Chocolate Hazelnut Spread aka Nutella…
I think most of you know by now that I’ve always had a real MAJOR sweet tooth.
Even to this day, I’m having a real hard time controlling my sugar cravings sometimes.
I’m the kind of person who could easily go trough an entire pan of fudge IF I didn’t control myself.
Or a whole sugar pie… or even a cheesecake…
Hmmmmmmm, cheeeeeeesecake. *Drooooools, with tongue hanging to the side, à la Homer*
Thank goodness I do have SOME control and could NEVER let myself go to such extremes. I only know I have it in me to do it.
I remember a time when I used to always have a reasonable array of “spoonable” treats to choose from in my cupboards. You know, the kind of sugar laden spreadable treats that one usually enjoys on a piece of toasted bread?
At least, that’s what “normal” people tend to do.
I always thought that it was a total waste to put such goodness on bread. To me, the bread just takes waaay too much “space”, so more often than not, I’d just eat said “spreadable joys” by the spoonful. IF I was going to take the bread route, I’d lay it on REAL thick.
Without a doubt, my definite ultimate favorite spreadable treat has always been, and always will be, Nutella. That’s one that pretty much NEVER got wasted on bread!
Spoon IS the way to go.
Seeing how expensive it was (and probably still is!) I’d always treat the stuff as if it were mere gold. I could make a jar last for MONTHS, for I indulged so very sparingly. No more than one or two teaspoons at a time.
Hey, at least, I was being reasonable with it.
Would you believe me if I told you it’s been years since I’ve had a real taste of Nutella.
Yet, I’m trying to recreate, if only from memory, this ultimate delicacy of mine.
My first attempt, although extremely pleasant to the palate, wasn’t really all that close to the real thing.
This new attempt, I think, is a little closer. It’s still not the real thing, of course, but it’s getting there.
Upon having my first taste, I was immediately inspired to create some sort of a home made, healthy version of Ferrero Rochers, so I guess I can’t be THAT far off…
Maybe by the 10th try, I’ll get it just right! 😉
Now, this new version calls for raw egg whites. If you are not comfortable with the idea of consuming raw egg whites, do like I did and use the kind that comes in a carton. Those have been pasteurized, which makes them safe for raw comsumption.
Of course, the fact that this uses raw egg whites means that you have to keep it refrigerated and you won’t be able to make the jar lasts for months like I used to do with the real thing. I’ve read that pasteurized raw egg whites will keep from 7 to 14 days in the refrigerator after you’ve opened the carton, so to play it safe, you should probably plan on eating this baby within 2 weeks of making it (although I’ve had mine for longer than that now and it’s still very good…)
The recipe yields a little over 2 cups of deliciously firm, surprisingly rich and creamy as well as dangerously chocolaty spreadable love. If you think that you might be a little slow at getting to the bottom of the jar (really, you could?), you might want to start with half a recipe.
Bet you’d regret it if you did, however…
Chocolate Hazelnut Spread aka Nutella…
Ingredients
- ½ cup date paste
- ½ cup extra dark cocoa powder
- ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
- 1 cup hazelnut butter
- 2 tbsp unpasteurized liquid honey
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¾ cups pasteurized egg whites *See note
Instructions
- Add date paste, cocoa powder, coconut oil, hazelnut butter, honey, vanilla and salt to your food processor and process until smooth and creamy, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add the egg whites, about ¼ cup at a time, processing well between each addition. You can always add more or less egg whites to achieve the desired consistency.
- Transfer to air tight container such a Mason jar and keep refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
If you’ve tried this recipe, please take a minute to rate the recipe and let me know how things went for you in the comments below. It’s always such a pleasure to hear from you!
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33 Comments on “Chocolate Hazelnut Spread aka Nutella…”
I love your version! I’ll have to try that. I’m curious about date paste! Also… this might be terribly late, but I love your redesign!
OH, thank you so much Natalie! You know what they say… Better late than never! 🙂 And you should definitely give that date paste a try. I couldn’t do without it now that I started using it. I always have a jar in the fridge, sometimes two, with different fruit combinations. 🙂
mhm, date paste and egg white? These are interesting ingredients for Nutella… I have to admit that it sounds unorthodox, but that jar looks so good that I think I could not be satisfied with just one or two spoons. And having tried so many of your recipes, by now I trust your choice of ingredients, even when they sound unusual at first :-).
Have a wonderful, delicious weekend!
And good luck in case you have another 100 mile bike ride scheduled 😉
Oh wow, thank you so much, Elana! That is so incredibly nice of you to say. I’m honestly flattered! I do hope that you will agree with my choice of ingredients for that one if you end up trying it. 🙂
And thanks for the good week-end wishes, sending them right back at ya!
Oh, and 100 MILES??? OMG, I am not there yet! We are talking kilometers. That’s a LOT less… 😉 And I only have a standard 50km planned for this week-end, MAYBE I’ll decide to turn it into a 75km since I’m taking a day off tomorrow to go to a concert (where I’ll be dancing like no tomorrow all day, so not really a day off after all…) 😉
I nearly bypassed your post this time. On purpose: ’cause I did in no way want to offend! So glad I didn’t 🙂 ! Now, I don’t have a sweet tooth at all, except for the occasional piece of 70% dark chocolate, but yours is a fascinating concoction which I am bookmarking for when I can snatch just a little time. A lot of people in this country believe Nutella to be healthy because it has nuts in it. Sorry: the sugar levels are quite unacceptably high and it does contain the worst culprit against good health: trans fats. To the best of my knowledge one European country has withdrawn it from its shelves and others are talking about it. So, if you can make an acceptable version yourself at home: God bless 🙂 !
Oh boy, don’t get me started! I so totally hear you Eha. It just kills me when I hear commercials for Nutella trying to lead people to believe that it’s a healthy way to start the day and that you should really feed it to your kids and stuff. IT KILLS ME! There is absolutely NOTHING healthy about Nutella. It’s basically all fat (the bad ones, of course) and refined sugar galore. It’s not because there is a healthy ingredient in something that it deserves the right to be called healthy. No matter how much I like the taste of that stuff, I totally think that it would be a good thing if it was to be removed from the shelves.
As for me, I’ll be sticking to my version(s) thank you very much! 😀
And sheesh… I can’t believe you doubted me. 😉
Sorry, Sonia, but I know the taste is quite moreish [I have actually tried more than once!] and that you like sweet things at times and we all have a right to our ‘sins’ and . . . Well, I could go on!!!!! Without prejudice, I believe Denmark has put thumbs down because of the hydrogenated fats and sugar and the other Scandinavian countries are considering. Denmark, if I remember reading correctly, has also put a tax on fast food and other European countries are again watching! Unfortunately fast food is popular enough in Australia, shall we say amongst perhaps the least advantaged socially, and there has been talk of following BUT?! Methinks everybody is watching everybody else! Votes in elections 🙁 ! Meanwhile shall try your ‘Nutella’ straight after the Olympics [days too short at the moment ;0 !]
Oh no. No pasteurized egg whites here. 🙁
It looks insanely delicious! And sooo creamy. Pretty pictuers too.
I’m also having a hard time controlling my sugar intake. I’m on some new medicine and the doctor said, “You’ll crave sweets and maybe gain 5 kgs.” I thought, eh, whatever. But no. I’ve been living off of sweets and have gained 7 kgs. Not nice. I’m thinking of doing a completely sugar free week or two, just so that I can get back to normal eating. Just not now with all the yummy fruit! I have more jam to make. 🙂
Right! I had this flash while writing the post that you didn’t do raw egg whites and I felt really sorry for a while that you wouldn’t be able to try that one out. It’s really too bad, I bet you would’ve loved it, especially since you’re living off of sweets nowadays. Wow, 7kgs? That’s insane. Pretty much what I am wanting to shed at the moment. And the medicine had you gain that over the course of how long? One thing I can tell you, I hope I never have to be on that particular medicine. Well, or on any other, for that matter.
I don’t think that you should go completely sugar free, as you’ll only crave it more and be more prone to wolf down every sugary thing in sight after a few weeks of that regimen. Just cut down and go for natural and unrefined sugars. Allow one small treat per day or second day, such as one tablespoon of delicious apricot jam, or a square of dark chocolate. Try and choose treats that are still good for you and incorporate healthy but sweet tasting food items to your daily diet, such as larabars and well, fresh fruit.
Trust me, I know how hard it is. If it were only for me and I didn’t care about my health, wellbeing or body image whatsoever, I’d eat nothing but sweet things and baked goods all day, every day. Desserts, cakes, ice cream, you name it. But I know just how bad these things are for me. I am sincerely hoping that one day, I will look at a piece of cake the way I look at a slice of bacon now: don’t feel the need or the desire to eat at all. Even slightly disgusted at the idea of putting the thing in my mouth.
But for the moment, I have to accept and work on the fact that I still drool over the pictures of your apricot jams and other delicious creations, big time! 😉
The medicine and weight gain has been over about three months. And the doctor just took me off of this medicine because it did nothing but make my gain weight. Woohoo.
I know that you’re not supposed to cut down on any one thing that you normally crave because then you just go overboard when you’re finished abstaining. What I want to do is retrain my tastebuds and brain into thinking of fruit as a dessert. When I walk into the kitchen, I always want something sweet, and what I want to do is reach for fruit and not candy. Which is what I do. Every time. So if I allow myself one sweet thing a day, then all I’m going to do is think about it all day and not be content with the fruit. And that’s not good!
But hey, there’s nothing wrong with drooling over my apricot jam! 3 tablespoons of honey + 685 grams of apricots? That’s totally okay. 🙂
Thanks for your advice!
Oh my! Yikes! That is a lot of weight in very little time. You must be so relieved that they took you off those meds. I know I would. Fighting sugar cravings is already hard enough as it is without having meds to make the task darn near impossible.
When I crave sugar really bad, I’ll usually reach for a teaspoon of honey or a few squares of dark chocolate. I think your apricot jam would also hit the spot! 😀
You know what’s weird? I haven’t craved sugar once since I stepped on that scale and decided to get serious and do something about shedding the extra baggage. Not complainin’! 😉
I never would have expected to see the combination of ingredients you used in this recipe, but the “Nutella” looks so good! I really love your photographs as well; they’re composed beautifully.
Thank you so very much, I truly appreciate that! 🙂
O yes sugar cravings I know… I used to be a big nutella fan growing up but then at a later stage I thought the true chocolate spreads where better. Hmmm upon seeing your nutella version I might have to reconsider. So good!
Oh, but Nutella is so much better… it’s the union of chocolate AND nut butter. Can you think of anything better? It’s pure HEAVEN!!!! Hope you do reconsider! 😉
The price always turns me off to the spread too although it is very good. A homemade version seems like the way to go. I’m looking forward to your continued adventure to make a homemade version.
The list of ingredients is what should be putting you off, really! 😉 Have you ever looked at it? OMG, the s*it that goes in the making of this sublime tasting poison. Unreal!
Thank you for supporting me in my quest to create the ultimate healthy Nutella replacement! 😉
Why are the egg whites included? I just can’t seem to wrap my head around their purpose in this recipe…?
The egg whites actually play a big role, first and foremost in making the texture a lot lighter and creamier. They sort of replace the oil in the original stuff. Also, I think they’re a great addition from a nutritional standpoint as they up the protein content some without adding any fat at all.
Real Nutella has palm oil, so I’ve learned to steer clear… though I still crave its chocolate-hazelnut creaminess. I would never have thought of making my own… with date paste! Thanks for the idea — I bet this would be delicious on a crêpe!
Thanks Ann! I bet this would be delicious on ANYTHING! 😉
It might not taste exactly like the real thing, but seeing as how it’s good for me, I’ll choose that version over the original anytime!
Homemade nutella with date paste?! Awesome!!
Would it be possible to sub coconut oil for butter? I just have to make this right away and I don’t have any coconut oil and I’m also out of canola oil :/
Eeeeesh… I have to admit that I am not a huge fan of butter, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. It has no reason no to. Just make sure it’s at room temperature. Also, I would omit the salt, as to not make this overly salty. Let me know how it turned out if you try it!
Just made this and mine turned out like play dough, not spreadable at all!
Jennifer, do you mean like soft play dough? I mean, it’s smooth right, not crumbly like it has separated or anything? I’m thinking it’s probably more of a “moisture” issue. Maybe your hazelnut butter or date paste was firmer than mine to start with. Have you tried adding more egg whites? I’m pretty sure that it would solve your problem. Or maybe you could add a little bit more melted coconut oil…
Let me know if this helps!
Haha I had a feeling you would say that 😉 I’m normally not a big fan of butter either, but here in Scandinavia there’s a lot of talking about butter might not being so bad after all, so I’m thinking small amounts every now and then will be all right. As for the chocolate hazelnut spread it turned out great!! I’m so excited about it – it is so much better than the real stuff 🙂 I only used 1 tbsp of butter and also subbed 1 tbsp of honey with agave nectar. Even my boyfriend who normally doesn’t like it when I make healthier versions of these sort of things loves this spread!
Oh Anna, I am soooo thrilled to hear that. You just made my day!!! Plus, you really used close to no butter at all, so you barely made a dent in the overall “health level” of this delicious spread.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience. You totally rock! 😀
Just tried the hazlenut spread and it came out great. What a wonderful recipe! Thanks for posting it.
And thank YOU for the great feedback Alex. I truly appreciate your taking the time to do this! 🙂
I noted this recipe months ago but was committed to a low carb diet in preparation for a physique competition that is now over. I made it tonight & was very pleasantly surprised. I love it’s texture and hazelnut-dark chocolate flavor! I can’t wait to share it with my friends.
Glad you liked, Kevin, and thank you so much for the great feedback! Hope your competition went well! 🙂