Homemade Nutella (all Natural)

Mindful_Trent

So a discussion involving Nutella the other day got me thinking - I totally agree with having treats in moderation, but I'm also trying very hard to cut out ALL processed foods (as much as I can), including refined/non-natural sugars. There are so many healthy, non-processed treats out there that I don't feel deprived by cutting out the processed sugary crap that I just don't need in my life anymore. I won't buy nutella anymore because it's got so much processed sugar in it. That said, I LOVE hazelnuts and chocolate and think they can be incorporated into a healthy diet. SO... I found some recipes for homemade chocolate-hazelnut spread! There's 2 different recipes below - they're pretty similar. One uses Agave nectar, and one uses Honey. I'm going to try the 1st one this weekend - I may cut down on how much honey I put in, since I've found I don't need foods to be as sweet anymore.

---

From http://thesimplespatula.blogspot.com/2010/02/all-natural-nutella.html

1 cup hazelnuts
Pinch of salt
5-6 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably organic and fair trade)
1 Tablespoon vanilla
2-3 tsp olive oil

In a food processor, grind the hazelnuts to a smooth butter, scraping the sides as needed
Add the cocoa, honey, vanilla, oil and salt. Process until well blended
Spread on a slice of bread (or everything).

---

From http://familystylefood.com/2010/06/homemade-nutella/

Roasted Hazelnut Chocolate Spread
2 cups toasted hazelnuts *
1/2 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup liquid coconut oil or hazelnut oil
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
about 1/4 cup cold water

Process the hazelnuts in a food processor workbowl until they form a coarse paste. You'll need to scrape the bowl down a few times to fully incorporate.
Add the remaining ingredients except the water and continue to process until somewhat smooth.

Slowly drizzle in the water until you achieve a smooth, emulsified consistency, keeping in mind that you might not need all the water, or might need a bit more.

Scrape the spread into a container and chill in the refrigerator until spreadable; it will keep for about a week. Bring to room temperature before spreading on toast, pouring over ice cream, or directly into your mouth...

* To toast hazelnuts, spread on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes, until the nuts turn light brown. I don't bother with trying to rub off the skins - I find it too much trouble and the results are about the same.

Sweetie_Pie92

I love you for posting this.

sundinsgurl

Please let us know how it turns out!!! These could be VERY useful :):) THANKS!!!!!

rskidmore

Bump for later! Thanks for the recipe!

ChellieIrish

OMG that is normally a treat I have on holidays I LOVE that stuff on hot crispy bread!!! Thanks :bigsmile: for sharing hope it's as tasty *insert drooling here*

skinnytayy

I love you for posting this.

^ what she said.

bloemks

Bump! Gonna try this later - sounds yummy!

jillybeanruns

bump! i love nutella!

i recently bought chocolate almond butter and it was DELICIOUS! mmm

animatedbecca

fitterpam

You might just be my hero. Let me know how it goes. I might have to make a batch for my anniversary - my husband loves it but is finding it too sweet now.

jljohnson

What a great treat! I haven't had Nutella in a very long time, for fear of going overboard with it. Any idea how the calories work out, compared to store-bought?

mizfit

Thanks for posting these recipes. Much like u I have lost my taste for sugary processed foods. I used to love Nutella but now it just taste bad to me so I will try out the recipe with honey.

lisalynn35

I love you for posting this.

^ what she said.

Ah, what they said!

LaSirena29

I'd love to hear how it turns out, including the consistency. The first recipe is all ingredients I have on hand and think this might be just perfect as a fruit dip for a party I'm having.

Mindful_Trent

I'm buying the hazelnuts tonight - will definitely let everyone know how it turns out.

Oranda

I want to try this so bad! Yum!

chrisdavey

bumping for later

Jansapphire

Oh MY !!! To think I almost missed this post !! YUKS......

Mindful_Trent

Well, I tried it out and successfully made a batch! Here's the recipe I ended up using (approximately - it was kind of an experiment this time around...)

2 cups hazelnuts, toasted
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
5 to 6 Tbsp honey
3 to 4 Tbsp almond oil
1 Tbsp Coconut oil (melted)
pinch or two of salt
1/4 cup of water
2 tsp vanilla extract


The key was the coconut oil, believe it or not! At first I didn't want to use it, thinking it would overpower the rest of the ingredients, but without it the taste of the hazelnuts was a bit too bitter. It served to "soften" the hazelnut taste, I think. I tried making it with less honey, but I think because the hazelnuts and cocoa are rather bitter, you need that much honey. I think it would've worked with a little less cocoa, too, depending on your personal preferences.

---

My notes on the directions:

I toasted the hazelnuts for about 12 minutes (mixing them up half way through) and this allowed me to remove most of the shells/skins without too much trouble. Maybe 25% of the skins were left on the nuts.

I did have trouble getting the hazelnuts to chop finely, but I accidentally threw all the ingredients in the food processor at the start - both recipes said to process the nuts into a paste first, then add the other ingredients. Not sure if it would've made a difference. I ended up using a hand blender after I took it out of the food processor to make it a little smoother, and that did the trick.

It did take awhile - the mix is pretty thick and you have to work with it to get it to mix-up well and smooth out, but oh, it's so worth it!!!

---

Here are the estimated nutrition stats, based on 32 servings of 1 Tbsp each. (It makes about 2 cups worth.)

82 calories
4g carbs
7g fat
1g protein
1g fiber
9 mg sodium
3g sugar

Although the 5-6 Tbsp of honey seems like a lot, since it's spread throughout 2 cups of spread, you're only getting 3g of sugar per Tbsp!!! Wow!

Personally, I thought the homemade, less-sugar version was more satisfying than the store-bought one, but then I don't mind slightly bitter foods.

It did come out pretty thick and "spread" - like. I'm happy with it. :drinker:

fudJy23

Awesome! The current issue of Fine Cooking had a page on nut butters and I read it wondering about making my own Nutella! I'm so glad to not only see the recipes but to see that you've posted pictures!

chrisdavey

I did it as well

Added to recipe database as well. I estimated 20 servings.

Mine was
200g hazlenuts
60g cocoa
3 tbsn coconut oil (love this)
3 tbspn honey
1 tbspn vanilla

I preferred additional fat rather than sugar. It tastes awesome