Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Chocolate Hazelnut Crack in a Jar

     Almost everyone has bought that chocolately, hazel-nutty goodness in a jar.  Admit it, you know the one I'm talking about.  You might be like I was, with bottles of the stuff hoarded in an upper cabinet (the cabinet the kids can't reach...) just waiting for a midnight snack for a well-deserving Mom.

     It's a rare treat for me, true, but then I made the mistake of putting some in my son's bento on graham crackers.  Sadly, my days of solo Nutella snacking were over- my small jar no longer lasts more than a week.  At over five bucks a pop, it was one of my more expensive treats.  So, I had to find a way to make my own. 
Sadly, I have no photos of my homemade goodness.  It really doesn't last long enough to be photographed.

Homemade Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

1 cup hazelnuts, shelled and cleaned
4 ounces milk chocolate chips, melted
2 tablespoon cocoa powder
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
a few drops vegetable oil 
pinch of salt

To clean the hazelnuts, shell them and wrap in a towel.  Rub briskly until all skins are removed.  Toast nuts either in a pan on the stove or under the broiler until just fragrant and lightly golden.

Using a smaller food processor (I prefer a mini-prep) or nut butter grinder, pulse the nuts until it begins to form a paste-like consistency. 

Add the melted chocolate, cocoa, sugar and vanilla. Continue to process until smooth and well-mixed.

Add vegetable oil, slowly, one drop at a time, and pulse to a smooth, spreadable consistency.  

Store in a tightly sealed glass jar in the fridge.  Will last approximately 3 weeks refrigerated (if it doesn't get eaten first!)

Tip: Hazelnuts can be pricey.  I typically pick mine up around the holidays from the bulk bins at the market.  Otherwise, you can order them from bulk food suppliers or find them in the bulk bins at some health food stores.

7 comments:

  1. Thank you for posting this. I told my son about the recipe and he replied with "I love you mommy."

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  2. @ Stacey, I'm glad you like it. That's what my son tells me when I make him sandwiches with this and cranberry sauce. lol!

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  3. Cranberry sauce. OMGNOM!

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  4. Thank you so much for sharing this! I had requested the recipe from you on Heavenly Homemakers, and am so excited to try this! A friend just gave me a recipe for nutella palmiers (angel wing cookies) with a tin of the cookies to try & they lasted all of 3 days and I didn't share with anyone! Now to get some hazelnuts and try this on my own.

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  5. Wow, with your recipe, we can have Nutella (almost) any time we have a craving. Can't decide if this is a good thing or not. :)

    Thanks for joining in the fun for our Recipe Round-Up today...we're so glad to have discovered your blog! :)

    You can find lots more Gooseberry Patch goodies on our blog (www.gooseberrypatch.typepad.com) and on our Page on Facebook (www.facebook.com/gooseberrypatch) too.

    Hope to see you there!

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  6. Are hazelnuts less expensive to buy and make the mix? I thought they were far more expensive. I guess I'll have to try it and weigh out the costs.

    My kids are addicted so I'm sure I'll be trying it sooner than later.

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  7. @No Reason Needed- Hazelnuts are very pricey. This is why I mentioned that I usually get mine around the holidays when they are FAR cheaper. I seriously pick up about 40 pounds of hazelnuts around Christmas time and store them. (Same thing with most other nuts- especially Brazil nuts that I guard jealously since they are my all time favorite nut!) I have seen them at bulk food stores for fairly cheap as well- depending on the sale, of course.

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