Difference Between Peanut Butter and Cream Cheese

They are generally applied to crackers, bread, and similar foods. Spread aims to enhance the texture or flavor of the food because, without spread, it may consider bland.  

Peanut butter and cream cheese come with differences in their nutritional values, contents, and other things. 

Peanut Butter vs Cream Cheese 

The main difference between peanut butter and cream cheese is that peanut butter is a paste of ground peanuts that are roasted. But cream cheese is made from cream and unskimmed milk. Peanut butter tastes sweet, salty, earthy and Nutley, whereas cream cheese has a flavor of mild and sweet with a slight tang.  

Peanut butter is made from ground and dry roasted peanuts. This butter is consumed in many countries.

It is similar to cottage cheese, but its fat content is higher in amount. In the United States, it is a popular filling in sandwiches and used as a spread. 

Comparison Table Between Peanut Butter and Cream Cheese 

What is Peanut Butter? 

Peanut butter is a paste of ground peanuts that are roasted. It generally contains additional ingredients to modify the texture or taste of it, such as sweeteners, emulsifiers, or salt.  

Peanut butter is also used in making several desserts and breakfast dishes, such as peanut-flavored smoothies, cookies, croissants, granola, crepes, or brownies.  

When it comes to the introduction of peanut butter, it can be traced to 1884. A man namely Marcellus Gilmore Edson who belonged from Montreal, Quebec got a patent of roasted peanuts in the “fluid or semi-fluid state”.

In 2013, the book was written on peanut butter by Jon Krampner’s highlighted that the per capita consumption of peanut butter in the Netherlands and Canada exceeded that in the United States. 

What is Cream Cheese? 

Cream cheese generally tastes like mild fresh cheese. In industrial production, stabilizers are often added, such as carrageenan and carob bean gum. Cream cheese is meant for fresh consumption because it is not naturally matured.

Cream cheese is used as a spread, filling for sandwiches, for baking of cheesecake and it is also a component of some frosting and pastries.  

There are references in England to cream cheese at least from 1754. In 1872, a food processing company namely Kraft Foods came out with cream cheese in America.   

Similarly, Canadian and Drug Regulations consider that cream cheese must contain a maximum of 55% moisture with at least 30% milkfat. It varies among other countries with a considerable high amount of fat. 

Main Differences Between Peanut Butter and Cream Cheese 

1. In terms of iron, peanut butter has notably more iron compared to cream cheese. Peanut butter has 1.9mg per 100 grams, while cream cheese has 0.11mg of iron.  
2. When it comes to macronutrient ratios, peanut butter has more protein, carbs, and less fat compared to cheese cream per calorie.   

Conclusion 

It can be concluded that both peanut butter and cream cheese are classified into spreads. They both can be applied to crackers, bread, and similar foods with the help of a knife.

Although peanut butter is the best option for consumption compared to cream cheese because peanut butter delivers several nutrition values that cream cheese fails to deliver. 

References  

1. http://grasasyaceites.revistas.csic.es/index.php/grasasyaceites/article/view/270
2. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-dairy-research/article/odourimpact-compounds-of-gorgonzola-cheese/DA75FD56398A931E3A3AFE6DF32191FB