The Healthy "Nutella" Smoothie

It's true. We love(d) Nutella.

Chocolate, hazelnuts and sweetness- blended into the perfect topping for crepes, toast or eaten by the spoon. It's touted as a healthy start for the day, right?

I know I refused to look at the ingredients for too long because we loved it. The kids ate their whole grain toast and their buckwheat crepes with it. But I had some twinges of guilt that I was feeding this modified-oil and sugar combo to my family despite my organic leanings- and probably too often.

Despite the fact that we now sometimes use an organic alternative to Nutella for those weekend/special treat mornings, there are those days when we crave that classic Nutella flavour but want something healthier for our mornings.

May I present The Healthy Nutella Smoothie
(or Hazelnut Chocolate Smoothie)

Blend this all up and voilà, a tasty and a truly nutritious start to the morning! This makes one large smoothie, or enough for 2-3 smaller portions.

2 cups hazelnut milk (instructions below) or 1/4 cup hazelnuts and 2 cups water (*)
2 tbsp pure cocoa (dutch-process, the dark one)
4 dates, pitted (or more, according to your desired sweetness)
1 banana (frozen or fresh, peeled)
1 tsp vanilla
4 ice cubes

This is really a simple starting point. Add more cocoa if you like a more chocolatey smoothie, more dates for more sweetness- it is completely adaptable for personal tastes.

* Note: You can blend 1 cup soaked hazelnuts with 4 cups water very well, strain it through a nut-milk bag, fine cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer to rid it of the grainy texture. You will have enough to make 2 smoothie recipes or reserve additional for other uses. I have reserved the nut "meat" that is leftover to put in the freezer to use in nut loaf, cookies or pancakes. If you don't mind some texture in your smoothie, or have a super-powerful blender, just add the nuts and water and sip away!

Parmesan Crackers (or Gluten-Free Crackers)

If you have real chunk of parmesan cheese in your fridge, run to it now. You are lucky. Hold it closely to your chest and read on. If not, you may want to run to the store now.

A few months ago, we picked up a packet of some parmesan snacks as a treat for my cheese-loving son. They looked like crackers but when I looked at the ingredients, it was a short list: parmesan cheese. 

That's it. I was shocked. They were incredible. 

And they were high in calcium and protein for my little guy. They were also perfectly salty and satisfying that the small handful of crackers was all you needed.

I was determined to figure out how to make them just like those cute little crackers in the packet because although they were delicious, they were expensive and hard to find. 

I tried baking them on a cookie sheet and they turned out good as thin crisps to serve with salad but they weren't the nice little cracker that was portable.

I was racking my brain trying to figure out how to make them perfect. I finally figured it out one day as I was putting away my baking sheets and I saw it- the mini muffin tin! That was what would work to make the perfect cracker.

Then my obsessive-self worked on using different quantities of cheese to figure out the perfect amount to make that perfect cracker.

Here it is- the perfect parmesan cheese cracker: great for packing as a special school snack, serving with salads or soups or topping with fancy tomato chutney.

You may not forgive me for this one. Entirely addictive.

Of yeah, they are gluten-free, naturally. 

Parmesan Crackers

If you don't have a mini muffin tin, use a larger muffin tin (increase amount of cheese) or just bake on a cookie sheet in little mounds. There is no need to grease the tin as the cheese has enough fat to release easily.

Real chunk of parmesan cheese, grated on large hole grater (approx. 1 cup to get started)

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Pack 1 teaspoon measure with grated parmesan and then spoon into each mini muffin tin section.

3. Bake for 6 - 6 1/2 minutes, watching closely at end where it just slightly changes colour.

4. Remove from oven. Let cool at least 30 seconds before removing each with the tip of a knife or spatula onto paper towels. Let cool. 

5. When cool, store in sealed container.