A couple of weekends ago, my hubby and I headed down to the Jersey shore to spend the weekend with my parents. It was my mom’s birthday, so I made my chocolate banana pudding pie to celebrate.
The pie features an easy graham cracker crust, a homemade chocolate almond milk pudding, a layer of sliced banana, and this time, I included a peanut butter whipped topping. My mom declared it one of my best desserts ever, so I would say it was a birthday treat success!
It got me to thinking about how I wanted to create a summery almond milk pudding recipe that’s paired with fresh seasonal fruit. Then I thought, wouldn’t a chocolate pudding be yummy with chocolate hazelnut butter swirled in?!
And that my friends, is how we arrived at today’s recipe.
This dairy free recipe is perfect for chocolate lovers. In fact, it features a chocolate trifecta of cocoa powder, chocolate chips, and chocolate hazelnut butter. The pudding is rich and velvety, and then the strawberries add a nice fresh fruit pop into the mix.
When you read the words chocolate hazelnut butter, I’m sure the first thing you think of is Nutella. I love swirling a bit of chocolate hazelnut butter on top of smoothies, pancakes, and fruit as a treat, and in the past I switched from Nutella over to the Justin’s brand of it – but in all honesty, that wasn’t doing it for me. I’m not sure if they changed their recipe or what, but all of a sudden, all of the Justin’s jars I bought had a dry, not easily spreadable texture. Not the stuff my nut butter dreams are made of.
And then one day, I was perusing through my Whole Foods store when I found Nocciolata chocolate hazelnut spread. The difference between Nocciolata and Nutella?
Nocciolata contains organic ingredients, a bit less sugar, and no milk or palm oil. They’re both a sugary spread, but Nocciolata is the healthier choice, and it has this dark chocolatey rich quality that Nutella does not. So, Nocciolata has since become a pantry staple (obviously!).
PS – This is not sponsored in the least bit…I’m just filling you in on a Nutella alternative!
To make this pudding, we first whisk together the cane sugar, cornstarch, cocoa powder and salt. Next, we whisk in the almond milk and place it over medium-low heat on the stove.
What comes next is a lot of stirring while the mixture thickens. It’s not hard at all, but the process reminds me of making risotto. It’s a test in kitchen patience! We stir, stir, stir until it approaches a pudding-like consistency and seems sort of sticky on a spoon.
Once we have the right consistency – which takes around 30 minutes – we add in the chocolate chips and chocolate hazelnut butter, whisking constantly until it blends into the mixture smoothly. The last part of the pudding prep is transferring the mixture to a small mixing bowl and refrigerating it for a couple of hours to achieve that thick pudding texture.
This pudding recipe is great to make ahead for an intimate dinner – and since it’s chocolatey rich, I personally don’t think you need to eat a ton to feel satisfied, which is why my portion sizes are on the smaller side. If you think you’ll want a big ole bowl of pudding (no shame in that either), double the recipe or have it serve just 2.
Whip up the pudding the day before or morning of, and then when it’s dessert time, slice up some strawberries, combine them in small bowls with the prepared pudding, and enjoy!
Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Butter Pudding with Strawberries
Ingredients
- 3 cups unsweetened almond milk
- ⅔ cup cane sugar
- 3 TBSP cocoa powder
- 2 TBSP cornstarch
- 1/3 cup chocolate hazelnut butter
- 4 oz dark chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
- ¼ TSP salt
- 2 cups strawberries
- Option to add a dollop of whipped topping i.e. coconut whip or whipped cream on top
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, whisk together the cane sugar, cornstarch, cocoa powder and salt.
- Transfer the saucepan to the stovetop and heat to medium-low heat. Whisk in the almond milk.
- Whisk often as the mixture begins to bubble and eventually thicken. Continue until it approaches a pudding-like consistency and becomes kind of sticky on a spoon (This is where I sneak in just a few taste tests!). This process will take around 30 minutes. Just keep whisking!
- Add in the chocolate chips and hazelnut butter, whisking constantly until it blends into the mixture smoothly.
- Transfer the mixture to a small mixing bowl and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or until the pudding is set. It should be thick and velvety.
- Divide the pudding into small bowls (I like using ramekins). Slice the strawberries and evenly place them into the bowls.
- Optional: Add a few extra chocolate chips on top and/or a dollop of whipped topping. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Linking up to the Meatless Monday party with Deborah and Sarah!
Tell me… Do you love chocolate hazelnut butter? What’s your all-time favorite nut butter?
strawberries and chocolate are always a winning combination! Would love for you to add this to meatless Monday next week
Just added it! Happy 4th of July, Deborah!
Oh man, I haven’t had a good pudding in…well…a long time. I can’t exactly remember when the last time was. That clearly needs to get fixed as the flavors in this chocolate hazelnut pudding sound amazing! Also, *high-five* for making the best dessert ever for Mom! 🙂 (Even if that does remind me of that scene from Elf…haha!)
I was the same way until earlier this year when I got sick and was on a liquid-only diet for a solid week. Pudding made a reappearance in my life then, and has been in it since!
This is one of my favorite things to indulge in, ever! I make my pudding with nutella but now i’ll look for Nocciolata.
Oooh yes, look out for the Nocciolata!
Well this pudding sounds and looks amazing! Can I get a big ole bowl of this delivered to my house please? 🙂
Coming right up! 🙂