Peanut butter maker balances taste, nutrition

At the Troy Waterfront Farmers’ Market, peanut butter lovers have a lot more than just chunky or smooth to decide on when they purchase a jar of their favorite snack.

Many of these choices come from Jessica Arceri, owner of the Saratoga Peanut Butter Company, whose delicious selection of nut butters has garnered a loyal following. Although Arceri officially began the company in 2005, her friends and family will likely attest they knew of her talents long before that.

“I started experimenting with making peanut butters years before I started my business,” she explained. “I used to give jars to my friends and family as gifts.”

After receiving rave reviews from loved ones, it didn’t take long for Arceri to realize she might be on to something. She began making small batches in her kitchen and selling her products in local stores.

“When we started, there weren’t very many varieties of natural nut butters available,” she said. “We got really great feedback almost immediately.”

Arceri’s operation has come a long way since those days, but two important factors have remained constant despite the success of the Saratoga Peanut Butter Company.

“We are committed to making small batches of all of our products, and making our nut butters with the best available ingredients,” she said proudly. “Quality control is extremely important to us, and we never add any extra sugars or harmful ingredients.”

Arceri’s approach has proven you don’t need to sacrifice taste to provide healthy nut butters. In fact, even some of her most decadent flavors, including White Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, Maple Honey and Banana Raisin, come in at four grams of fat per serving or less.

“I think we’ve taken a pretty unique approach to making nut butters,” Arceri said. “We’ve found a great balance between variety and quality of product.”

As it turns out, the Troy Waterfront Farmers’ Market has proven the perfect venue for Arceri to sell her delicious products. The Saratoga Peanut Butter Company has been a vendor at the weekly institution for 10 years and doesn’t intend to step away anytime soon.

“The Troy market provides such a great opportunity for us to interact with our customers,” she said. “Its been such a pleasure to be a part of this community.”

The Troy Waterfront Farmers’ Market is now at its winter season home inside the Troy Atrium at 4 3rd St. in downtown Troy. Stop by every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and be sure to stop by the Saratoga Peanut Butter Company booth to try a sample.