May Charity

This month has been a whirlwind!

With the rain and wind and cold, we lost a couple of days, but this weekend is going to be amazing and we are looking forward to seeing all of you out and about!

We have some new sandwiches in progress and hope to debut them the first weekend in May!

I am also announcing that for May we will be donating to the charity World Wildlife Fund.

I am a huge fan of animals large and small (I have three bullmastiffs of my own) and with so many species becoming endangered the wildlife preservationists need all the we can give them.

I will let you know the total we are able to send to Japan after this weekend!

April Charity of the Month

Well, I have been meaning to write about this since the 1st (I guess I'm not doing too bad....) but I wanted to talk a little about the charity of the month.

This month we will be highlighting and donating 10% of our profits to the Japan Society Earthquake Relief Fund.

The Japan Society was founded in May 1907 and is a non-profit American organization that brings people of the United States and Japan closer together.   The goal of the society is always the same:  the "cultivation of a constructive, resonant and dynamic relationship between the people of the United States and Japan."

Now, the Japan Society, after the March 12, 2011 earthquake in Japan, has come together to aid the victims who were devastated in this disaster.  So far they have committed $1,000,000.00 to four non-profit organizations in Japan.  They are supporting the Tokyo Volunteer Network for Disaster Relief, the JEN, Entrepreneurial Training for Innovative Communities, and the Japan NPO Center.  All of which are in the front lines of relief and recovery in Japan right now.

As of April 6, 2011 the Japan Society has made donations that total over $3,651,321.23!!!! That is amazing and we are excited to make a donation of our own at the end of April thanks to all of you who are trying our products!

You can also keep track of the donations on your own and learn more about the Japan Society at http://www.japansociety.org/earthquake


I would also like to personally thank all of you who have emailed us and commented on our blog SUCH kind words.  Those are truly words of encouragement and it keeps us inspired and moving forward.  We would be absolutely nothing if you didn't appreciate us, so we will do as much as we can to appreciate you right back! :)

Sleep tight! See you Saturday!

Brooklyn Flea

Tomorrow Today we will be seeing you at the Brooklyn Flea!

All I have to say is Blood, Sweat, Tears (there have been plenty of all)... and.... repeat.  THIS IS HARD.

And WHY do some things NOT want to cooperate! It is driving me bonkers! (kool grape jelly I am talking to you!)

To top it off I was locked out of my apartment tonight for a good 45 minutes. Because I was running to the bodega for milk for Pb.J and then (!!) immediately after the door closed I knew it.  So upsetting.  

It's 2.  Gonna take a cat nap before I start all over again!

NY Mag

Just an announcement! We have a couple pictures on the NY Magazine website for the week of April 4th.  They are introducing some new vendors for the Brooklyn Flea this summer and we were lucky enough to be included!

Please go and check it out! Flea Bites

We are very excited and grateful to be thought of.
Enjoy!

Running around like crazy this week trying to finish all of the recipes and getting ready for the flea! We look forward to seeing you there! Sorry no time for more!

Charity

So, Tyler and I have talked a lot about what we want this company to stand for.

We definitely want to support eco-friendly packaging options as often as possible but some things we are finding are a little difficult to come by.  Anyone know of any eco-friendly sticker companies out there?

We also know we don't want a lot of waste, but we also DO want to get our name out there so we are looking into new innovative ways to do just that.  If anyone has any suggestions, please, we would love to hear them!

We have also decided that if we, somehow, turn a profit that we would like to donate some of that money.  So each month we are highlighting a different charity and donating 10% of our profits that month to that charity.  I know, 10% doesn't seem like much.  I see companies doing this all the time and I scold them under my breath for being so cheap.  However, these are well-established multi-million dollar companies with tons of money to give, and I am not.  But I do see the importance in staying humble and helping others.  So, for now, I am starting with 10%, and if for some reason 10% turns out to be, say $1.00, then I will donate a minimum of $10.00 every month. These charities will be highlighted on our packing and we will try and seek out true and sincere charities so that you and I will both know that the minimum $10.00 I am donating will be used to the best of its ability.

We are also going to, thanks for reminding me, contact City Harvest and see if we can donate our leftover food that we do not sell every week.  If for some reason they cannot accept it. I'll just hand them out to the less fortunate people that surround us everyday, or to a soup kitchen that is just down my block (thanks for reminding me again, I was going to see if I could volunteer there).

So, just so you know.  We are kind people.  We do not want to sell food just for a greedy profit.  We are humble and would like to stay that way.  Basically, we just think Peanut Butter Jellified is a pretty kick ass idea and want to pursue it and we hope people like it! Because we do!

Thanks for listening....
Stay tuned...

I made some wheat and chocolate bread today.... more testing! Yum Yum!!

What Happened...

I think I have entered adulthood.

The childhood film that the Oscars had for the last 23 years has now completely dissolved leaving me with feelings of inadequacy.  What the hell was going on with the Oscars this year? Does anyone else remember it being so... hokey? Terrible, terrible.

Congrats to the winners, but the show needs to be revamped back to the more classic Oscars I remember.

Yaay for Colin Firth.... love him.

Life's Too Short...

And I'm too busy!

I did find time Tuesday night with Tyler to test a few of our bread recipes!

We have our white bread, wheat bread, cinnamon sugar bread, chocolate bread, and we are still in the works with a few others! I'll have to take some pictures.

Launch day is T MINUS 34 days and counting and I am feeling strapped for time! Hopefully within the next couple weeks, I will have more to post including pictures! I am going to be doing some sampling with a bunch of honest pastry cooks, well hopefully honest!

So, instead of just keeping track of my NON-progress, I'm sure you guys want to know our story a bit.  I'll try and explain.

You've heard about Tyler's obsession with Peanut Butter and my degree in Baking and Pastry.  I work at Momofuku Milkbar at the moment. I also work at Sur la Table. I enjoy both jobs.  They're Grrreat! But I do not want to be a pastry cook forever, and I do not want to be a salesperson either (I'm REALLY not cut out for sales.... Um, yeah, they're all good brands... you should buy whichever one FEELS right to you.... that's not exactly what the boss wants to hear) but I do fair pretty well and a lot of customers like my non-pushy vibe and I do actually sell some things. Crazy.

But I guess in "adventuring" into the Peanut Butter and Jelly world, I am looking for something more. Something to fulfill what I want to do, rather than what someone ELSE wants me to do.  And hopefully it will turn a small profit.  I'm not going crazy here, but at least breaking even and supporting itself as a small (miniscule) business will satisfy me.  If no one likes it, well, it will just increase my odds for success in the next "adventure".

I have plenty of ideas all the time, but I am poor, there is NO getting around this fact, and I do not have any money for start up. Luckily, Tyler has some to help with the Peanut Butter Jelly, which is a low start up (luckily), but we are hoping that if it can stand on its own two, thin, peanut buttery legs, that maybe we will be able to invest in more of our ideas.  (We have a book. Literally... AND I could have kicked myself when the iPod came out. That was really hard on me... Baby Mama? Anyone? Anyone? fine.)

So, that's a bit of our story. Stay tuned for more!.... Oscars are on.....

Ok.... Let me just take my foot out of my mouth

So, I need to make a public apology.

Tyler's birthday is February 10th.  I even celebrated with him! I just do not remember these things correctly which makes me look really bad because he ALWAYS remembers my birthday/anniversary/any of the dates that men are meant to forget and women remember.  And I do not remember.

He saw the post and said... "Well, it's a good thing my mother isn't reading this yet!"... He would.

So, there is it. I apologize for mistyping your birthday date. My bad.  Let's move on...

On the Peanut butter and Jelly front I got some particularly exciting news tonight after I got home from work!

Brooklyn Flea Market (if you have never been you NEED TO GO) might be welcoming us and Momofuku Milk Bar (my employer) and actually giving us a booth! Oh, the responsibility!

So, I hope to see you all there.

New jelly in order... Kool-Aid Grape jelly and peanut butter sandwich. No word yet on whether or not we are allowed to call it Kool-Aid grape jelly. But are they really gonna track little ole' me down? Hope not.  It's pretty delicious!

So, starting in April (!!!) come on down and try our purple drink peanut butter sandwich at the Brooklyn Flea! (YES!)

Until next time...

Day Two

So, February 11th was Tyler's birthday so instead of focusing on
peanut butter and jelly, I made a giant chocolate chip cookie cake! It
was delicious!!

So, then I had a conversation about where we might set up this
summer... (it's pretty exciting! I think maybe you should remain in
suspense) and WHO we might be selling our products with! It's going to
be amazing. If it all works out that is.

Today however I am going to devote a bit of my time to figuring out
some of our bread recipes.  I know I would like a white bread, a
brioche maybe, a wheat, and hmm.... what else. Maybe something... A
doughnut perhaps? Would anyone be interested in that?! I certainly
hope so. So, I am going to be checking out some ideas for that today,
and hopefully putting something in the oven soon enough.

I have a few new ideas about jellies and jams. I know I want to do a
bunch of them myself so we will just have to wait and see.  I find
inspiration everywhere and I have a few GENIUS friends who are kind
enough to support me and help me think of even more clever things.

So, off I go today! Stay tuned...

Day One

So.  Here I am. Day one. New blog.

Let me just begin by saying I am not a "blogger".  I am not a part of
my own generation in the sense that I don't typically read every one's
Facebook posts and, for that matter, write any of my own.  I guess I
am an old soul at heart.  I am one of the few under 30 who are not
attached to their phone or computer's at the hip.  I actually did
without a cell phone for 6-8 months or so, and I have to tell you I
didn't really miss it one bit!

What am I doing here then you ask?

I feel the need to embrace parts of this Internet generation, as it is
my own, and also because I find that this might help my cause (if you
want to know what the heck I am talking about... please, read on).
And besides, let's face it, this Internet-driven, blogging,
Facebooking society just isn't going anywhere anytime soon. So, why
not try my hand at it.

My Cause (well, at least you didn't have to wait very long...)

This is Peanut Butter Jellified.  A vision of mine.

You see, I have this boyfriend, you'll get to know him well.  Tyler.
He eats peanut butter by the spoonful jarful and a peanut butter jelly
sandwich pretty much everyday. I grew up with peanut butter and jelly
sandwiches, as did everyone I've ever known.  To me, well, it was
never really anything special.  By the time lunch rolled around the
white squishy bread was soggy with jelly and thick with peanut butter,
every bite clinging to the roof of my mouth so viciously I had to use
my finger to pry it off so I could chew and swallow.

So, then I met Tyler, and then I met Tyler's peanut butter and jelly
sandwich (which is now the third wheel in our relationship).

This peanut butter and jelly sandwich was different.  Other than the
fact that his peanut butter to jelly ratio is a little skewed for me
(the man despises sweets so just a tiny dab of jelly in the middle
will do for him), it was rather perfect. It reawakened (is that even a
word?) my soul to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

So, my vision, inspired by my love for my boyfriend's peanut butter
and jelly sandwich love... confusing?... is to create the most perfect
peanut butter and jelly sandwich(es) and share them with the world.

But, considering my love for taking food and mutating it into
something more, and with my diploma (which hopefully counts for
something) from The Culinary Institute of America, I wasn't satisfied
with a simple peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  I needed more.

Here is my more...  As you follow along... I will be experimenting and
hopefully trying to pawn off my creations on other people (read: sell
my food).  You will discover that I am about to take the peanut butter
and jelly sandwich that you loved (or hated) as a child and turn it on
it's head.  Oh yeah, while also having a full-time job, AND a
part-time job (to support HIS peanut butter and jelly sandwich habit,
ha).

Awesome.  Let's do this thing.