Gasp! Not Peanut butter!

What's up with all these salmonella food recalls in recent years? First it was certain brands of dog food that some owners fed them thereby unintentionally shortening the lives of their beloved pets.

Then it was spinach. The ten people who bought it had to return their bags to the store. :) Actually I like spinach but let's keep that our little secret, shall we? I hadn't bought any at the time of the outbreak so our household wasn't effected. Well, our household would not have been effected anyway. Only I would've been. But I usually eat mine out of a can like my hero, Popeye.

Then there was the tomato and jalapeno pepper problems of last summer which did effect us tremendously. The Bear and I practically live off of salsa and tortilla chips in the summer. We especially like to eat it after I've made it fresh. That obviously didn't happen. It also put a real cramp in eating blt sandwiches. B and l just aren't the same without their comrade t.

This latest salmonella outbreak is in another class entirely. Peanut butter is something that I eat a little of almost every day. If they sold peanut butter in a gallon jar I would probably buy it as I am not the only person living here who eats it.

I just happen to be very creative with my peanut butter consumption. Got a clean spoon handy? No other equipment or preparation required.

Is there a lonely banana looking for a soul mate? Have I ever got a peanut butter marriage in mind!

My favorite way to eat it is as a peanut butter sandwich. Ho-hum you say? Then it is obvious you've never indulged in one of my sandwiches. Mine has more pizazz than your run-of-the mill pb&j. I make it with peanut butter sandwiched between two halves of a Hershey's chocolate bar. Bread is so yesterday's news! I'm not sure there's any more sugar in this concoction than one made with bread and jelly. I also manage to cover both lunch and dessert in one serving.

I still make the Bear eat the ho-hum type with bread as the bookends. It isn't that I'm concerned so much with his junk food intake or anything like that. It is just that to do otherwise would mean sharing part of my Hershey bar stash with him. And that ain't happenin'!

The recent problem may never be of any consequence to us personally. The things under suspicion now - like peanut butter crackers - usually are not in the house. The only time I see them is when Pastor Dad, the Bear, and my dad go golfing and only then because my dad takes them along to stave off hunger on the course. Since there isn't any family golf going on at this time of the year a problem isn't likely to occur. I'm sure the pb cracker shortage will be history by the time my guys hit the course in the springtime.

After we heard of the recall Pastor Dad asked me if the peanut butter we have on the shelf might be a part. Well, if it is I'd be a goner by now. See half-empty jar for verification.

All joking aside, if you suspect a problem, take the product back to the store or throw it away. Stay on top of the names of the products being recalled. We can joke about my peculiar food preferences but salmonella poisoning and a contaminated food source is not humorous. If you think you've ingested contaminated food get help immediately. I want you to be hanging around on my hill for a long time to come.