
If you love chocolate….can you put down your coffee cup…..
…and raise your hand.
This is the post for you.
And if chocolate is not your thing….
….no worries.
Come back tomorrow where we completely transform a free spool from the home improvement store into something that should be in the Guggenheim museum.
But until then…..
….let’s talk chocolate. 🙂

Can we all agree…..
….that not all chocolate is created equal.
There’s the substance that vaguely resembles chocolate that comes wrapped in Easter bunny foil.
It’s what you turn to when all the Reese’s and Snickers and Cadbury eggs are gone.
You want it to be chocolate.
You wish it was chocolate.
But really?
It’s like the fast food of the chocolate world….
….good in a pinch….but you end up regretting those calories later.

And then there’s the industry standard…
….Hersey’s chocolate.
Add almond and you have a slice of amazing.
Add a marshmallow and some graham crackers….
….and all is right with the world. 🙂

And just when we all thought we had the chocolate category figured out….
…along comes Nutella.
Seriously.
Have you tried it?
Roasted hazelnuts and chocolate swirled into one.
*sigh*
There’s nothing else like it.
So step aside random Easter bunny almost chocolate….
….and let Nutella take center stage. 🙂

Salted Cocoa Nutella Cupcakes
Â

Yields 12 cupcakes
Ingredients
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 1/2 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 1/2 tbsp. instant coffee
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup Nutella
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp. unsweetened almond milk
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt.
In another medium bowl, combine the eggs, sugar, instant coffee, vegetable oil and Nutella. Mix until smooth (with an electric mixer or wooden spoon), about 2 minutes. Add the almond milk and mix again until fully combined.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir until just combined. Avoid over-mixing.
Grease, spray or line a 12-cavity cupcake pan and spoon batter into each mold until about 1/3 full. If you’re left with excess batter, distribute it evenly among the cavities.
Bake on the middle rack for about 15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cupcakes comes out clean.
Let cool for 5 minutes, then move to a wire rack to finish cooling. When the cupcakes have come to room temperature, place a sheet of parchment or wax paper under your cooling rack, dunk the top of each cupcake into the Dark Chocolate Nutella Sauce (recipe below), and move back to the rack.
To finish, sprinkle each cupcake with a pinch of sea salt. You can serve these while the sauce is still warm, or you can allow it to set up a bit. If your kitchen is cool enough, these can be left out to set, or you can refrigerate them for 10-15 minutes before serving.
The SauceÂ
 1 oz. good, unsweetened dark chocolate, roughly chopped
1/4 cup Nutella
2 tbsp. coconut oil
1 tsp. sea salt (set aside for sprinkling)
In a small pot over medium heat, combine the dark chocolate, Nutella and coconut oil. You can use a double boiler for this to prevent scorching, but if you don’t, be sure to watch the mixture closely and stir constantly until it’s almost fully melted, about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir to melt the rest of the chocolate.
Allow the sauce to cool for a few minutes and thicken slightly before dipping the cupcakes.
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Posted On: March 20, 2014
Written By: KariAnne Wood
I wouldn't have thought to do a slated version of nutella! Yum o yum!!!! ~Cheryl https://snaps-of-ginger.blogspot.com/
Could you have possibly made anything that I would have LOVED MORE...um...the answer to that Tiffany is NO!!!!! I mean nutella...plus cocoa...plus dark chocolate...a hint of coffee and salt...I guess you could say I could eat one of these and die HAPPY!!!!!! Thank you so much for sharing this with us...it is an excellent recipe and one that needs to be kept at the top of the files! Now the only way you could make this better is to give us the NO-CAL version : ) By the way...your photos are magnifique!!!!!Hugs...
Looks absolutely amazingly delicious!...Are you still on Cloud Nine Kari!!...
Oh my! Oh my! These cupcakes look devine. I discovered Nutella a few years ago. Sometimes I have to hide from hubby it in the back of my cabinet. We can eat it off of a spoon. Ha! Let me know when you put them in the oven....it will take me a couple of hours to get to you. :) Sheila
Decadent ...sinful....you are quite the temptress Karianne! ;)
Good morning, Karianne. Happy Spring. Yay! Believe it or not, I have never, ever even tried Nutella before. I'll have to pick some up after reading this post. These photos are gorgeous. I love the presentation, styling and soft, country mood they evoke. I really look forward to Tiffany's regular contribution and it also gives me another excuse to pop over to yet one more blog for glorious photo inspiration. Hope you have a wonderful week, Lisa
I am a confirmed chooooooooccooooolat (no e at the end because I am never Late for chooocoooolat) -holic. (this is pronounced chooooooooo-cooooooooooooo-lat with a droooolll {wipe, wipe}. Now, I know I will have to load my mouth with a handfuuul of chooooocooolat chips before I can do anything else this AM. Thannnks for the temptation and the recipe. Jean McGee
Oh my goodness...now you 've done it....I'm trying to be so very very good and you absolutely RUIN it with this absolutely decadent recipe that NOW I will just HAVE to make...shame shame...on me! LOL
That is some kinda gawjus photography and presentation right there ladies! Now far be it from me to turn my nose up at any dessert, cheesecake just happens to be more my weakness. That said? Seriously, wished my computer came with scratch and sniff capabilities! Dang those things look amazing!
Um, so, I'm trying to get my weight down to an acceptable level so I can do my Weight Watchers weigh-in tomorrow and you put NUTELLA on my screen???????? Made into cupcakes?????? Oh, you are evil.
One of my guilty pleasures Chocolate. I have tried this product, it is great. Your cupcakes look good enough to eat off the page.
You know, I wasn't a Nutella fan until I had some nutella cupcakes with NUTELLA FILLING! O.M.G. But this? This sounds marvelous! The salt would just put it over the edge for me!! Thanks for sharing! (P.S. . . . . IT'S SPRING! :) )
This is really embarrassing but I just drooled all over my laptop. I hope I didn't short it out!! :-( But those cupcakes look ah maaaze ing!! I love Nutella!! It is so gosh darn good. Just give me a spoon and I'll take a big scoop. Don't tell anyone but I have double dipped. No one was watching so I don't think it counts, does it? I thought you might agree with me -- we can keep it just between us girls -- on the q t. And I can't wait to see what comes up in your post tomorrow.
Nutella *sigh* I so get it... : )
As soon as you said not all chocolate is created equal my thoughts immediately went to those chocolate "flavored" bunnies and started bouncing in my chair when I saw that someone else totally gets my disdain for those little posers...I mean and in the name of bunnies they present themselves as chocolate...they have no respect. ;) Seriously though, salted cocoa Nutella cupcakes? My world is never going to be the same.
These looks and sound outrageously amazing. I am desperate for one immediately!
drool....
These look so amazing-and at a difficulty level I just might be able to achieve! I was wondering- if I want to bring these puppies to a celebration how does the sauce set up? Will it make the cakes soggy if I frost at home beforehand? Thanks for the gorgeous post!