20 Creative Ways To Use Nutella

Iconic chocolate hazelnut spread Nutella is nearly ubiquitous. Not only do you see it on grocery store shelves, it's often included in candy, ice cream, pastries and other sweet treats. At home, though, you may find yourself using Nutella in the same old way, likely spreading it on a piece of toasted bread and calling it breakfast or a simple dessert. This is doubtlessly tasty, but Nutella has range, and you shouldn't resign yourself to using it for the same old purposes time and time again.

Don't worry — you don't have to brainstorm your Nutella strategy on your own. We've compiled a list of innovative ways you can utilize that jar of Nutella you have sitting in your pantry. To create the best possible list, we consulted culinary experts who reach for the Nutella on the regular. Try out some of these ideas for yourself, or simply allow them to inspire you to use the delectable spread in a whole new way. Regardless, you're in for a delicious experience.

Fudgesicles are a highlight of the warmer months of the year, but you probably don't always have them on hand. If you're craving that flavor profile but have an empty freezer, take heart: You can make ice pops with Nutella that taste just like Fudgesicles. And the best part? You only have to use three ingredients to make them.

First, grab your jar of Nutella. Then, get some milk along with Cool Whip or heavy cream. Put all of your ingredients in a blender and blend it up to get the smoothest, creamiest consistency possible, then pour the mixture into popsicle molds. Freeze them for a few hours, and you'll have Fudgesicle taste-alikes that you'll be snacking on all summer long.

If you love sweet breakfasts, there's perhaps no better way to start the day than with French toast. But after you use the same old French toast recipe again and again, you may start to get tired of it. Consider making Nutella French toast when this mood strikes. It's an easy twist on a classic recipe that makes every bite unique, more chocolatey, and deeply decadent.

To keep things from getting too messy, spread your Nutella in between two slices of bread, then form a sandwich with the slices with the Nutella in the middle. Then, you can dip the bread in the egg mixture and prepare the French toast as you would with a standard recipe. Are you drooling yet?

Nutella is delicious on its own, but it may be even better when combined with a touch of heat. That's where this recipe for chile chocolate hazelnut thumbprint cookies comes in. The star of the show in this recipe is, of course, Nutella, but the sweet spread is complemented by earthy cinnamon and the surprising flavors of cayenne pepper and chipotle chile powder, which give the combo some spice and delicious contrast. Don't worry, though — it's not so spicy that the sweet elements of the dessert are overwhelmed. 

Making this recipe from scratch means you can control the flavor profile completely. Feel free to add more or less spicy ingredients to accommodate your personal palate. Nutella cookies have never tasted this good — or this surprising.

Cookbook author, content creator, and food and lifestyle blogger Jessie-Sierra Ross of Straight to the Hips, Baby has a favorite use for Nutella, and it's delicious. She suggests adding the ingredient to your next cup of hot chocolate. "You might only think of Nutella as just a decadent spread," Ross remarked, "but I actually love to put it in my hot chocolate!"

"I use a traditional hot chocolate recipe of milk, unsweetened cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and a touch of sugar, and then add two heaping tablespoons of Nutella," she went on to detail. "Mix well and then heat. Nutella hot chocolate is a delicious treat and a great way to use this versatile ingredient in a new way." With this Nutella hack, your hot chocolate is getting a big upgrade.

Why stick to hot chocolate when you can upgrade plenty of other beverages with Nutella? Your morning brew is one such opportunity: Try adding Nutella to your cup of coffee and have your mind blown. It's incredibly easy to incorporate this ingredient into your coffee: You simply take a small spoonful or two of Nutella (depending on how sweet you like it) and add it to your mug of hot coffee. Make sure to mix it well so the Nutella melts and fully dissolves into the liquid.

Of course, you can enjoy your Nutella coffee black. But adding some milk or half-and-half ups the creamy factor, which complements the chocolatey flavor profile nicely. Before you know it, your standard cup of coffee has become something altogether decadent.

You're craving chocolate chip cookies, and you think you have all the ingredients you need to make them from scratch ... until you realize that you're missing what seems like the most important ingredient: chocolate chips. But no worries! You can replace the chocolate chips in your cookie recipe with Nutella.

Take your jar of Nutella and scoop out tiny dollops of the spread, dropping them individually onto a piece of parchment paper on a metal sheet pan. Then, put that pan in the freezer for a couple of hours. When you take it out of the freezer, you should be left with Nutella "chocolate chips" that you can easily mix into your cookie recipe. But don't stop at cookies — you can add your Nutella chips to a variety of other baked goods as well.

A plain old Nutella sandwich is a simple pleasure enjoyed by kids and adults alike. But you can also add other ingredients into the mix to make it an even more interesting snack. For a crunchy twist on a classic, add some chopped hazelnuts to your Nutella sandwich.

Technically, you can use any kind of nut to give your sandwich more crunch, but hazelnuts work especially well here because they echo the flavor of the spread itself. As a harder nut, they also provide an interesting textural element that takes this basic sandwich to a whole new level. Don't stop there, though. Try out peanuts, cashews (which have a wonderful natural sweetness), and even more exotic options, like macadamia nuts.

A Nutella sandwich is a classic, but what if you could take those flavors and put them in cookie form? That's exactly what you can do with this recipe for toasted hazelnut Nutella sandwich cookies. Not only do you get that beautiful hazelnut flavor from the Nutella itself, there are hazelnuts in the body of the cookie. The result is a harmonious combination of tastes and textures that intertwines the crunch of cookies and the creaminess of Nutella all in one bite.

What's more, these cookies are half-dipped in chocolate, which makes them even more beautiful and delectable. The result is impressive enough to share with friends and family, but you may want to keep them all for yourself.

Recipe developer Sarah Porter of As You Dish suggests using Nutella to make classic Dutch breakfast hagelslag — with a twist. "Hagelslag is an incredibly simple and easy thing to make, consisting of only three ingredients; bread, a smear of some kind, and chocolate sprinkles," she explains. "Traditionally, the bread (which can be toasted or not, depending on preference) is spread edge to edge with butter and topped liberally with the sprinkles."

Porter says that these days, many recipes for the dish call for chocolate spread, which is where Nutella comes in. Chances are, you already have everything you need to make this sweet breakfast at home. "Nutella and bread are both common pantry staples, so with only the addition of shelf-stable chocolate sprinkles the home cook has easy access to a fun, last minute snack or breakfast children and adults of all ages will love," says Porter.

It's always fun to make new, flavorful cocktails at home. If you're ready to take your mixology skills to the next level, you may want to try fat washing, which is the process of infusing fat into an alcohol of your choice. You can use a wide variety of different types of fat, but Nutella is an especially delicious — and unconventional – option for washing rum.

You'll want to use a dark rum, as this variety most closely melds with the luscious, cocoa-heavy flavors of Nutella. This results in a complexity that will impress even the most accomplished bartenders. It takes some time to learn how to fat wash properly, but once you master the technique, you'll never drink a boring rum cocktail again.

Craving dessert without having anything sugary in the house is a bummer. But failing to have a pint of your favorite ice cream in the freezer doesn't mean you can't whip up something sweet in a pinch. That's where this recipe for an easy, two-ingredient chocolate soufflé comes in.

The star of the show is Nutella, of course, which lends both intense flavor and a velvety texture to the dish. Grab two eggs, then whisk them into the Nutella. Put the whole mixture in the oven for 15 minutes. Voila: You have one of the simplest (and most delicious) desserts you've ever made at home. Top it with fresh berries, a drizzle of chocolate or caramel sauce, some powdered sugar, or whatever else you have on hand to really amp things up.

You've finally finished that jar of Nutella that's been sitting in your pantry, leaving nothing but chocolatey dregs that are impossible to extract. You may assume that you just have to trash those last few morsels of hazelnut-cocoa goodness, but you can actually harness them if you know what you're doing.

The next time you have an empty Nutella jar on hand, consider serving ice cream out of it. It can add an interesting extra layer of sweetness to an otherwise standard cup of ice cream. Of course, this works well with ice cream flavors that already feature some chocolate notes, but you can also use this hack with fruitier ice creams as long as they're still milk-based. This is also a super easy way to upgrade a boring serving of vanilla ice cream.

If you've ever been to Puerto Rico around the holidays, you've probably experienced the pure joy that is a cup of coquito. Coquito is a rum-based cocktail that combines condensed milk and coconut milk for a rich and creamy eggnog-like beverage. This is delicious in its standard form, but don't ever feel like you always have to stick to the classics. One easy way to upgrade this drink? Add some Nutella to your coquito.

The great thing about using Nutella in this cocktail is the fact that it's not going to mask the flavor of the coconut. Rather, it enhances it and adds a creamier edge to the already indulgent beverage. Just remember that a coquito in its natural state is quite sweet, as is Nutella, so you'll want to taste as you go to ensure you're not adding too much sugar for your taste.

Plain French toast is delicious, but Nutella French toast is a gift from the dessert-for-breakfast gods. However, because it's so messy, it's something most people reserve for slow weekend mornings. If you're craving Nutella French toast on a morning when you simply have to be on the go, you may want to try making handheld Nutella French toast.

It's actually incredibly easy to turn this iconic breakfast into a handheld snack. After you spread your Nutella on the bread of your choice, simply roll the slice up, creating a long, thin French toast log. Because the Nutella is on the inside of the roll, you don't have to worry about it getting everywhere as you eat. You can even munch as you head out the door.

Thumbprint cookies are a classic most sweets-lovers find hard to resist. While an average thumbprint cookie never misses the mark, that doesn't mean there aren't ways to upgrade this basic dessert. Adding a dollop of Nutella on top where jam traditionally goes can seriously take your thumbprint cookies to the next level.

The basic buttery base for a standard thumbprint cookie works especially well with the creamy texture and nutty flavor profile of Nutella. And you don't have to stop there. You can also sprinkle on some crushed hazelnuts for an added crunchy element, or add on some salted caramel sauce for a sweet-savory mix that's hard not to love. Shredded coconut is another excellent option if you'd like a tropical edge.

When you can't decide whether you want a drink or dessert, opt for a mudslide. This luxurious cocktail is more like a milkshake than a martini, and sometimes, that's exactly what you want. Although you'll find plenty of basic mudslide recipes on the internet, they're at their best when they're frozen and made with Nutella.

All you'll need for this easy recipe is some Nutella, along with vanilla ice cream and ice. But don't feel like you need to stop there. You can also add on plenty of other sweet toppings, like sprinkles, whipped cream, maraschino cherries, or even some cocoa powder for a beautiful topper. Once you try your mudslide with Nutella, you'll never want to go back to the basic version.

Kevin Ashton, longtime chef and culinary advisor at Restaurantji, says that one of his favorite ways to use Nutella is to add it to bread pudding. "Nutella enhances bread pudding by adding a rich, chocolate-hazelnut flavor that transforms it into a more decadent dessert," Ashton explains. "The creamy texture of Nutella blends seamlessly into the custard mixture, ensuring that each bit is infused with a distinctive taste."

All you need to do is blend Nutella with your egg and milk mixture to create that creamy base, then pour it over your bread. After it soaks in, you can bake your bread pudding until it's golden brown on top. For best results, follow Ashton's advice: "Serve it warm with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream."

It's nighttime, and your sweets craving just hit with a vengeance. Sadly, you don't have anything satisfying in the house — or, at least, you think you don't have anything in the house. Then you realize that you have all three ingredients needed to make rich, flavorful, three-ingredient Nutella cookies. All of your dessert dreams are about to come true.

Nutella is the most important ingredient in this recipe, but you also need an egg and some all-purpose flour. And that's it! The necessary moisture comes from the Nutella and the egg, and the flour creates the bulk of the cookie. This recipe doesn't yield a ton of cookies, but it definitely creates enough to curb your dessert cravings for the night.

Popcorn is one of the most versatile snacks out there. You can keep things simple with salt and butter, or you can opt for a more flavorful iteration using paprika, furikake, or whatever other spices and seasoning you happen to have on hand. But if you're craving this classic snack and you're looking for a sweet treat, Nutella should be your go-to popcorn ingredient. 

Nutella makes an everyday snack into an over-the-top dessert with plenty of crunch. And, since it only takes about 10 minutes to prep, you can have it ready in mere moments. Just make sure you wait for the popcorn to cool down before eating it, or you'll be left with an incredibly messy movie night situation.

There aren't many dishes more comforting than a grilled cheese sandwich, but most of us think of it as a purely savory dish. That's not necessarily the case, though, especially when you make a Nutella grilled cheese sandwich. This dish combines the salty, savory flavor of cheese with sweet, nutty Nutella in a package that's creamy, innovative, and delicious. Put these two ingredients between some buttered and griddled bread, and you have a treat like no other.

All you need is some stracchino cheese, Italian bread, butter, and, of course, Nutella. Put it all together as you would a standard grilled cheese, and grill as usual. You may never go back to the Kraft-style version again. Just be warned: Things can get seriously messy when you're digging into this delicious sandwich. Have a napkin — or more than one — at the ready.