Roast: 15min // Make: 10 min
If you and/or your kids are addicted to Nutella but want something healthier that you can treat without the junk-food guilt, look no further. This is the recipe for the healthiest version of homemade hazelnut cocoa spread that will replace Nutella in your cupboard. At least for a few days... It is incredibly delicious let alone easy to make to the point that I never thought I would reach the hedonistic levels of Nutella sensation eating this spread! And all this with just 3 ingredients and a food processor (see my Kitchen Essentials post for recommendations).
The Product
This recipe is inspired by a super delicious hazelnut choco spread, the vegan version of Nutella if you want, that is made in my home country, Greece. I'm sure similar products can be found worldwide, but I am particularly passionate about this one, called "Vegalina" (click the link and check their website, they share some tasty recipes too). It is a concatenation of Vegan + Pralina and something I instantly fell in love with at first bite. I have tried various different similar spreads here in the UK but nothing beats Vegalina so far. Using 3 mere and humble ingredients, I can now make it home on demand: roasted hazelnuts, coconut sugar (unrefined) and cocoa powder (the Vegalina ingredients) as opposed to emulsifiers, palm oils and refined sugars (some of the known Nutella ingredients). And that's all it takes to make this delightful spread. What's more, my son got addicted too and I feel no more guilty feeding him with this homemade spread.
Recipe
To make this at home, I just copied the ingredients off the label of this product and played around with the quantities and processing times until I reached the best matching flavour. It's luscious, it's vegan, it's gluten-free, it's gooey, a fantastic spread totally worth a try!
Ingredients
300g blanched hazelnuts
4 tbsp good quality cocoa powder
3 tbsp coconut sugar (or other unrefined sugar) - this quantity will give you a very balanced output. Add 1 tbsp more if you like things on the sweeter side
Optional: 1 tsp vanilla paste (The 4th element: a subtle infusion that will take your recipe to the next level)
Method
This recipe uses blanched hazelnuts. If your hazelnuts are not blanched google “how to blanch hazelnuts” to find out how to remove skins.
Line a baking tray with parchment paper and spread your hazelnuts. Roast in the middle of the oven for around 12-15 min (depending on the oven) usually at a standard baking temperature of about 180c.
When the hazelnuts get a nice brownish colour and look sweaty, remove them from the oven and let them cool down, for no more than 5 min (we want them warm to melt the sugar). Roasting the hazelnuts will boost the flavour of your spread. Roasting more, (over 12-15 min) will add even more depth.
Toss the roasted hazelnuts into a large food processor and blend for an initial 3 min until they begin becoming a homogenous paste. Scrape the sides with a spatula and whizz again.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the processor and blend another round, this time 5 min. Your mixture is going to start looking like chocolatey peanut butter and this is when you know it’s time to bear the fruits of your labour!
Enjoy your healthy Nutella guilt-free on your bread, as a Choco peanut butter and jelly sandwich or with your porridge for breakfast. The options are just countless...
