jif PB again! 😉
Ann says
I wonder if I would like this as I do not like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. 😕
It does look good though, in fact it looks really, really good. 😀
Mrs. L says
Do you think it would be bad to just make the ganache and eat that alone? I have a feeling it would be one of those “put the spoon in and eat it all” type of things.
kellypea says
A woman after my own heart. I LOVE Jif. It’s the best. And I’ve been thinking about school supplies, and not being a part of the whole back to school thing for the very first time. I loved your list AND the tart. But on my wish list, I’d include (because most of my friends whom I taught with are all principals now….)I hope you don’t have to put up with adults who roll their eyes and act like their students…
Tanna says
Peanut Butter Cookie Tart Crust – Holy Cow – Now that is brilliant!
Wonderful wish list for the teachers!
I like this one.
Ellie says
Lookin’ good, missy! Our standard PB here is Kraft, so that’ll be what I turn to now that I’ve got a pb craving 🙂 Too bad I couldn’t find any grape jelly at the supermarket when I went shopping earlier :/
Kelly-Jane says
That’s a fab idea, and it looks really good too.
aria says
you are talking my language with that tart there lady!!
Anita says
Classic combination – and a gorgeous looking tart!
Bea at La Tartine Gourmande says
ahahah Madame la professeur. My parents are both retired school teachers and follow the same rules as if they were still working 😉 As to the peanut butter and jelly sandwich, oh my it is tough for a Frenchie 😉 I tried when I first moved to the US. I still remember hiking in the Grand Canyon with the University I first taught at in the States. We were mostly Europeans and the guide (American) had planned for us to eat peanut and jelly sandwiches for lunch. We returned from the trip and the pots of jelly and peanut butter had been untouched 😉 Luckily, I have learned to appreciate good peanut butter since then. But together, still difficile! Your tart would reconcile me with it. As a dessert, it is just a different story all together.
Tartelette says
I am like Bea, never had a PB&J until I moved here. B. as a kid at heart, asks for one every so often. Because he is a professor, we live by the school year calendar too. We love Christmas breaks!! I love your creation, makes me think of an American version of a Linzer! Beautiful!
Amy says
Pea you’re absolutely genius! I love how you always reinvent the classics like reese’s peanut butter cups, snickerdoodles, and now the PB&J!
Kristen says
Brilliant recipe. What a fantastic idea!
I wish the same for all of the teachers out there and I wish for “that” kid to be not in my son’s class!
Colleen says
That is a simply smashing idea..I adore PB&J anything!!! Not the norm in my country but hubby used to travel to the States for work and used to bring back grape jelly for the kids to have with local Black Cat PB. YUM! That homemade jam of your mums looks divine. Any possibility of getting the recipe?? You can’t get anything like it or the jelly here and now that hubs no longer travels I have a yearning for some!!! Also no peanut butter chips here. Can one use smooth PB for the ganache do you think? Thanx 🙂
Elle says
Better than any pb&j sandwich. Wishing all teachers a good year. Love your specifics.
Kirsten says
What a great post!!! I have SO much respect for teachers, I could never do it.
I too love grape jelly on pb&j, but not much else (except maybe a toasted and buttered english muffin).
Beautiful little tart – such a creative and grown-up peanut butter and jelly. 🙂 Love it!
chris says
I love this! We started back last week – kids come back tomorrow. (Which is why I am just getting to read about this now…ugh!) And, now that the word is out I like to bake – I might gain administrator brownie points if I bring in a tart like this one! Woohoo! Assistant Principal of the year? 🙂
Sarah says
Yum! Looks delicious! Thanks for the tribute, although I still have another few weeks left, phew! Patrick is just like Justin – he has been eating the same thing for lunch forever…his lunch consists of a bean and cheese burrito and a packet of peanut butter crackers…exciting,huh?:)
-sarahmarie0730
Katie says
Hi Peabody,
This is not a comment about your post (even though the tart does look delicious). I have tagged you for a creative tag and couldn’t find another way of emailing you to let you know.
Please see my blog for details at the link below.
http://appleandspice.blogspot.com/2007/08/creative-tagging.html
Many thanks
Katie