Move aside Nutella, we've got a new vegan Nutella in town!
Dairy-free, refined sugar-free, loaded with way more hazelnut flavor than Nutella has, and made with just four ingredients. You're going to be licking this homemade nut butter right off the spoon.
Oh, and if you start with roasted hazelnuts, it will be ready to devour in about 10 minutes.
What's in chocolate hazelnut butter?
- Dry-Roasted Hazelnuts: I buy mine pre-roasted from Trader Joe's, but if you only have raw hazelnuts, see the tip below for how to roast them yourself!
- Coconut Sugar: using coconut sugar keeps this chocolate hazelnut butter refined sugar-free. To make it completely sugar-free, you can use a Keto-friendly sweetener of your choice - just be sure to adjust the amount if your sweetener has more concentrated sweetness.
- Cacao Powder: or cocoa powder, for the chocolate flavor!
- Salt: just a pinch of salt amps up all the other flavors in this homemade vegan Nutella recipe.
How to Roast Hazelnuts: If you only have raw hazelnuts, spread them on a baking sheet and roast at 325 degrees Fahrenheit until golden brown around the edges and aromatic, about 10 minutes. Stir the nuts a few times during roasting. Slide the nuts onto a plate to cool completely; make sure they're cool before using!
How do you make chocolate hazelnut butter?
To make your very own homemade chocolate hazelnut, completely customized to your sweetness preferences, you'll need a food processor (I love this 5-cup cordless food processor - it's what I'm using for the photos) or a high-powered blender (like a Vitamix).
You will get the smoothest nut butter by using a high-powered blender.
The food processor nut butter will be just slightly more textured - both are delicious! Let's make it:
Step One: add your roasted hazelnuts to the food processor or blender. Blend for about 5 minutes (generally shorter if you're using a high-powered blender), scraping down the sides as necessary, until it breaks down into smooth, creamy nut butter.
It will go through stages of being powdery, to starting to clump together & ball up, before breaking down into a smooth butter.
If your food processor is struggling to break down the hazelnuts, add a teaspoon of oil to help the hazelnuts smooth out.
Step Two: once the hazelnuts have broken down into nut butter, add in the coconut sugar, cocoa powder, and salt.
Process again to incorporate all of the ingredients. Taste, and adjust any of the add-ins as necessary to suit your tastebuds!
Step Three: pour into a jar or container of your choice for storage.
Keep in the cupboard for up to a month (oil may separate out a bit - just stir it back in to incorporate) or store in the fridge for longer term storage. Enjoy on all the things!
How to use chocolate hazelnut butter:
...the options are endless! Be creative and make some delicious chocolate hazelnut goodness :)
Time to go make these chocolate hazelnut treats...
Homemade Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Butter
- Author: Rachel Conners
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 1½ cups 1x
- Category: Nut Butter
- Method: Food Processor
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
- Put the roasted hazelnuts in a high-powered blender (I use a Vitamix) or bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Process at medium-high speed for five to eight minutes, scraping down the sides of the container as necessary until smooth and fluid. Your processing time might be shorter if you're using a high-powered blender, and could take a little longer and require more scraping in the food processor.
- Once the hazelnuts have broken down completely and formed a smooth, fluid nut butter, add three tablespoons of the coconut sugar, the cacao powder, and salt.
- Process again for another 30 seconds to break down the coconut sugar and make sure everything is well incorporated. Taste and add the extra sugar, if desired. You can also add more salt, to taste.
- Transfer the nut butter to a 12-ounce glass jar with a tightfitting lid. Store in the pantry for up to one week or in the fridge for about one month.
