I know what you’re thinking… really Amanda?? Did you have nothing else to write about today? It’s not that, really, I swear! I’m actually quite surprised at how many people are unaware of the magnificent time saver: frozen peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
I have 4 kids. Over the years, I have made more peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and sack lunches for school than I care to count. I learned this little time saving tip probably 7 or 8 years ago and have been doing it ever since.
If you make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for you child’s school lunch, this will save you a considerable amount of time each morning. The first trick to a great PB&J, one that doesn’t end up with jelly seeping through the bread, is this:
On one side of the bread you spread your peanut butter, then on the other side, put a thin layer of peanut butter. On that thin layer, add a layer of jelly. The peanut butter acts as a “raincoat” and the jelly does not soak through the bread.
I buy an extra loaf of bread just for this purpose (please note, the pictures only show half a loaf as I needed to make more and that’s what I had on hand). I do an assembly line of sandwiches, then when they are all made, I slip each one into a plastic sandwich bag. Then you put each sandwich back inside the bread bag. Store the bread bag in the freezer.
When it comes time to make little Johnny’s lunch in the morning, take one sandwich out of the bag and put it into his lunch bag. By the time lunchtime rolls around at school, his sandwich is perfectly thawed and tastes great.
No, they will not be soggy when they thaw out. This is the MOST common question I receive about this method. And yes, they still taste good! This according to my kids. :)
I even appeared on a local news station once and shared this, among several other time saving tips for back to school such as:
- Buy a bag of chips or pretzels dedicated to lunches. Make up individual baggies of snacks (zipper bags are best for this) and place them back into the empty chip bag. Each morning you just reach in and grab one.
- Cut carrots and celery into sticks and store in baggies.
- Buy small fruits such as clementines and grapes, or dried fruits such as dried cranberries and raisins, and make up individual baggies.
- You can also freeze sandwiches with deli meats, such as ham, turkey, bologna and salami. Make baggies of a piece of lettuce and an individually wrapped piece of cheese to toss in the lunch bag with the frozen sandwich. You can also buy mustard and mayonnaise packets from places like Costco, Sam’s Club and restaurant supply stores.
- To keep jelly from oozing out the bottom of the sandwich, after placing everything inside the lunch bag, place sandwich on top laying flat. Standing it up can cause the jelly to leak out the bottom as it thaws.
So there you have it. :) I’m curious, did you already know about the frozen PB&J trick? Or did you learn something new today?
I submitted this to Tip Me Tuesday
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Amanda Davis
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Jessica says
This is a great idea, I’m actually doing PB&J’s as part of the menu for my daughters 1st birthday. I have a Mickey Mouse sandwich cutter and I’ve been thinking how am I going to make them and have them “fresh” but yet make them ahead of time. Now I know! Thanks a bunch!
Liz Callens says
I just found this and can’t wait to get it done this weekend and save us some time in the mornings! Thanks!!!!!
Amanda Formaro says
You are quite welcome!
Laura says
Thanks for posting this! I am using a cookie cutter to make Mickey Mouse-shaped PB&J for my daugther’s third birthday party. Knowing that I don’t have to wait until the morning of the party to make these is a giant relief!
Amanda Formaro says
Thanks laura, so glad it was helpful!
Vanessa says
Thanks SO much! I have been spending a ton on those Smuckers ones at the store and my daughter love pb&j sandwiches, so they go QUICK. I’m going to try this this weekend! Thanks again!
Anonymous says
Shame on me, I buy the uncrustables to save time… new trick for sure… as well as a $$ saver! Thank you for sharing!!!
Amanda says
I think it's Pampered Chef (?) that sells a sandwich crimper and you can make your own uncrustables using the method above and the crimper.
Anonymous says
my daughter was with me at the grocery store the other day, and was complaining cause I wouldn't buy her uncrustables. I told her that surely I can make these and freeze them myself for a lot cheaper than that. Thanks for the tips. I am trying to make after school snacking easier, since I am not always home when they get out of school.
Amanda says
Hey Ruthie, that's awesome! So glad you were able to find it and it was helpful! Congrats on the new baby :)
Ruthie says
You are a ROCKSTAR!! I am 7 months pregnant and my 2 other kids are about to start school next week. I am doing some research to try to figure out how to make lunches every night more easily. I'm really actually hoping to get my 7 y.o. and 4 y.o. to make them themselves! But I thought I'd make a bunch of PBJs for them to throw in, and googled instructions on how to make & freeze them. I was hoping some brilliant Mommy would have shared her secret with the world! Thanks so much! I might survive this back-to-school and newborn baby season after all!! :)
Anonymous says
I love this idea! We are going to another town two hours away for a zoo trip and I like to bring pb and j's all the time!! thank you so much!! :)
Ludicrous Mama says
You can buy a sandwich-pocket maker from Pampered Chef to make them look like the store-bought frozen kinds, or an UnKrustables (I got mine on Amazon) for a square version. Super fun, and helps keep the jelly in. Another fun idea would be to use cookie cutters or sandwich cutters (like Lunch Punch and Evriholder – both on Amazon) to make the sandwiches into shapes before freezing. I use mini cutters on lunch meats and cheese, then freeze in snack baggies, and thaw out and add crackers for my own Lunchables too. (I have the deli custom slice my meat at twice their normal thickness, a '2' on our deli's machine, to help them hold their shape better, and be thicker like the cheese and Lunchables meat.)
maria says
I never knew you could do lunch meat and cheese in the freezer. I have often wondered but thought it would turn out funny when it thawed. I like the idea of lunchablss but think they are full of to many additives. I think I might try this
Amanda Formaro says
A lot of people think that Maria, but there’s not funny taste or texture, they are great!
Amanda says
Hi Jaki, that's a good question. I've had mine in there as long as two weeks as I usually make a loaf at a time and some days my kids eat the school's hot lunch. I'm sure they would probably be fine for up to a month.
Jaki says
Hi! How long do the frozen sandwiches last for?
Anonymous says
My Mom used to make these for my sister in the 1980's (I always hated peanut butter and had to make my own sandwiches). Interesting tidbit–I read that Smucker's tried to patent their frozen PB&J for having PB on both sides to prevent the jelly from leaking. In a move I felt incredibly reasonable for the patent system, they were turned down because it was common sense.
Amanda says
Anonymous – It's not a matter of how much time it takes, it's a matter of having one less thing to do in a busy morning when trying to get out the door. Thanks for your feedback though ;)
Anonymous says
seriously how long does it take to make a pb&j sandwich?
Deeba PAB says
You are a mad genius!! Love ya!
Anonymous says
Great idea. I will have to try it. My daughter came up with a great snack idea. You put pb & j between 2 graham crackers and freeze them and eat them cold. They are soooo good.
marla says
Amanda, love that you share this simple but very valuable technique with us. I do put ready made sandwiches in the fridge, but no the freezer. love the idea of the PB as a sealant.
Amanda says
I can't see any reason why Nutella wouldn't work :)