This recipe started with me in the waiting room of my daughters’ dentist reading Family Circle. My eyes happened upon a recipe for Chocolate Hazelnut Pie submitted by Brenda Melancon of Gonzales, Louisiana. Nutella? Oreo Crust? Yes please. I took a photo of the recipe with my phone and went on with my life. Fast forward to now and World Nutella Day.
Just in case you don’t know what Nutella is, it is a sweetened chocolate hazelnut spread. Think ultracreamy peanut butter with hazelnuts instead of peanuts and with chocolate and sugar melted in. There are other chocolate hazelnut spreads, but Nutella is the biggest and the best.
I was first introduced to to this sinful concoction by my husband. As a teenager living in Germany, he used to spread Nutella on fresh crusty rolls called Brotchen. That was breakfast. My favorite way to eat Nutella is out of the jar with a spoon (I can’t keep it in the house), but this dessert may come in a close second.
I used the original recipe in Family Circle as a jumping off point for my own Nutella Cream Pie. I felt it necessary to double the Nutella because I find that Nutella flavor is diluted when mixed with other ingredients and baked. Second, I added more chocolate so that it would be sufficiently chocolatey. Lastly, I added a little salt and vanilla to amp up the flavors a bit.
The resulting pie was rich, chocolatey, smooth and crunchy. It’s pretty fantastic actually. All hail Nutella!
Nutella Cream Pie
Adapted from a recipe by Brenda Melancon of Gonzales, Louisiana
CRUST
- 25 oreos
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- large pinch of kosher salt
FILLING
- 1 (8 ounce) package of cream cheese, softened
- 2/3 cup Nutella Spread
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate, melted
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- large pinch of kosher salt
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts, finely chopped
TOPPING
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts, coursely chopped
- additional Nutella for drizzling, warmed gently in the microwave
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Process Oreos in a food processor until fine crumbs. Mix in melted butter and a large pinch of kosher salt.
Press into the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie plate.
In a mixer, blend together the cream cheese, Nutella, chocolate, sugar, vanilla and salt. Mix until thoroughly incorporated, about 1 minute. Add the egg and mix until glossy and smooth, about 1 more minute. Stir in the chopped toasted hazelnuts.
Pour all this into the Oreo crust.
Bake in for 30 minutes until the center is just set.
Let cool to room temperature. Put the cream, 2 tablespoons sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla in a mixer and whip until soft peaks form. Spread the sweetened whipped cream over the pie. Sprinkle with remaining chopped hazelnuts and drizzle with warm Nutella.
Yummm! I may have had two slices. Don’t judge me. Now where is my spoon to eat the rest of that jar of Nutella?