Unit 4 - Peanut Butter.<br /><br />Americans love to eat peanut butter. But what is peanut butter? lt is a thick, creamy paste. <br />You buy it in a jar at the grocery store. Manufacturers roast peanuts and take off the skin. <br />Then they grind them into a thick paste that's peanut butter!<br /><br />The peanut is not really a nut, but a pea. lt is a strange pea because it grows underground. <br />But peanut plants also have green vines with yellow flowers. These vines or stems grow above the ground and are quite long. Peanuts are very healthy for you.<br />They have more protein than a steak and they have many vitamins, too.<br /><br />The peanut comes from South America, but peanut butter is a food that is truly "American." Peanut butter started in 1890 in St. Louis. A doctor made some peanut butter. He gave it to patients who could not eat regular food. Later, peanut butter was popular as a health food.<br /><br />Peanut butter is very popular with children in the United States.<br />Perhaps their favorite way to eat it is in a sandwich. Many children add<br />jelly to their peanut butter sandwiches. This makes a favorite snack or lunchtime meal.