Spinnaker Chocolate
Gianduja Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
Good +
Weight: 1.27 oz. (36 g.) / 9 oz. (255 g.) in total jar
Calories: 210 calories in 2 TB serving
Cost: $16.00 (free shipping as part of larger order) for 1 jar
Purchased from: Spinnaker Chocolate, online order
Welcome to Day #14 of Chocolate and Nuts Theme Week.
Today's Gianduja Chocolate Hazelnut Spread was from Spinnaker Chocolate (Seattle, WA). The company also offers a line of single origin (bean to bar) chocolate bars.
Aroma notes included chocolate, nuts and very faint cereal and oat.
Texturally, this spread was similar to thick, nutty chocolate frosting. The creamy paste (that held tiny bits of oat (oat flour) and hazelnut) was made using Spinnaker's dark oat-based milk chocolate.
I could envision using this oat-hazelnut chocolate spread as frosting between cake layers, atop cupcakes, or between layers of ice cream (or dairy-free equivalent frozen desserts, parfait style). Or, it could be eaten with oatmeal, or plain--perhaps as part of a small vegan dessert plate.
The oat flour component cushioned the sweetness level a bit. It was not too sweet (thank you). But, it also (similar to dairy and other nut milks when blended with chocolate items) muted the chocolate and hazelnut notes.
I admire chocolate makers who venture into spreadable chocolate. There are always trade-offs to be made with spreads to maintain the desired texture and flavors over time.
Today's gianduja* was made with a short list of ingredients--without preservatives or artificial ingredients--and provided an opportunity to try an oat milk chocolate version of a classic gianduja chocolate and hazelnut. spread.
Ingredients: Dark oat milk chocolate (cacao bean, organic cane sugar, oat flour, cocoa butter), blanched hazelnuts, organic coconut oil, sunflower lecithin, sea salt flakes.
Allergen-related information: Contains: coconut, hazelnut. Processed in a facility that uses milk powder and nuts.
Note: the oats (oat flour) used to make this Spinnaker bar may or may not be gluten free.
*According to a Wikipedia entry from several years ago, the word gianduja that has ties to the Piedmont region of northern Italy (where some of the best hazelnuts in the world are grown).
Gianduja, is a "carnival and marionette (puppet) character who represents the archtypical Piedmontese, a native of the Italian region where hazelnut confectionery is common." Gianduja is also represented as one of the masks in the Italian commedia dell'arte.
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