The accidental history of the iconic New England peanut butter and marshmallow sandwich

Food & Drink · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Before it was a household name, the fluffernutter was just a wartime recipe for a humble sandwich. Born from early 20th-century marshmallow creme inventions in Massachusetts, this sweet and salty combination evolved from a simple snack into a regional cultural symbol, complete with its own annual festival and dictionary entry.

The origins of the fluffernutter trace back to the early 1900s, when marshmallow creme was first developed in Massachusetts. In 1913, Amory and Emma Curtis created Snowflake Marshmallow Creme, and by 1918, Emma Curtis had published a recipe for the Liberty Sandwich, which paired peanut butter with their creme on oat or barley bread. Meanwhile, Archibald Query invented his own version in 1917 in Somerville, later selling the recipe to H. Allen Durkee and Fred L. Mower in 1920. Their company, Durkee-Mower, eventually rebranded the product as Marshmallow Fluff.

Despite its early existence, the name fluffernutter did not appear until 1960, when an advertising agency created it to boost the sandwich's marketability. The term is now a registered trademark of Durkee-Mower, though its legal reach is limited to ice cream and printed recipes. The sandwich remains deeply tied to New England identity, so much so that it has inspired legislative debates. In 2006, State Senator Jarrett Barrios attempted to limit its presence in public schools due to childhood obesity concerns, while State Representative Kathi-Anne Reinstein famously championed it as the official state sandwich of Massachusetts.

Today, the fluffernutter has transcended its origins as a children's lunchbox staple. It is celebrated annually at the 'What the Fluff?' festival in Somerville, and the term was officially added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary in 2021. While some critics dismiss the sandwich as lacking substance, others view it as a nostalgic icon. Its versatility has even reached space; in 2011, astronaut Richard Michael Linnehan enjoyed a fluffernutter while aboard the International Space Station, cementing its status as a unique piece of American culinary culture.

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