No problem, I'll be the first to admit it: I used to eat Nutella straight from the jar with a large spoon. That's over now. But not because I can control myself better now... no, I've just found a better replacement! It comes in the form of roasted hazelnuts from Piedmont, which also form the basis for the famous brown spread.
The variety that is mainly cultivated in Piedmont is called Tonda gentile trilobata, which means something like the round, good-natured three-bellied. A beautiful name, isn't it? And so telling...
When you open the pack with the roasted nuts for the first time, the incredibly sensual smell of nougat hits you and makes your nostrils tremble gently in anticipation. And then the first bite: crispy, aromatic, sweet, nutty... Every single one of these pot-bellied balls tastes like a premonition of all the fine delicacies that can still be conjured up from them: nut cake, chocolate cream, hazelnut ice cream...
But nothing beats pure enjoyment, which is why I prefer to eat the nuts just like that. One after the other. You don't treat yourself to anything else! They also taste super delicious with cheese, especially with goat and blue cheese or with rich mountain cheese and are generally a great addition to any cheese platter!
For a quick energy kick in between, we have come up with a trio of super sins: it consists of a piece of aromatic mountain cheese (Abondance, Beaufort, Gruyère or Mängisch are ideal) with a flake of raw milk butter and a roasted hazelnut on top - like a cherry, so to speak the cream! This causes the blood sugar level to skyrocket and you have enough energy for everything that the day brings.
Another creation is this decadence, which we in the team call a “luxury sandwich”: a slice of toasted bread from the Bread Station, with mildly salted raw milk butter and a thick layer of pure Piedmont hazelnut butter on top. When the teeth bite through these three layers and everything between tongue and palate combines into a creamy layer of bliss... soooo good!
The pure hazelnut butter sounds so innocent, but it's a sly old dog: Unlike Nutella, it doesn't contain any sugar or chocolate, but we're dealing with almost pure nut fat here. However, the fat it contains is of the very best kind: 60 percent of the fats it contains consist of so-called unsaturated fatty acids, so one can say: consumption in moderation is quite healthy, especially since the high-quality vegetable oils of the hazelnut boost the fat metabolism. It's funny that fat boosts fat metabolism.
What the witch hazel also contains: high-quality proteins, vitamins A, B, C and E as well as valuable minerals such as iron, potassium, phosphorus and magnesium. Science has also proven that hazelnuts help lower blood cholesterol levels and boost memory and nerve function. Keyword “nerve food”. Well then!
So if your nerves are on edge again: treat yourself to a hazelnut or a luxury sandwich! Of course you will find everything you need with us.
