I <3 Nutella. I always have, and I always will.
My mom used to drop me off at my grandmother’s when I was little to hang out with her. We would play outside in her garden, watch TV, and she’d make me Nutella sandwiches (yes, sometimes more than 1). I fell in love at a young age. To this day, I will always choose the Nutella dessert over anything else.
Once the flood-gates were opened, I begged my mom for Nutella all the time. She would send me to school with a packed lunch, including, you guessed it….a Nutella sandwich. Kids would look at it and say “what IS that?””Oh..just a chocolate sandwich” Hey…it’s made with skim milk, it’s healthy!
The problem with Nutella is, sometimes there just isn’t enough. Have you ever gotten something Nutella, and it just tasted like chocolate? Yes…me too. It’s sad and underwhelming.
That got me thinking…
I need to make a buttercream that is SO CLEARLY Nutella. It should be simple, but with that distinct, delicious and hazelnut flavor we’ve all grown to love. It has 4 ingredients: Nutella, powdered sugar, softened butter, and milk (or half & half or cream). You can beat it up in under 10 minutes, and you have a fluffy, homemade buttercream.
What can I pair this with?
Do you even need anything to pair it with?! Just kidding…sort of. I love to top brown butter cupcakes with this frosting. If you’re a die-hard chocolate fan, either chocolate cupcakes or brownies are perfectly balanced when topped with Nutella buttercream. You can even just use it as a filling as layer cakes. One of my favorite things is to dip strawberries into Nutella. Why not dip into Nutella buttercream?! 🙂
Nutella Buttercream
Ingredients
- 1 cup of Nutella
- ½ cup of powdered sugar
- ½ cup salted butter, softened (114 grams)
- Splash of milk (or half & half/cream)
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or you can use a hand-held beater), beat with the whisk attachment the Nutella, powdered sugar and butter until it starts to lighten in color – this will take about 5 minutes. Half way, scrape down the bowl to make sure you have everything incorporated. Drop a splash of your milk, half & half, or cream, just to keep it fluffy, and beat another minute or two.
Notes
This recipe will frost 12 cupcakes, if using a knife or off-set spatula. If you’re piping the frosting for 12, double the recipe. Double layer cake: 3x the recipe Triple layer cake or 24 piped cupcakes: 4x To keep fresh: If you’re using the next day, you can leave at room temperature in an airtight container. Otherwise, it can stay in the fridge for up to a week (also in an air tight container). Let it come to room temperature before using. You may have to re-whip it to bring it back to life.
