Brazil Nut Choco Nutbutter

Hey there :)

So, if you are looking for a Nutella substitute you are wrong here ;) I have been wanting to make my own twist of Nutella for a while, but this is not the recipe for it. Although this recipe asks for cacao and nuts (not even hazelnuts though), the outcome will be completely different than Nutella.

If you want something sweet move on. This recipe is not (Of course you can always add more sugar to change that though). But anyway, with said what this recipe is not, maybe I should say what it is ;)

It is just another take on nutbutter plus a bit of chocolate flavor. I have mainly been using brazil nuts in this one which gives this nutbutter a slightly bitter test, so the added sugar serves mainly as a counterpart and really barely sweetens it up. If you like dark chocolate I think you might like this recipe as well. If not, you might find the flavor too dominant. But on top of some grained bread, with bananas or apples on top I personally think it’s really good :)

I added some other nuts apart from brazil nuts as well though to not make the taste all too extreme. There are some mild and creamy cashews in it as well as some almonds and even a few pumpkin seeds to go with the very oily brazil nuts. Thanks to the brazil nuts though this nutbutter has a high selenium content, a mineral that is not found in a lot of foods but is essential for our body.

Also in this recipe I have used cacao instead of cocoa (unprocessed vs. porcessed) as it has more minerals, but you can sub it with unsweetened cocoa powder as well. The same goes for the coconut sugar. Brown or even white sugar works, but will of course have impact on the glycemic index, meaning you will absorb the sugar faster.

If you like your nutbutter crunchy, a perfect add in would be some cacao nibs added in after mixing by the way ;)

 

Recipe

prep time: pretty much depending on your mixer, 10-45 minutes +++ yields: about 1 ½ Cup

* a note on making nutbutter in general: you will need a strong blender or kitchen machine, just a normal blender barely works or will leave you with chunky and not so smooth butter as it lacks the power to release the oils. I use an omni blend and it works, a vita mix should do the trick as well and strong kitchen machines might be even better. But as I don’t own one, I don’t know for sure. I also needed to press the nut mixture back to the bottom time by time, so it’s savest to stay around your kitchen tool :)

 

Ingredients

• 1 ½ Cup / 250g brazil nuts
• ½ Cup / 80g cashews
• ½ Cup / 85g almonds
• ¼ Cup / 30g pumpkin seeds
• 1/3 Cup / 40g coconut sugar (or other sugar, you can add more for a sweet version)
• 1 tsp. vanilla powder
• ½ tsp. salz
• ¼ Cup / 20g cacao powder
• optional: cacao nibs

 

Instructions

Optional: Roast all the nuts and let cool.

Place all the nuts and pumpkin seeds in a strong blender or kitchen machine. On low speed blend the mixture until the oils are released and the texture is beginning to get smooth. You might need to press the mixture back down to the bottom of your blender to ensure the blades will grip them. Make sure sour engine won’t get too hot. If need be, stop for 10 minutes and continue. The time this takes depends a lot on your kitchen tool! It took me about 25 minutes to get a smooth texture and I needed to press the mixture back to the bottom several times.

Once the texture gets a bit smooth, add in the rest of the ingredients (except for the cacao nibs if using) and keep blending on low until the desired creaminess and smoothness is achieved. I had mine completely without any chunks in them.

Fill into jars and stir some cacao nibs into them if you want. Should last several months if the lit is airtight.

Don’t bother to get all the nutbutter out of your blender – it’ close to impossible. Instead add a banana and some almond milk and cinnamon and blend it up for a nice smoothie ;)