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Can We Live Without the Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich?

Can We Live Without the Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich?
By Suki Davis

Yes, of course we can, but we shouldn’t have to. This concoction is a quintessential symbol of a North American childhood. Yet in Uruguay, the mix of flavors is unheard of. So how do Uruguayan mothers cope with the absence of a classic PB and J sandwich? What can we do to fill this void?

Uruguayans eat a phenomenal amount of jam that they call “mermelada.” They have the regular types such as strawberry, peach, and plum, but there are also some wonderful unconventional flavors too. You can buy fig, tomato, and even squash jam. And some enterprising small businesses have invented some great mixes. My personal favorite is kiwi with walnut.

Jellies are called “jaleas” and the most common type is made from the quince fruit. They even sell a certain gelled sweet brick that, well, could be considered a type of jelly. It is called “dulce de membrillo” and you purchase it close to the dairy section in the supermarket, or at the dairy stalls in the market. To me, this is like a large gummy bear that you eat on crackers or toast, or serve with cheese as a dessert. Along with quince, you can buy a sweet potato version. Sadly, there is no grape jelly.

Uruguayan children feast after school on something that is both sweet and starchy—a snack or “merienda” of “dulce de leche” on toast. “Dulce de leche” comes in many varieties in terms of consistency, amount of butter fat, and color, however it is no replacement for peanut butter.

Incessant searching in all parts of Uruguay has led me to some rather desultory conclusions. Firstly, supermarket aisles do not offer any peanut butter—neither crunchy or smooth, salted or unsalted.

Substitutes had to be found. I scoured the shelves in major supermarkets and found just one German import on the shelves of the supermarket chain, Tienda Inglesa, called “Manteca Ultje de Mani”, but it is not real peanut butter, in name or taste. North American imports never reach the stores and I hear that American embassy workers risk their jobs if they are caught giving away or selling even one jar of Skippy’s.

Disheartened, I passed by the artisan market on the Plaza Cagancha in Montevideo the other day and there I found a product that was advertised as unique and natural, containing no preservatives or cholesterol. Company brochures lauded the virtues of their product saying that two teaspoons a day are needed to counteract the ills of a variety of malaises. The product lowers cholesterol, helps one lose weight, and is a better source of antioxidants, fiber, protein, minerals, vitamins, and energy, than most food that we consume in our daily diet. What could this product be?

I had found Manita, Uruguay’s only peanut butter producing company, and despite all the marketing hoopla, they make a very nice natural peanut butter. They offer it with or without salt, with chocolate, with dulce de leche, or “American’ style”, which means they add margarine, salt, and sugar. They also make other nut butters, peanut butter energy bars, and two savory spreads—garlic, and green olive.

I can’t find direct replacements for the favorite foods of my childhood, but yesterday in the Plaza Cagancha, amidst rabble rousing for the elections, I found some tasty treats—cashew butter, and an incredible carrot and orange jam.

“Change is good,” I remind myself, now, as I wait for the toast to pop.

Note: Manita products are available direct from the source every Thursday and Friday at the Plaza Cagancha in downtown Montevideo, and soon, Devoto, Disco, and Geant supermarkets will also carry Manita products.