Slather some Nutella chocolate hazelnut spread on these super cute Nutella toasts and you’ll be the hero of your kitchen! Whether eaten by the spoonful, spread on these tempting toasts or transformed into a truffle, the chocolate hazelnut flavor combination is always a crowd pleaser.
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Why you’ll love this recipe
This is a no-recipe recipe. Follow my instructions exactly or let your imagination run wild. Or fall back on the most basic of combinations, a large swath of Nutella spread on a plain slice of bread.
The inspiration for this recipe is two-fold: a Dorie Greenspan recipe from her book Around My French Table called Nutella tartine. A tartine is an open-faced sandwich. I learned about Dorie’s Nutella tartine in an online baking group called French Fridays with Dorie. A Nutella tartine Dorie-style is a slice of brioche or challah (egg bread) toasted, slathered with butter and marmalade, drizzled with chocolate hazelnut spread, then topped with chopped hazelnuts and a sprinkling of sea salt.
Dorie explains that in France, a chocolate sandwich is a common after-school snack – the French version of milk and cookies. In Molly Wizenberg’s book A Homemade Life she recalls the first time her parents took her to Paris and the food she most remembered was pain au chocolat and chocolate stuffed in a baguette! Sometimes it is really just the simple things…
For ease of browsing, here are all of my appetizer and snack recipes in one place.
The second influence was a poem my daughter wrote for her middle school English class. She adores most sweets, but at the time she wrote the Ode to Nutella, Nutella was a near addiction, providing the perfect spoon-sized study break.
Nutella Poem
Before we move on with the recipe, I have to share my daughter’s middle school ode to food …
Ode to Nutella by Alison Lee A hint of hazelnut, and a burst of heaven You hit my tongue and I am in a daze Dense and smooth, you taste so good You never fail to amaze Too much, and you ail my health Too little, and I crave for more Oh, Nutella, what would I do without you? Nutella, Nutella, you are the one I adore I eat you by the spoonful No crackers to dip, wash the decadence astray You are so rich, so incredibly delicious No need for anything to stand in your way Dear Nutella, you are my obsession I could eat you day and night and never tire I wish I could have you in infinite supply Nutella, Nutella, you are my only desire
Ingredients You’ll Need
The ingredients you see in the photo and listed are suggestions – you can and should try other breads and toppings. The only constant is the Nutella or your choice of chocolate hazelnut spread!
Bread choices:
- Brioche or Challah: An egg-based soft bread like brioche or challah toasts beautifully and is an excellent choice for creating your tartine Nutella.
- Mini baguette slices: I found sliced sweet baguette at a local grocery and thought they would be perfect, allowing me to create and taste lots of different toppings.
- Sandwich bread or country bread: Use the bread you have – sliced sandwich bread or a crusty country loaf would work as well!
Topping ingredients:
- Nutella: Whether store-bought or homemade, the chocolate hazelnut spread is the star of this recipe.
- Citrus marmalade: The original Dorie Greenspan recipe pairs orange marmalade with the Nutella, brioche and hazelnuts. When doesn’t orange and chocolate work well together?!!!
- Toasted hazelnuts: Since hazelnuts are the base ingredient of Nutella, they offer the perfect crunch factor on any of these toasts.
- Toasted pistachios: The color and flavor of pistachios complement the Nutella and the fruits nicely.
- Toasted sunflower seeds: Sunflower seeds are another easy way to add crunch and texture.
- Toasted pumpkin seeds: Another great texture and crunch choice.
- Toasted unsweetened coconut: Shredded coconut is best and is an especially nice combination with the bananas.
- Sesame seeds: If you’re going to use the tahini, sesame seeds are a natural crunchy addition
- Tahini: Made of ground sesame seeds and used like peanut butter in the Middle East, this is a fantastic combination with the Nutella. Also adds protein to your toast.
- Strawberries: Chocolate and strawberries – do I need to say more?
- Bananas: Bananas married with the tahini was a surprising and wonderful combination.
How to make this recipe
1. Pick your bread option and slice.
2. Toast your slices of bread.
3. Prep your toppings and have them at the ready. If you want to have a Nutella toast bar, prepare as many toppings as you like and have each one in a separate bowl with a spoon for each.
4. Slather on the chocolate hazelnut topping (Nutella).
5. If you want a jam base like for the Nutella tartine, the jam goes on first, then the Nutella.
6. Then onward with the rest of the toppings. Have fun and try different combinations.
Expert Tips and FAQs
- Toast your bread lightly – a little crunch is good but you want a little softness too so the Nutella melts together with the bread when you chew it.
- Be creative with the toppings. Think about the jams, fresh fruits, nuts, seeds and dried fruit you have on hand and have some fun!
- Nutella and most chocolate hazelnut spreads are fairly sweet which can overpower the flavor of anything else paired with it. So don’t lay on the Nutella too thick if you want the other flavors to stand out as well.
You can and in fact Dorie Greenspan’s original recipe calls for it. But I think there is plenty of richness from the chocolate hazelnut spread without using the butter.
Yes! Nutella was originally developed in Italy and is still served all over Europe. Turns out that the jars sold in the United States are made in Canada and have more sugar in them than the original from Europe.
Because chocolate and hazelnut is such a wonderful and beloved combination, many other brands have developed their own versions of chocolate hazelnut spread. For example, according to a blogging friend who is doing some in-depth chocolate hazelnut spread research, this brand called Eliot’s from Oregon is less sweet and tastes fantastic. I’ll add more information on Nutella-style spreads as soon as my friend finishes her post!
Yes! Use challah bread or brioche, slather some nutella on one slice and then put the two slices together like a sandwich. If you want to get fancy, you could put some of your toppings inside like the strawberries or bananas or coconut, but don’t overstuff it. Dip the “sandwich” in your French toast egg mixture and proceed as you would with regular French toast. Serve with fresh fruit and just a touch of maple syrup.
Other fun Nutella recipes:
Make your own Nutella-style spread!
P.S. If you try this recipe, please leave a star rating and/or a review in the comment section below. I so appreciate your feedback! AND find more inspiration on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. Signup for my email list, too!
Nutella Toasts
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup chocolate hazelnut spread or Nutella
- 4 slices challah or brioche (or mini baguette slices or sandwich bread or country style bread)
Optional Toppings
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds toasted
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin toasted
- 1 tablespoon sunflower seeds toasted
- 1 tablespoon tahini
- 1 tablespoon shredded coconut toasted
- 2 tablespoons hazelnuts toasted and chopped
- 1 tablespoon pistachios toasted and chopped
- 2 strawberries sliced
- 1/4 banana sliced
- 1/4 cup orange or citrus marmalade
Instructions
- Slice your bread of choice.
- Toast your bread.
- Gather your toppings.
- Spread nutella on your toasts. If making the nutella tartine version, spread your marmalade on before the nutella.
- Add toppings of choice. Eat immediately and enjoy!
Notes
- Toast your bread lightly – a little crunch is good but you want a little softness too so the Nutella melts together with the bread when you chew it.
- Be creative with the toppings. Think about the jams, fresh fruits, nuts, seeds and dried fruit you have on hand and have some fun!
- Nutella and most chocolate hazelnut spreads are fairly sweet which can overpower the flavor of anything else paired with it. So don’t lay on the Nutella too thick if you want the other flavors to stand out as well.
Nutrition
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we eat chocolate sandwiches every day!
The nuts on top look yummy!!
Ah yes, roasted hazelnuts to mimic the flavor in the nutella – they were lovely!
I frequently have Nutella as an afternoon pick-me-up. I say it’s comparable in nutrition to peanut butter (with a little less fat and a little more sugar. My way is smoothed lightly on a rice cake (gasp! treason!).
You have to put something on a rice cake to make it worth chewing. I had this conversation with my son recently – he said they are just vehicles for peanut butter, aren’t they? But nutella is starting to sound like a good alternative to the pb. If you’re really worried about the sugar/ingredient content, you can actually make your own.
Thanks for stopping by!
Yummo! I will have to remember this one! Simple yet sounds delicious!
Happy SITS Day!
Thanks. It’s low on effort, high on flavor!
Mmm…yum, I would LOVE that!
Happy SITS Day to you!
Thanks! Come by for another nosh soon!
OMG! YUM, for real! I’m going to try this as soon as I can… have to gather the bread and marmalade, but the Nutella I have. Can’t wait!
Do it soon – it will put a smile on your face from the very first bite!
If a chocolate sandwich is a typical after school snack in France – then I want to live in France and be a student who comes home from school and needs a snack. These look wonderful! Tres jolie!
I know, right?! Really a glass of red wine and a dark chocolate sandwich could sustain me. Ok maybe some water and fresh strawberries too but that’s it!
Terrific post! We are going to obsess over this for days. Seriously yummy and so simple. Everyone should have a tub of Nutella in their pantries, non?!?! Loving your blog.
Thanks – the admiration is mutual.
And don’t obsess over this – just make it and eat it! It will be a perfect Valentine’s treat!
Simple is good! I tried making my own marmalade and it turned out to be a waste of time and money and ended up in the trash!
Oh no! Well it’s not a total waste – you always learn something in the kitchen, even when you don’t succeed! Thanks for stopping by!
again what you made looks and I am sure tastes yummy. As I have said before grandma would be proud of your baking abilities. She used to put chocolate, cocoa and nuts in her
coffee cake and it was to die for. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
Oh how I wish I had that recipe….
Simple sometimes really is best. Why mess with a good thing!
Great minds….
Thanks for coming by.
I grew up with Eurocrem (another Italian hazelnut-chocolate concoction, in which the layers are separated, very yummy), rather than Nutella, and for a few years I was an addict:) But I never really liked this spread on bread, even though it is ubiquitous in Europe.
I sometimes get in to that groove that I have to make everything myself (my sister teases me all the time and asks when I am buying the herd of cows to make my own leather products:), but if you can find a source of great products that satisfy your standards, I don’t see a problem with making it easier on yourself:)
I hope you are having a great weekend!
How interesting Lana – never heard of Eurocrem or saw it when we were there a few years ago.
The only person in my young life that made most things from scratch (at least baked goods) was my grandmother. My mom and aunts, not so much. While I aspire to learn what my grandmother did, I can’t kid myself that my life just doesn’t afford me the luxury to do it all. I experiment when I can and I take short cuts when I have to!
There’s nothing wrong with simple and good. Life needs things like that.
Couldn’t agree more. I’ve done my share of complicated cooking but life just doesn’t allow that right now. So simple and yummy it is!
That looks yummy 😀
Tastes even better than it looks!
In France, the brioche would be from the bakery and the other ingredients likely would be, too. So your version’s authentic. 🙂
Teresa – I can always count on you for an uplifting comment! I think Dorie did mention that nobody makes their own brioche in France because it is so widely available. Heading over to see your post soon…