Chocolate Hazelnut Spread—aka Homemade Nutella Recipe

It’s hard to improve on Nutella, the dreamy, creamy chocolate hazelnut spread from Italy. But this Chocolate Hazelnut Spread—aka Homemade Nutella, adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s Peanutella recipe, actually manages to go one better than the commercial version.

Maybe it’s the slight grittiness left after grinding the nuts—the commercial version is smooth as Skippy. Or maybe it’s the perfect balance of nuttiness, sweetness and dark chocolatey richness: the homemade spread is less sweet and, to my taste, more full flavored than branded Nutella.



Whatever the reason, this recipe is irresistible and—bonus—it’s incredibly easy to make: After skinning and toasting the hazelnuts, you can whip the spread together in five minutes.

When I can force myself to stop spooning Chocolate Hazelnut Spread directly from the jar into my mouth, I also like to eat it…

• Spread on French toast, waffles or pancakes
• Scooped onto thin, salty pretzel sticks
• Swirled in brownie batter
• As icing on cupcakes
• Or filling for pound cake
• Smoothed over traditional tea biscuits like Parle-G or (my favorite) coconut Nice Time.
• In Passionate About Baking’s Nutella and Fresh Cherry Tart

I’m hoping my friend, Diane Allen, an extraordinary confectioner, will find a way to work Chocolate Hazelnut Spread into her divine, decadent truffles.

Variation on an indulgent theme: Like Smitten Kitchen, you can substitute peanuts for hazelnuts to make Reese’s Peanut Butter-style spread. I bet the spread would also be delish made with walnuts. And macadamia nuts. And…must stop!

Chocolate Hazelnut Spread—aka Homemade Nutella recipe

2 cups shelled and skinned hazelnuts
1/2 cup dark, rich unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt plus additional to taste
3 tablespoons sunflower or other mild oil

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Here’s an easy way to skin hazelnuts: Add 1/4 cup baking soda to a quart of water and bring to a boil. Dump in two cups of shelled hazelnuts and let the nuts boil for 3-4 minutes. Toss the nuts into a colander and run under cold water. Some skins will slide right off the nuts. To remove remaining skins, rub the nuts together with your fingers.
3. Arrange the skinless hazelnuts on the a jellyroll pan in a single layer. Push all hazelnuts into a mass in the center—stray nuts tend to burn. Toast for about 10-12 minutes, shaking the pan midway in the toasting process so the nuts brown evenly.
4. Put the hazelnuts in a food processor and grind them for about 5 minutes. They will turn into a paste first, then finally they liquefy. Pause and scrape down sides as needed.
5. Add the cocoa, sugar, salt and two tablespoons of the oil. Continue to process until smooth, about 1 minute. If spread is too thick, blend in the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add more salt to taste.
6. Spoon spread into air-tight containers and store in fridge.

Makes about 2 cups of spread.