A GIVEAWAY! My New Favorite Gadget: The Van Vacter PBJ Bagel Knife

The Peanut Butter Man and I have a long-standing disagreement about the best way to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He uses a butter knife to spread the jelly on one slice of bread, then cleans the knife on the other slice of bread before dipping it in the peanut butter. I spread the peanut butter first, then stick the knife back into the peanut butter to get a little snack to tide me over until my sandwich is ready. Then I tip the jelly jar and usually it drips some out on top of the peanut butter, or if it needs a bit of help I'll grab a spoon. I'll smear the jelly around with my freshly-licked knife, cut the sandwich in half, and enjoy my little bit of heaven.

I have to admit, when I first saw this knife I was skeptical. Let's face it, there are new gadgets and gizmos every day, all proclaiming to be the most awesome things since sliced bread, and most of them end up either in the trash or forgotten in the junk drawer.

After just one use I was hooked. This knife is amazing! Its wavy blade makes it the perfect tool with runny peanut butter--no more drips all over the outside of the jar or on my plate. It works great with cold, stiff peanut butter from the fridge, too. No need for jelly spoons--it holds the jelly just as well as it holds the runny peanut butter.

I love the tip of the knife because it's the perfect shape for scraping the last bits of goodness from the bottom of the jar. The serrated edge cut through soft white bread as neatly and easily as it cut through a bagel. And the handle is perfect: not slippery, not heavy, not too skinny. This knife is also awesome for cream cheese, mayonnaise, or just about anything else you might want to spread on bread.

You can see more about this knife and the complete line of Van Vacter products on their website. If I've convinced you that you can't make it through another PB&J without one of these knives, you can get them from Sur La Table, Williams-Sonoma, and Broadway Panhandler.

I'm very excited because Van Vacter gave me a knife to give away to one of you! Here's how to enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post telling how you make a PBJ
2. You must have a mailing address in the U.S.
3. Earn a second entry by blogging about this giveaway, including a link back to this post; and leave a second comment here with the URL of your post
4. Comments can be posted through October 5, 2008. On October 6 I'll use the randomizer thingie and select a winner.