Making the Switch to Natural Peanut Butter

You might have been brainwashed by commercials as a child to believe that your mother only loved you if she bought you Jif...or Skippy if she could sneak it in a sandwich without your knowing.  I was raised on Jif and I still think it's delicious.  I read the label once and switched to Jif 50%.  Even though it had less fat it was still chalk full of sugar and fat. 

We got hooked on natural peanut butter when we were visiting family for 10 days.  It was all they had.  It only takes about 4 days to develop the taste buds for natural peanut butter.  It has a more satisifying texture and you can't eat lots and lots more of it b/c it lacks extra oil that don't reside in normal peanuts. 

Things to watch for as you try to switch.
Unsalted:  this will be a hard first try and perhaps too much of a leap if your coming off of a national brand.
No-stir:  this is code for--has an added type of oil to keep it from separating--caution!  It will probably be palm oil and as tropical and exotic as it sounds, it's not a great oil for your body so try to avoid it.
Weird brand names:  you will just have to get used to this.  Look at the back, chances are, the natural peanut butter is made/distributed by Smuckers!  They have their name all over the back of supermarket peanut butters.  This is not bad, we prefer Laura Sartor's brand which is a Smucker affiliate.
Additional compulsions:  to make the switch, you might want to mix things in to the peanut butter like honey, sugar, salt, chocolate, ground beef, etc.  While these aren't all bad, try hard to take it plain until you get used to it.
Organic: Shop around for this type of natural peanut butter for a good price if this is of value to you.
Self Serve: This is a good way to experiment with different types if you can find one of these machines at a grocery store.  Try a tiny bit of each one before you buy any. 

Take it to the next level:  Try out other nut butters like almond and cashew.  They are great compliments to apples, toast, sandwiches etc.

What's your favorite kind of peanut butter?