Homemade Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
I am so excited to share this super simple, super delicious homemade chocolate hazenut spread recipe. I have always loved Nutella, but not the dairy or palm oil listed as ingredients and there are just not a lot of other options on the market, or at least options without a hefty price tag. Once I tinkered with making a homemade chocolate hazelnut spread, simplified it down to only the necessary ingredients, and worked out the quirks—it is really a super efforless item to make. I love that this recipe is easily spreadable, has a less sweet dark chocolate flavor, and doesn’t contain all the oil used in other recipes. I can’t wait for you to try it!
Health Benefits of Hazelnuts & Cacao
Hazelnuts, also known as filberts are an excellent source of protein, fiber, vitamin E, thiamin, magnesium, copper, and manganese. Oh so good for you! According to Healthline, one ounce of hazelnuts contains about 4.2g of protein, that about as much as eating 4 shrimp. And then there is cacao—a superfood full of antioxidants. Cacao benefits include decreased inflammation, improved heart and brain health, blood sugar and weight control. Cacao powder is high in calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, selenium, and folate. In addition, the 1/2 cup of cacao powder in this recipe contains a whopping 14g of fiber and 16g of protein!
Cacao Vs. Cocoa
Time for food semantics! Cacao is the name of the plant, and unroasted (raw) beans are called cacao beans. Not to be confused with cacao nibs, these are the beans crushed up. Cacao powder are the raw beans finely ground into a powder. You can use cocoa powder in this recipe, but I highly recommend using cacao powder. To make cocoa powder the cacao beans are roasted and then ground into a powder. Dutch processed cocoa powder, is processed using baking soda and greatly decreases the nutritional value of the cacao. My favorite cacao powder is Navitas organic cacao powder, you can sometimes find it in a super size bag at Costco, but it’s readily available at Whole Foods and Amazon. Great, now that we’ve cleared that all up we can move on to the secret ingredient!
Secret Ingredient
In the past I’ve tried to use unroasted, shelled hazelnuts to make a homemade chocolate hazelnut spread and it just didn’t work well. I would have to roast the hazelnuts, try to peel as much of the skins off as possible. Prepping the hazelnuts was by far the most time consuming and annoying part of making a homemade chocolate hazelnut spread. Then sometime this winter I found a bag of these roasted and skinned hazelnuts at Costco and it was a game changer, cutting out the whole prepping hazelnuts step makes this recipe super quick and easy. I highly recommend finding roasted and skinned hazelnuts so you can just pop them in your blender too.
How to Make Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
Now down to business. To make the creamiest chocolate hazelnut spread, I first like to blend the hazelnuts on high. Once they start to gum up into a nut butter lump at the bottom, urn off the blender and try to mix it up using a spatula. Add the boiling hot water and give it another blend on high until you have a creamy peanut butter consistency. Next, add the rest of the ingredients: cacao powder, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Blend on high until everything is mixed well. That’s it, easy peasy homemade chocolate hazelnut deliciousness!
If you prefer chunky peanut butter, or just want to make this recipe even easier, add all ingredients to your blender at once. It will still be delicious. I put the chocolate hazelnut spread in a mason jar and keep it in the refrigerator. Even cold this is still spreadable. Chocolatey yum!
P.S. I am savoring a delicious piece of toast with chocolate hazelnut spread with a side of fresh blueberries and black coffee for breakfast as I am writing this. Yum!
PrintHomemade Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
Whip up some homemade Nutella in five minutes with only five simple ingredients. No dairy, no palm oil, only the good stuff!
- Prep Time: 5
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 3 cups 1x
- Category: Plant based
- Method: No cooking
- Cuisine: Healthy
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 2 cups of roasted and skinned hazelnuts
- 3/4 boiling water
- 1/2 cup of cacao powder
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon homemade vanilla extract
Instructions
- Add the hazelnuts to the pitcher of a high-powdered blender. Blend on high for about 2 minutes, until hazelnuts start to form a nut butter lump. Break up the lump with a spatula and add the boiling water. Blend on high until you have a creamy nut butter, about 2 minutes.
- Add the rest of the ingredients: cacao powder, maple syrup, and vanilla. Blend on high until everything is incorporated; you may have to scrap down the sides a couple of times. That’s it!
Notes
Can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 14 days, but odds are it will be gobbled up before then!
If you prefer milk chocolate, swap out the water for your favorite milk. I prefer the dark chocolate version in this recipe but sometimes use homemade cashew milk.
