12 Fancy PB&J Recipes That Are All-Grown-Up (2024)

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Peanut Butter & Pomegranate

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Ditch your sugary jelly or jam for fresh pomegranate with this healthy Grilled Peanut Butter and Pomegranate recipe. Made with sprouted bread, coconut oil, and pomegranate seeds, it's essentially a superfood sandwich that tastes like childhood.

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Grilled PB&J with Bacon, Apple, and Pomegranate

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In case you thought peanut butter and jelly were a good combo, just wait until you add apple, bacon, and pomegranate like in this loaded Grilled PB&J. Crunchy apples plus salty bacon, sweet jam, creamy peanut butter, and tart pomegranate seeds equals pure happiness (and a whole lot of flavors and textures). Even your fave Skippy & Smuckers from elementary school can't live up to this.

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Peanut Butter & Strawberry Quesadilla

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Forget the bread and reach for a tortilla instead; these PB&J Quesadillas also pack strawberry and banana slices to beef up the bite. To sweeten it up for dessert, you can even add a sprinkle of chocolate chips or drizzle of honey.

Sunflower Seed Butter, Banana, and Blueberry Vanilla Chia Seed Jam

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DIY your own Blueberry Vanilla Chia Seed Jam with just blueberries, maple syrup, chia seeds, and vanilla extract. Spread on an English muffin (or any bread of choice) with sunflower seed butter and banana slices, and you have a drool-worthy breakfast that seems (and tastes!) so much fancier than straight-up PB&J on Wonderbread.

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Grilled Peanut Butter & Jelly with Brie

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Are your tastebuds prepared for the most epic sandwich mashup ever? Think: grilled cheese plus PB&J. Making this Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich with Brie is as easy as it sounds: Spread the jam and nut butter, top with sliced brie, and grill until gooey. The ultimate adult comfort food, served up sandwich-style.

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Ultimate Strawberry PB&J

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Make it a double-decker: This Ultimate Strawberry PB&J has three layers of bread, strawberry preserves, and peanut butter as well as sliced strawberries and a sprinkle of whole unsalted peanuts to add a satisfying crunch.

Peanut Butter & Rhubarb Jelly French Toast Sandwich

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Homemade rhubarb jelly and French toasted bread take this Peanut Butter and Jelly Hot Sandwich to the next level. Top with a bit of powdered sugar and enjoy with either your hands or a fork and knife—there's no wrong way to eat it, as long as you don't leave a single crumb behind.

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Almond Butter & Jam with Homemade Bread

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Time to really adult-ify this classic sandwich: just use homemade bread and DIY almond butter. To make this Almond Butter & Jam Sandwich, you should whip up your own loaf of vegan, gluten-free bread and homemade salted almond butter (we promise, they're both easier than they sound!).

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Grilled Peanut Butter & Mango Peach Sandwich

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Blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries? Boring. Try topping your peanut butter with topical mango and juicy peach slices in this Grilled Peanut Butter & Mango Peach Sandwich. Add a drizzle of honey on top for an extra dash of sweetness and these five health benefits (but be warned—it makes it messy).

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Fig, Peanut Butter, & Honey Toast

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To be fair, this is technically toast and not a sandwich. But if you're hungry, why not just slap two of these toasts together? With fresh Fig, Peanut Butter, and Honey, you really can't go wrong. (If you like this, you'll love our honey sunflower avocado toast recipe from the Tone It Up girls.)

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PB&J Blueberry Crepes

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Who said a sandwich had to be on bread? These Peanut Butter and Jelly Crepes are a delicious, easy way to fancify your PB&J (because anything French is automatically fancy AF, right?). Just whip up some quick crepes using eggs, milk, flour, sugar, and salt, top with peaut butter, jelly, and a line of blueberries, and roll.

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PB&J Banana Pancake Sandwich

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If you're not a crepe fan and want some more oomph to your sandwich, make PB&J with Banana Pancakes instead. These whole wheat banana pancakes are full of fiber, and you can whip them up on the weekends for a healthy brunch. Use the leftovers for these sandwiches, and your weekday mornings (or lunches) will feel super indulgent.

12 Fancy PB&J Recipes That Are All-Grown-Up (2024)

FAQs

What does the J stand for in a PB&J sandwich? ›

A peanut butter and jelly sandwich (PB&J) consists of peanut butter and fruit preserves—jelly—spread on bread.

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What is the perfect PB&J ratio? ›

Now, taking personal preference into account, you can run anywhere in the range from 60/40 (if you're a jelly head) to 70/30 (if you're nutty for peanut butter), with 65 percent peanut butter and 35 percent jelly being the platonic ideal.

Do you butter the bread for PB&J? ›

Spread butter on one side of each slice of bread. Spread jelly on the unbuttered side of one slice of bread; spread peanut butter on the other unbuttered side. Place bread slices together, so peanut butter and jelly are in the middle.

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Is it PB&J or PB & J? ›

PBJ or PB&J is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, popular in North America.

What does the PBJ stand for? ›

PB&J is short for peanut butter and jelly. : We made PB&Js for the kids and their friends. Foodcollection RF/GettyImages.

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Where did the PB and J come from? ›

In 1901, the first peanut butter and jelly sandwich recipe appeared in the Boston Cooking School Magazine of Culinary Science and Domestic Economics written by Julia Davis Chandler. She said to use currant or crab-apple jelly and called the combination delicious and as far as she knew, original.

Is PB and J just jam? ›

It can be made with any type of juice, but the traditional PB&J uses concord grape jelly. It's a soft set that's spreadable with a knife or the back of a spoon. Different from jam, which contains fruit puree or preserves that have pieces of fruit. All three will work in a sandwich, but the jelly is a classic.

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