Do I really need to tell you folks about Nutella and how amazing this stuff is? You want to smile? Go get some Nutella and just eat it straight from the jar!
But for those of you who have yet to experience this treat Nutella obviously was made by pixies, fairies and unicorns. It is THAT delicious. Nutella is the brand name of a hazelnut chocolate spread manufactured by the Italian company Ferrero. There are some other companies out there who are trying to piggyback on the success of Nutella and maybe they have a good product but why bother trying them? Nutella is perfect.
Nutella, in its earliest form, was created in the 1940s by Mr. Pietro Ferrero who was a pastry maker and founder of the Ferrero company. In the 1940s there were extremely short supplies of cocoa to make chocolate thanks to World War II rationing. Mr. Ferrero used hazelnuts, which were abundant in the Piedmont region of Italy, to extend the chocolate supply.
Nutella was introduced to the market in 1964. It was introduce to my palate 27 years later. About the same time Nutella came to America I went to live in Europe. I remember my first winter in Germany walking through a park in Wiesbaden during a light dusting of snow. I happened upon a man with a small food cart. The air was cold and I was hungry. As I observed him expertly making crepes I noticed it was just a few deutsche marks for his snack so I asked the man in my best possible German what was good. He recommended a Nutella and banana crepe. I asked what this Nutella was and he could not describe it due to our language barrier. He told me to try it and if I didn’t like it I would not owe him a pfenning. Upon my first bite I quickly realized I should pay him double.
You can do a lot with this hazelnut spread. The number of ways to enjoy it are simply limitless. Beyond the banana and Nutella crepe, I learned in England it is quite delicious to put it on (or in) a croissant. Little crackers or toast is also very nice. Applying it to the top of a pancake or french toast is also lovely.
I have used it in cupcakes by hallowing out the inside of the cupcake and filling it with Nutella and coating the top of the cake with a rich chocolate frosting. Maybe next time I will include a wedge of banana. I am also working on a recipe to incorporate Nutella into Boba Tea.
One of my favorite recipes involving Nutella is also the simplest: grab a spoon and a jar of Nutella. Insert spoon into jar extracting a well rounded scoop of the hazelnut spread. Lick the deliciousness off the spoon.
Yes, that is the best way to go.
World Nutella Day is February 5. February 5th is also my birthday. On this day we always require a lot of Nutella. I’m just saying…
Have you tried Nutella? What is your favorite way to have it? Where did you first experience its amazing tastes and flavor? Let me know in the comments below. Would love to hear from you.