Our Planet

Text : Chihiro Taniguchi

It has been 3 months since we planted the seedlings of peanuts in July. In the summer they have entertained us with their cute yellow flowers and now it is time to harvest them! They dug a little in the ground and when they saw the peanuts, the Akebi kids were excited! “Look!”, they say every time they dug a peanut with their own hands. They carry with great care when they transfer the nuts.

When all of us pulled the seedlings together, there were so many peanuts dangling from the root. Children scream with happiness! When we dug a little deeper, there were larvas and worms. Children wonder if the bugs have eaten the empty shelled peanuts.
We decided to eat the peanuts raw, straight from the farm. The reactions were various: some wanted more, some had their faces frown, some did not want to finish anymore. We dry them under the sun for about a week to increase its sweetness (we feel like everyday there are less and less peanuts…).

 

Now it is time to make peanut butter! After peeling the outer shell, we roast them on a pan. The amazing aroma engulfs the room. There are naturally a circle of children around the pan, and children say “it’s my turn! I want to do it too!”. They each take turns stirring up the pan and sprinkling salt. They want to eat it straight from the pan.

 

After this, they peel the soft skin but they cannot help themselves eating some peanuts. We tried to tell them “do not eat them! Save some from the peanut butter!” but to no avail. At this point we are pretty sure that ⅓ of the amount we started with was eaten! We put the peanuts, beet sugar and vegetable oil into the food processor. We all put our hands on the food processor and say “3, 2, 1….go!”. Children are delighted to see the change in the texture. We all tried a little bit by hand, “I think it needs more sugar” “Maybe a little bit more oil?” “I think this is good!”, they say. We try this for 5-6 times then we all come to an agreement; this is one good peanut butter!!!

 

We had a special guest at Yamanoko that day: K-chan’s mother, came to Yamanoko with homemade bread dough! She came to bake them with the children. Children’s eyes sparkle with joy and anticipation as the perfectly round bread are baked in front of them. The room is now filled with amazing smell of baking bread. Children chose their favorite ones and poured their peanut butter they made earlier. The dreamy combination instantly brought smiles in their faces. “I want to eat more!” they say. They eat the last bit of peanut butter in the plate.