I interrupt this maternity leave to make a very important confession. Are you ready? ::Deep breath::
Here it goes…
As you know, I often get approached by various food companies to review their latest products on That’s SO Jenn. (It’s a tough job, but someone’s got to do it…) Therefore, when asked to create a recipe using Nocciolata, Italy’s organic chocolate/hazelnut spread, it was pretty much routine.
My process is fairly simple:
- Taste the flavor to understand what I’m working with.
-
Brainstorm culinary pairings.
-
Begin experimenting in the kitchen.
Here’s how it went down instead:
When it arrived, I took the
variety of samples out of the box, opened one of the small jars and slid a spoon into the smooth mixture to test it on my palette. As you can imagine, this carefully crafted blend of dark chocolate from the Antillean Islands, Italian hazelnuts, brown sugar, skim milk and Bourbon vanilla extract was divine.
Just to be sure that first dollop was pure satisfaction, I went in for another spoonful.
And another….and another.
Until I was left with the clinking harmony of my utensil against the glass vessel. If I had a witness, they may mention something about me licking the bottom. Fortunately, I had no such witness.
‘No problem,’ I thought to myself. There were plenty more perfectly portioned samples provided, and I could easily come up with a creation from that very thorough tasting session.
My mind swirled with ideas, and I feverishly began jotting them down. Perhaps, whipping up a filling for strawberries, mixing together a dessert dip to dunk biscotti in, blending a cool coffee drink, whisking it into a frosting for cupcakes, a filling for crepes, a topping for waffles, a hot fudge-like sauce for ice cream. It would be brilliant.
Fast forward to a few mornings later when the ONLY thing my then-baby-to-be and I found appetizing was more Nocciolata, this time with alternating scoops of peanut butter. Not on a sandwich or smothered on a piece of fruit. I’m talking another silverware-only session because this girl had no time to be bothered with interferences. The best part? This gluten-free, kosher treat is made without palm oil or hydrogenated fat, and has no artificial colors or flavors, so I actually felt good about eating it!
Over the next few weeks, I continued to ponder baking ideas, altering each concept for the shrinking amount of product I had remaining. They should have known better than to give a pregnant woman a shipment of this stuff. Until finally, it was gone. Someone had eaten it all. And that someone my dear friends, was me.
‘How would I proceed from here?’ I wondered, worrying my reputation was on the line. I pride myself on maintaining a respectable level of professionalism when working with each company, so you can imagine how it felt when I called the PR rep to admit what I had done.
“This is pretty embarrassing, but I seem to have eaten all of the samples…” I explained.
She snickered at the other end of the phone, offering a bit of female solidarity and understanding, especially in my then-pregnant state.
I continued, “However, it’s a true testament to Nocciolata that it’s so good on its own, it doesn’t need to be masked or shared with any other ingredients!”
She seemed to agree. We had an understanding.
As for me? Not a single regret.
For more information, visit nocciolatausa.com.
*Note: Although this is a sponsored post, the opinions are my own. (Obviously. I mean, you can’t make this stuff up.)
You can substitute organic Nocciolata for any of That’s SO Jenn’s chocolate/hazelnut recipes:
TSJ’s Peanut Butter, Nutella Hot Chocolate, Chocolate Hazelnut Truffles, Chocolate Chip Nutella Cookie Sandwiches
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