Nutella Is The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Alternative In Your Baked Goods

Nutella might be a deliciously spreadable topping for French toast or filling for crepes among other uses, but it has so much untapped potential. That's why you need to try Nutella chips, a deliciously decadent alternative to traditional chocolate chips that will elevate your baking to new heights. Making and using Nutella chips is easier than you might think, and the results are downright irresistible in everything, including cookies.

To make Nutella chips, simply spoon small dollops of Nutella (or pipe it from the snipped tip of a plastic bag) onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing them out evenly. Pop the baking sheet into the freezer and let the Nutella freeze until firm, about one or two hours. Once frozen solid, carefully peel the Nutella off the parchment paper, and voila, you've got yourself homemade Nutella chips ready to be used in your favorite cookie recipes.

But why freeze the Nutella chips before mixing them into baked goods? The answer lies in their consistency. Nutella has a tendency to melt quickly when temperatures begin to rise. This can result in a gooey mess and uneven distribution of the chocolatey goodness. 

Freezing the Nutella chips beforehand helps to firm them up, ensuring that they hold their shape during mixing and baking. This prevents the Nutella from bleeding throughout the dough or batter of your baked good as you mix it together or becoming too sticky to work with. But keep in mind that using the spread to stuff baked goods,such as gooey chocolate hazelnut-filled cookies or molten chocolate lava cake, still requires freezing it first.

Compared to adding dollops of Nutella directly into the dough, using frozen Nutella chips offers several advantages. The frozen chips mimic the texture and appearance of traditional chocolate chips, resulting in cookies, brownies, pancakes, and more that look and taste more like the classic chocolate chip version you might be used to. Also, the Nutella flavor is evenly dispersed throughout, giving you a consistent burst of rich, chocolatey goodness in every bite.

So, the next time you're craving a batch of homemade cookies with a twist, consider swapping out traditional chocolate chips for Nutella chips. With their irresistible flavor and perfect texture, these little nuggets of goodness are sure to become a new favorite in your baking repertoire.