One of the things I miss most about not eating sugar, was Nutella. It’s one of my favourite treats but sadly it contains a lot of ingredients that we have to avoid on a keto diet.
Why should I avoid Nutella on a low carb diet?
Nutella contains ingredients such as sugar, and skim milk. Neither of these ingredients are suitable for low carb diets, due to their carb content and how the cause inflammation within our bodies. It also contains palm oil, which may pose an ethical issue for some.
You may be wondering how many carbs Nutella contains. A 37g serving of Nutella contains, 22g of carbs – 21g of this is made from sugar! That’s your daily carb allowance in ONE serving!
But just because Nutella isn’t low carb, doesn’t mean you have to deprive yourself of a hazelnut chocolate spread. I missed Nutella so much, that I soon came up with a way of making my own homemade low carb no-added sugar version! This low carb hazelnut chocolate spread tastes really similar to Nutella, and gives me that sweet hazelnut fix I needed while I follow this low carb diet.
The actual taste of the homemade hazelnut chocolate spread and how sweet it is will vary depending on what sweetener you use. I recommend using xylitol, but if you have a dog you’ll need to avoid this as it is toxic for them. Other keto-friendly sweeteners you can use include erythritol, monk fruit sweetener, and stevia.
This low carb hazelnut chocolate spread isn’t too difficult to make, but you do need a blender to blend hazelnuts into a paste. If you don’t want to blend the hazelnuts you can buy hazelnut paste (or hazelnut butter).
Keto Hazelnut Chocolate Spread
Equipment
- Food Processor
- Oven
- Baking Tray
Ingredients
- 300 g Hazelnuts You can also sub for hazelnut butter, to skip having to roast and blend the hazelnuts.
- 1 tbsp Avocado Oil
- 2-4 tbsp Xylitol or Erythritol If you have a dog, do not use xylitol. It's not safe for the lil guys.
- 40 g Cocoa power
- 0.25 tsp salt
Instructions
Toasting the hazelnuts
- Preheat your oven to 300F/Gas Mark 2/150C. Place the hazelnuts on a baking tray, and toast for 12-14 minutes until they become a light gold colour.
- While still warm, remove hazelnuts from oven, place them in a ktichen towel and rub them until the skins come off.
Blending the hazelnuts
- Once the skins are off, put the hazelnuts in a food processor and blend until they become a smooth paste. Add in the oil, and continue to blend. To guarantee you get a completely smooth paste you'd need quite a powerful food processor. Cheaper ones won't be quite as smooth, but still just as tasty.
- Once smooth, add in the cocoa, and salt. Blend further to mix it together. Then transfer to an air tight container/jar, and place in the fridge until set.
Tastes like nutella, but not as sweet.
Amaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazing. Using this on chaffles to make breakfast waffles and its SO GOOD.