Chocolate Dusted Hazelnuts are a great way to get your chocolate fix with less sugar plus the benefits of healthy fats, fiber, and protein in the nuts.
When I was pregnant with my first child, there were a lot of things I thought I would never allow my children to do. Like get any amount of screen time or eat prepackaged convenience foods.
LOLOL!! It all fell apart with the birth of my second child, and I got way busier, and realized that in the grand scheme of things, it didn't really matter anyway.
Packaged convenience foods definitely have their place, and just like the breastfeeding vs. formula feeding debate, fed is always better.
But convenience foods also provide more calories and fewer nutrients than many homemade foods, and also often cost more and create more packaging waste.
So I often try to find healthy "snack foods" to feed my kids that they'll actually eat. Nuts are a good choice for at home, but my kids prefer flavored nuts. I didn't want to coat them in sugar, so I made these Mexican Hot Chocolate Dusted Hazelnuts. They have much less sugar than your standard chocolate coated nuts, but still have a strong chocolate flavor from the cocoa.
How to make Cocoa Dusted Hazelnuts:
Start by whisking together the cocoa powder, powdered sugar, cinnamon, and cayenne (if using) in a medium bowl.
Roast your hazelnuts in a skillet over medium heat. Shake the pan often so they don't burn. Once they smell fragrant and are beginning to brown, transfer them to the bowl with the cocoa mixture and shake to coat. The powder should mostly stick to the hot nuts. They're ready to eat when they're cool.
Cocoa Dusted Hazelnuts Ingredients:
Feel free to tailor this recipe to meet your tastes: I used hazelnuts because I love the chocolate and hazelnut combo. You could use almonds instead. I added cinnamon and a bit of cayenne to give them an extra kick, but feel free to skip that and just have "Cocoa Dusted Nuts".
- Raw hazelnuts: or replace with almonds, or any other raw nuts of your choice
- Cocoa powder: it doesn't matter what kind you use here. Natural or Dutch-processed will both work just fine.
- Powdered sugar: Powdered sugar incorporates with the cocoa powder very well. Don't substitute with another type of sugar here.
- Cinnamon: This is optional, and paired with the cayenne, gives the nuts a Mexican hot chocolate flavor
- Cayenne: this won't make the nuts too spicy, but feel free to skip it if you want.
Want more recipes with nuts?
Mexican Hot Chocolate Dusted Hazelnuts Nutrition Notes:
The nutrition information in the recipe below is for ¼ cup of hazelnuts.
This recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan as written.
Mexican Hot Chocolate Dusted Hazelnuts
Equipment
- Small stainless steel skillet
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 Tablespoon powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon optional
- 1 pinch cayenne optional
- 1 cup raw hazelnuts
Instructions
- Whisk together 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder, 1 Tablespoon powdered sugar, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, and 1 pinch cayenne (if using) in a small heatproof bowl or container, preferably with a secure lid. Set aside.
- Roast 1 cup raw hazelnuts in a medium skillet over medium heat, shaking or stirring frequently. When hazelnuts begin to brown and become fragrant, transfer to the container with the cocoa mixture.
- Stir or shake well until the nuts are coated (the cocoa mixture will adhere in a thin layer to the hot nuts, but there will be some of the cocoa mixture left over). Cool before eating.
Shanon says
Powder sugar is refined sugar just blended longer
Carissa says
Yes...I didn't say it wasn't.