nutella

If there’s one thing Jade would eat by the bucketful if she could, it’s Nutella.  Occasionally after school she’ll ask if she can have “Nutella bread”; if she’s eaten mostly healthy things that day I will tell her yes, and then I basically run and hide while she gets busy.  First, she will pull out the toaster and toast a few slices of bread.  While it’s toasting, she will get down a plate, procure a knife from the drawer, and the Nutella from the pantry shelf.  Finally, when the bread is ready, if I happen to be walking by I will avert my eyes while she proceeds to completely drown that poor piece of toast in such an unconscionable amount of Nutella that the bread itself can no longer be seen, goes soggy and eventually completely collapses under the weight.  It is beyond excessive.

I would consider this a problem if she approached all food this way, but it’s only Nutella that seems to set her over the edge and make her lose any ounce of self-control.  A regular sized jar might last her eight slices of toast.  There is a part of me that would like to force her to use a more restrained amount, but A) she won’t, and B) there’s also a part of me who enjoys watching her get it all over her hands and cheeks no matter how hard she tries not to.  It reminds me of the old days.  It’s cute.

As for me, I’ve been a fan of Nutella since discovering it in Germany.  The first time I tried it I was staying in a tiny gasthaus, and was intrigued by the tiny single-serving packets scattered among the breakfast spread one morning.  I picked one up and set it on my plate alongside the cold cuts, cheeses, breads and soft-boiled eggs (apparently cholesterol is not an issue there?).  I opened the packet, spread it on a piece of bread, and it’s been a part of my life (and Jade’s) ever since.  My favorite place to spread it is inside a crêpe, but piece of toast or straight from the jar will also do just fine, and I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that, anyway.  We all know how it goes.  You just can’t go wrong with the stuff.

Nutella

I’ve made this with the milk chocolate the recipe calls for, and dark chocolate; both are good (I prefer the dark).  (This recipe is vegan if you use dark chocolate.)  Also, and this is important: the recipe says the Nutella will ‘firm as it cools’.  It basically firms back to a solid state, and will therefore require heating (spoon what you’re going to use into a bowl and give it a quick zap in the micro) before it’s spreadable, so while it tastes almost exactly the same, it’s not exactly like the jarred stuff, consistency-wise.  Finally, about the price: hazelnuts and 12 ounces of chocolate are expensive ingredients.  It is more cost-effective to just buy the jar, but if you need your Nutella to be vegan, don’t like the added who-knows-what in the jarred version, or just want to give the homespun kind a try, this is the way to go.

Makes just about 2 cups.

Ingredients

1 cup hazelnuts
12 ounces milk chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons mild vegetable oil, such as canola
3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Spread the hazelnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven for about 12 minutes.  Lay them in a thick kitchen towel and rub vigorously to remove as much loose skin as possible.  (Not all of the skins will come off.)  Cool completely.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler (or in the microwave in short 30 second bursts until just starting to melt) .  Stir until smooth.  Cool completely.

In a food processor, grind the hazelnuts until they form a paste.  Be patient – it will take a few minutes.  Add the oil, sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt and continue processing until the mixture is as smooth as possible.  Add the melted chocolate, process again until smooth and well blended, and then strain the mixture though a fine sieve to remove any chunks of hazelnut that remain.  The resulting homemade Nutella will be thin and somewhat runny and maybe even a little warm but it will thicken as it cools (read note above).  Scrape your homemade nutella into a jar or other resealable container and let it cool to room temperature.  The nutella will keep on the counter for up to 2 weeks.

*Recipe adapted from Leite’s Culinaria.

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