I wanted to create this recipe for all the Mums out there, all the Nutella obsessers and addicts who like to eat it from the jar with a spoon… or worse, a finger…(not mentioning any names).

I want you to all have a healthier alternative that you can eat without feeling guilty! One that you can feed to your children to form a sustaining and nourishing breakfast rather than one that is heavily processed and contains NO nutritional benefits!

Did you know that normal Nutella’s first ingredient is sugar? Did you know that sugar is highly addictive, heavily processed and the driver of many diseases? Probably not something you ought to be feeding to your children or yourself for that matter.

A two-tablespoon (37 gram) serving of Nutella contains 200 calories, 11 grams of fat, 3.5 of which are saturated and 21 grams of sugar. To put that into perspective, a typical chocolate and nut candy bar has 250 to 300 calories and 12 to 16 grams of fat.

Other ingredients in Nutella following on from sugar are palm oil, hazelnuts, cocoa, milk, soybean lecithin and vanillin.

The scariest thing that people don’t know about Nutella is that it contains monosodium glutamate (MSG), also known as E621. It’s cleverly hidden inside an artificial flavor under the name vanillin which is labeled on every Nutella jar. It also contains the toxic GMO emulsifier soy lecithin.

Soybean lecithin comes from sludge left after crude soy oil goes through a “degumming” process. It is a waste product containing solvents and pesticides and has a consistency ranging from a gummy fluid to a plastic solid. Before being bleached to a more appealing light yellow, the color of lecithin ranges from a dirty tan to reddish brown. The hexane extraction process commonly used in soybean oil manufacture today yields less lecithin than the older ethanol-benzol process, but produces a more marketable lecithin with better color, reduced odor and less bitter flavor.

Today soy lecithin is ubiquitous in the processed food supply. It is most commonly used as an emulsifier to keep water and fats from separating in foods such as margarine, peanut butter, chocolate candies, ice cream, coffee creamers and infant formulas. It also helps prevent product spoilage making it a preservative and extending shelf life in the marketplace.

The majority of soy sources in the world are now genetically modified (GM). Researchers have clearly identified GM foods as a threat to the environment, polluter of soil and a threat to human health with links to the world with unnatural genetic material that has unknown long-term consequences with links to decreased fertility, immunological alterations in the gut and the exacerbation and creation of allergies.

Furthermore, palm oil has become one of the world’s leading causes of rainforest destruction. Unmonitored expansion has lead palm oil plantations into the heart of some of the world’s most culturally and biologically diverse ecosystems and palm oil is among the biggest threats driving wildlife species like the Sumatran orangutan to the brink of extinction in Indonesia. So sad!

Ideally, you should avoid all processed and hydrogenated oils like the plague. The health benefits of palm oil are completely negated due to this harmful process that extends it’s shelf life. Stay safe and keep your shelves stocked with UNREFINED, COLD-PRESSED oils.

My recipe contains no added oils because natural fats from the nuts are present from the main ingredient, hazelnuts. There is no need to add unhealthy palm oil to this recipe. In comparison, Nutella’s main ingredient is sugar, followed by oil, followed by hazelnuts. If the main ingredient was the nuts there would be no need to add excess processed oils. And there is never any need to add as much sugar as what is found in a jar of Nutella.

Nutella contains COCOA, which is the highly processed and refined version of the raw CACAO powder.

Cacao in its raw state possesses SO many health benefits including;

40 times the antioxidants of blueberries (Studies have found that adding dairy to chocolate actually blocks the absorption of antioxidants in chocolate, hence why my recipe uses plant milk).

Highest plant-based source of iron.

Full of magnesium for a healthy heart & brain.

More calcium than cow’s milk.

A natural mood elevator and anti-depressant

This new recipe tastes 100 x better, cleaner and richer and it contains only 4 natural ingredients and is also vegan. Here is a recap of the health benefits in this healthy and delicious Nutella recipe:

Hazelnuts – Folate (unlike most other nuts, hazelnuts are an excellent source) & Vitamin E. Hazelnuts contain heart-healthy fats that can protect heart health. Specifically, they are high in healthy polyunsaturated and mononunsaturated fats and low in unhealthier unsaturated fats.

Raw cacao – Excellent source of magnesium, antioxidants and the mood enhancing amino acid Tryptophan.

Maple syrup – one of the healthiest alternatives to sugar out there. Both table sugar and maple syrup are made of about two-thirds sucrose, but maple syrup supplies less sugar overall plus more nutrients. The glycaemic index score of maple syrup is around 54, compared to a score of about 65 for regular cane sugar. This means that one benefit of maple syrup nutrition is that it impacts your blood sugar levels less drastically than table sugar does. Maple syrup also supplies trace minerals and antioxidants, while sugar lacks both of these.

So, no further delay, on to today’s recipe.

Ingredients

2 cups raw hazelnuts (270 g)

¼ cup raw cacao (20 g)

1 cup plant milk (250 ml)

½ cup maple syrup (160 g)

Pinch of himalayan salt (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 355ºF or 180ºC.
2. Place the hazelnuts into a baking sheet and roast them for 10 to 15 minutes – keep an eye on them so that they don’t burn.
3. When the hazelnuts are cool, blend them in a food processor until you get a crumbly texture.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until the Nutella is ready – this can take a few minutes so be patient.
5. I store mine in an old jam jar in the fridge and it lasts well for a few weeks (however it’s not normally around that long!)

Enjoy on toast or off the spoon!

Wishing you all a healthy and happy week

xxx