The amount of sugar we consume as a family has been concerning me for ages and this week I finally managed to do something about it. From a look at my Pinterest boards you'd think I mainlined the stuff but I don't bake that often. My kids are skinny now but no one sets out to raise fat kids so I'm making changes now in the hope that they'll stick.
I thought about cutting out sugar completely but the idea gave me a sense of dread in the pit of my stomach (I am a little ashamed to admit that) so I have decided to target the biggest culprits and work from there. For my youngest son it's Nutella, or whatever brand of chocolate hazelnut spread is on offer. I didn't have a recipe for this but I believe I may be some sort of chocolate whisperer because this turned out perfectly.
1 jar of hazelnut butter (I got mine from Holland & Barrett).
1/4 cup cocoa
2-3 tablespoons of agave syrup.
Mix it together, try not to eat too much (it's divine - just like a Ferrero Rocher) and feel all smug.
Non-Sugar purists will point out that agave syrup is fructose and therefore EVIL, however I will say that a) it's what I had and b) it's a damn sight better than what we have been eating. My plan is to gradually reduce the sweetness over subsequent batches.
You can make your own hazelnut butter by simply roasting 200g of hazelnuts and putting them in a food processor until they are practically dust then mixing with oil (coconut would be good), but since I don't have a food processor I had to make do with a jar.
Next time I might experiment and make it with good melted chocolate but I don't want to spend a fortune so maybe not. My son, who is a creature of habit and does not welcome change, ate it quite happily and only commented the jar looked different. Result!
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