As we all know, Americans love to honor our favorite foods by dedicating a certain day or month to celebrate them. Saturday, Jan. 24 marks National Peanut Butter Day, and what better time to bone up on life hacks and interesting facts about this classic American food than the present?

Before we get to the peanut butter-based fun & games, it's only right to learn a little bit of history on how this sticky spread came to be.

According to a report from PunchBowl, a St. Louis-based food maker named George Bayle first began making peanut butter circa 1890. However, for several years following, manufacturers were stymied by what became a major problem in factories: the oil used in the cooking process was always separating from the "grainy solids" of the peanut butter.

Enter Heinz company in 1923 and the problem was quickly solved when Heinz became the first to homogenize the peanuts into the spread -- soon thereafter America began it's true love affair with peanut butter.

And now for some nutty trivia, compiled by the National Peanut Butter Board:

Peanuts are the No. 1 snack nut consumed in the United States and they accounts for two-thirds of the snack nut market. On top of that, the ever-popular peanut-based spread that we called peanut butter is consumed in 94 percent of U.S. households.

Americans spend almost $800 million a year on peanut butter and consume, on average, over 1.5 billion pounds of peanut butter and peanut products annually. Altogether, peanuts contribute more than $4 billion to the country's economy each year.

In terms of how we Americans like our peanut butter, 60 percent of consumers prefer the creamy variety over the crunchy kind. On a related note, women tend to opt for creamy, while most men like it crunchy. Geographically speaking, people on the East Coast generally prefer creamy peanut butter while crunchy peanut butter reigns supreme on the West Coast.

Including the celebration this weekend, there are 10 official peanut butter-related holidays that we celebrate in the U.S. each year. They are as follows:

Jan. 24 - National Peanut Butter Day

March - National Peanut Butter Month

Mar. 1 - National Peanut Butter Lover's Day

Mar. 8 - National Peanut Cluster Day

Apr. 2 - National Peanut Butter & Jelly Day

May 18 - I Love Reese's Day

June 12 - National Peanut Butter Cookie Day

Sept. 13 - National Peanut Day

November - National Peanut Butter Lover's Month

Nov 20 - National Peanut Butter Fudge Day

There are tons of other facts that revolve around this yummy food, but perhaps more interesting is what else peanut butter can be used for aside from sandwiches. Here are 11 surprising uses for the stuff, according to a report from LifeHack:

1. Shaving Cream - Need to knock out some stubble, but all out of shaving cream? Spread a thin layer of peanut butter on your skin and proceed with your razor as you normally would. An extra bonus for this method is that the oils in peanut butter will help keep you from nicking yourself, while simultaneously acting as a skin moisturizer.

2. Leather Cleaner - To clean leather furniture, shoes, purses, and more until they shine, put a small amount of peanut butter on a soft cloth and rub it over the leather in circular motions. Voila!

3. DIY Roach Motel - If you find your home plagued with roaches, never fear -- peanut butter is here. To make your own roach motel, take a finished jar of peanut butter and place it on its side on the floor with the lid removed, wherever you've noticed those pesky little creatures congregating. The roaches will be enticed by the treat, crawl into the jar to eat the remaining peanut butter and will then find their legs stuck to the spread. Once the jar is full, put the lid back on and throw it in the trash.

4. Ant Bait - To make an at-home ant bait, mix two teaspoons of peanut butter, a half teaspoon of baking soda and a teaspoon of borax. Apply the mixture anywhere in your home where you've spotted invading colonies of ants and they'll be gone in no time.

5. Squeak Eliminator - In lieu of WD-40 or a similar household lubricant to use on squeaky hinges or drawers, apply a little peanut butter to the problem area. The natural oils in it work as well as any store-bought product.

6. Price Sticker Removal - Ever have that irksome problem where, after having removed a price sticker from something, it leaves behind a gummy residue? Peanut butter to the rescue! Just smooth a little bit on the sticky area and rub it away with a cloth.

7. Windshield Cleaner - Bugs and other highway gunk stuck like glue to your windshield after a road trip that you absolutely can't seem to get off? Rub a bit of peanut butter onto the problem areas, let it sit for 10 minutes and then spray clean with a hose. Gone will be not only the peanut butter, but those pesky bugs too.

8. Wood Scratch Repair - Wood in the home is sometimes hard to deal with in terms of upkeep. For scratches on wooden furniture, doorjambs, etc., spread some peanut butter into the scratch and let it sit for 30 - 60 minutes. After removing the peanut butter with a cloth, the scratch will be as good as gone.

9. CD/DVD Scratch Repair - For scratched discs that skip or won't play period, bring on the peanut butter. Rub a little bit of the smooth variety on the back of the CD or DVD, wipe away with a soft, dry cloth and you'll be back to smooth sailing in no time.

10. Ice Cream Cone Sealant - Before scooping ice cream into a cone, put a dab of peanut butter on the bottom and it will keep melted ice cream from dripping out at the bottom. Genius!

11. Moisturize Your Hair - While it might sound like a sticky recipe for disaster, try massaging some peanut butter into your scalp and hair before shampooing and you'll find that, once dry, your mane will be as uber-shiny as ever.

It's amazing all the stuff that peanut butter can be good for in addition to the old (but ever delicious) standby PB&J sandwich! Now, with your newfound peanut butter knowledge, go forth and celebrate National Peanut Butter Day on Saturday with a flourish!

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