Looking for a healthy, simple Valentine's Day snack or dessert? Make these super quick, family-friendly heart-shaped strawberries and bananas with Nutella chocolate-hazelnut spread for a delicious Valentine's Day dessert!
Recipe: $1.76 | Per Serving: $0.88 | Yield: 2
Why This Works:
Nutella (aka chocolate-hazelnut spread) is absolutely delicious. It is made even more delicious when paired with things like crepes, strawberries, bananas, brownies and other desserts.
This dessert takes that simple dessert condiment and pairs it with heart-shaped strawberries and bananas for a delicious Valentine's Day treat!
For the sake of this recipe, I'm using a really simple shortcut chocolate spread, but know that you can use Nutella or any other chocolate spread you prefer.
Ingredients for This Recipe
Today we're making our own chocolate spread using almond butter, maple syrup, and cocoa powder. But you can absolutely use Nutella or another chocolate nut butter!
We don't go through a lot of chocolate-hazelnut spread in my house, so rather than buying a jar or making it from scratch, sometimes I will just mix up a chocolatey almond butter to use instead of Nutella.
Homemade Nutella
If you have a food processor, homemade Nutella is surprisingly simple to make. Store-bought name-brand Nutella is a milk chocolate spread, so it contains dairy, and it has more sugar than is typically recommended for young children, so plenty of people might want to make it themselves!
I could not find any recipes online that make chocolate-hazelnut "Nutella" spread the exact way I do, but this one is the closest! Try Downshiftology's Homemade Nutella.
I usually use powdered sugar instead of coconut sugar, Dutch process cocoa (affiliate link) instead of raw cacao, and have in the past used just a little olive oil in place of the coconut oil to prevent it from solidifying in the fridge!
Substitutes and Dietary Modifications
You can absolutely use other brands of chocolate-hazelnut spread! Nutella is the most common brand, but it isn't the most sustainable option since it uses palm oil (a major driver of deforestation), and as mentioned, it contains dairy and is higher in sugar.
Look for brands like Nutiva and Justin's online or at your local store, or check out the Nutella alternatives on this list.
- Paleo: if you include sugar on your Paleo diet, then yes!
- Vegetarian: yes! For vegans, please note that Nutella contains dairy.
- Low FODMAP: As long as your banana isn't too ripe, this is fully low FODMAP!
Looking for more delicious Valentine's Day Recipes?
When it comes to holidays - a lot of people prefer to go 'all in' with the traditional forms of their favorites, and that's totally okay!
For me, I often like to stick with foods that taste good and sit well - I mean, who wants to feel overstuffed or all around terrible on Valentine's Day? And that's why I've got healthy Valentine's Day recipes for you here!
Did you like this recipe? If so, please take a moment and give it a 5-Star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review and leave a comment further below! Don't forget to follow me on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Pinterest for more delicious recipes!
Valentine's Day Strawberries & Bananas with Nutella
Ingredients
- 1 medium banana medium ripe is best
- 4 large strawberries 4-6 whole
- ¼ cup almond butter more for drizzling if desired
- 1 Tablespoon cocoa powder raw or Dutch processed
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup more to taste
- ¼ teaspoons sea salt if needed
- 1 Tablespoon lukewarm water more if needed
Instructions
- Wash and dry strawberries and twist off the green top. Look at the strawberry and determine which side has the best natural heart shape and use this as your guide for where to start. (Note that some strawberries are uniform so all sides are equally good for making a heart.)
- Using a sharp paring knife, cut off the top white portion in a TRIANGULAR shape using two angled cuts. Then you will cut this strawberry in half from top to bottom, making a cut that is perpendicular to the triangle cut. If you have very large strawberries, you can cut this into 3 or 4 pieces instead of just two. See images or video for more details. Set aside.
- Peel your banana and slice into approximately ⅓-inch rounds.
- Place the round banana slice flat on the surface of your cutting board. Cut a very small triangular shape from the top to create the top of the heart. Then shape the bottom into the base of a heart by cutting a small angled sliver from either side of the bottom. See images or video in notes for more details. Set aside.
- In a small heat-safe bowl, warm the nut butter just until it becomes 'drippy'. This should take 10 seconds in the microwave. (Be careful here - if too hot, it will seize up and burn.) Combine the nut butter, cocoa powder, maple syrup, and salt (if using). Stir well - it will thicken and form a bit of a paste, but you can loosen this up by adding a little lukewarm water. (Or, optionally, a teaspoon of melted coconut oil.)
- If using a chocolate spread like Nutella, simply warm this in the microwave for a few seconds until it becomes looser and easier to drizzle. (Be careful here - if too hot, it will seize up and burn.)
- Arrange the strawberry and banana hearts in a bowl. Drizzle the chocolate nut butter over the fruit and enjoy! I like to use both plain nut butter and chocolate hazelnut spread if I have them both!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is an estimate and should only be used as a guide. Data is pulled primarily from the official USDA database, which can be up to 20% off. Optional ingredients are not included in the nutritional calculations. Be sure to leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating and join me on YouTube!
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