Healthier Nutella
my homemade ‘healthier’ nutella
There’s been a lot of hype lately about how unhealthy Nutella is…
This time due to it containing palm oil; an oil which is not only high in saturated fat, but is also not produced sustainably
Nutella has been in trouble in the past, due to marketing it as a healthy food for children to include for breakfast, and (of course) it’s sugar content
But I view Nutella as just one of hundreds of processed foods now lining the supermarket shelves
If you choose to eat these foods and care about your health, you really do need to read the ingredients list to find out what they actually contain, rather than wait for the headlines to tell you!
I know what’s in this cause I made it!!
However, when you make food yourself, of course you know exactly what is in it!
And here is my healthier version of Nutella so you can do just that…
healthier nutella on rye sourdough
So what makes my version healthier?
- well, it contains only whole foods and no extracted fats or oils
- it is partly sweetened by dates (rather than refined sugar), a whole food, high in fibre and rich in health-promoting antioxidants (in particular phenols, tannins and flavonoids)
- it includes raw cacao powder, also rich in antioxidants (flavonoids) as well as important vitamins (mostly B vitamins) and minerals (including magnesium)
- can you believe there are chickpeas in it!! high in fibre, a good source of protein and very rich in antioxidants (with anti-inflammatory effects), phytonutrients (flavonoids including the isoflavone genistein which may reduce your risk for some hormone related cancers, principally breast cancer and prostate cancer), vitamins (including folate) and minerals (including zinc and iron)
And whilst this version is ‘healthier’, remember it still is a sometimes food!
noms!
Enjoy 🙂
- ½ cup hazelnuts
- 5 large (95 grams) medjool dates, pitted
- ½ tin (2/3 cup cooked) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons raw cacao powder (or cocoa)
- 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- water, as necessary
- Start by toasting the hazelnuts
- Place in a large fry pan over medium heat and move around continually with a wooden spoon until they start to brown
- Transfer toasted hazelnuts to a clean tea-towel and rub to remove the skin
- Meanwhile, boil the kettle. Place the dates in a small bowl and cover with approx 2 tablespoons of water. Set aside to soak
- When the hazelnuts are toasted and the skin removed, transfer to a food processor and blitz until finely chopped
- Add the dates and soaking water, chickpeas, cacao powder, honey, vanilla and cinnamon
- Blitz to a smooth paste
- Add a little water as necessary if the paste is very thick (I added around ¼ cup to mine)
- Transfer the mix to a jar and store in the fridge
image from nutellabyferrero.tumblr.com
Have you made a healthier version of nutella before?
What was it like? Please let me know 🙂
