7th July is celebrated as World Chocolate Day but not like we need a reason to indulge in some chocolatey goodness! The most common form of chocolate most of us have in our kitchen pantries is the chocolate spread.
Check out the TexasRealFood chocolate promptuary to find out more local chocolatiers in Texas.
"Is there any better way of eating Nutella other than from the jar with a spoon?” I can’t tell you how many times I have heard this line. My reply, “Yes, actually. Don’t eat Nutella”.
I usually avoid telling people to ditch a food they are so clearly attached to. It can ruffle some feathers and feelings, or in this case, send hurt ones back to the Nutella jar. That being said, I love sharing some broad spectrum, useful information and offering my take so that it gives some guidance to those looking at healthier nutritional options for themselves and their loved ones.
Nutella has ruled the US chocolate spread market for more than 25 years. The Nutella that we know today was originally European. When chocolate was a hot commodity and its price skyrocketing, chocolate makers started adding hazelnuts to stretch the precious supply of chocolate. Hence the European version of Nutella was born.
Love for the chocolate grew like wildfire, and soon we were topping almost every food with Nutella. But the original recipe was far healthier than what we find on the U.S market shelves today.
What Is Wrong With Nutella?
Nutella tends to be eaten like nut butter (how long does butter last?), as it contains hazelnuts and is quite like nut butters in terms of fat and carbohydrate content. The difference comes in its sugar (how long does sugar last?) content and this difference is extraordinary.
Let us break it down and have a look at what Nutella is actually made of:
As you can read, sugar and vegetable oil are the first two ingredients, which means they are the highest in quantity compared to the others. Hazelnuts come third, at a meagre 13% and milk solids are even lesser, only 8.7%.
To Put It Simply, There Is Just Too Much Sugar!
A 2-tablespoon serving contains 200 calories, off which 99 come from 11 grams of fat and 80 calories come from 21 grams of sugar. To understand how much sugar there is in 2 tablespoons of Nutella, consider this. 4 grams of sugar make up 1 teaspoon. So, 21 grams, is 5 teaspoons of sugar and some!
The American Heart Association recommends that we keep our daily sugar intake between 6 to 9 teaspoons only. For kids this recommended limit is less than 6 teaspoons.
The distracting visual of hazelnuts falling across the screen in a typical Nutella TV ad should actually be replaced by a scene of plain old white refined sugar raining down. If we were to name this spread according to the concentration of ingredients it has, it would ideally be called, ‘Sugar oil spread’.
What Does Too Much Sugar Mean?
It really is a shame because Nutella does great school lunch programs to raise awareness towards children having breakfasts. To include Nutella’s chocolate spread to a school-going child's morning meal- over white bread, or in a wrap with a glass of “100% orange juice” from a box is just cruel. You are priming their body and brain for a crash. High sugar intake on an empty stomach spikes blood sugar. This causes a sudden dip mid-morning which is responsible for children feeling aggressive, acting out and being hyperactive. (Sounds familiar?)
While we are on the topic of unhealthy breakfasts, lets also get the “breakfast cereal” in our discussion. Boxed breakfast cereals are nutritionally void and are made from empty calories and highly processed ingredients. Breakfasts like these do nothing to support optimal learning levels or behavioral levels in a child.
What About The Fat?
Coming back to Nutella's ingredients, the 11 grams of fat is also overly concerning. Fat itself is a necessary part of a well-balanced breakfast, provided it comes from a clean source. The kind of fat in Nutella, comes from modified palm oil which is far from clean. Vegetable oils go through a lot of processing and genetic modifications to be shelf stable. Heat applied during the process renders them empty of any naturally occurring essential fatty acids. Consumption of refined oils is a major cause for inflammation, heart, liver and brain diseases.
Does It Even Have Any Chocolate?
Did you know that under Italian law, Nutella can only be called hazelnut cream and not eat chocolate cream. Wonder why? Apparently it does not meet the criteria for minimum cocoa solids to be called a chocolate product! Nutella is a modern take of the ancient Gianduja from Turin, a mixture that had 70% hazelnut cream and 30% chocolate. In 1800, the blockage of the Mediterranean region caused chocolate to become so scarce and precious the chocolatiers started adulterating it with hazelnuts. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Nutella, as the composition of hazelnuts is very little, and chocolate, even more so.
The Days Of Chocolate Spread Are Over?
No need to go cold turkey when it comes to chocolate! People's love for cocoa & nuts, and not necessarily wanting to OD on sugar has paved the way for many healthier alternatives.
We have put together some better tasting spreads that are responsibly made from organic sources and do actually have some chocolate in them!
Askinosie Hey Hey Hazelnut! Hazelnut Chocolate Spread
This spread is made from organic cane sugar, organic roasted cocoa nibs, fresh hazelnuts and natural cocoa. The makers also source 100% of their cocoa beans from small farmers. Hey Hey Hazelnut! has no additives or preservatives.
