Sweet of the Month for April: is perfectly light while still deliciously decadent
I don’t know what is it about April, or maybe Easter, but I start thinking about Nutella… weird? Last April I came up with this delicious Milk Chocolate Nutella Torte, that was a real Easter table stunner! I love the combination of chocolate with hazelnuts, what a brilliant invention. So I challenged myself to build on those flavours with something new, but just as deliciously decadent. That’s how Milk Chocolate Nutella Cream Pie was born…
I must admit, I’m totally a cake person. Not a big shocker to those of you that know me. While danish pastries, fruit-filled strudel and flaky pies are good, I really love me some cake. In the spirit of expanding my tastebuds and my horizons, I have stepped away from cake… sad face… and pledged to try a new sweet treat every month this year.
Cream pies aren’t at the top of the pie list, right? They are really just pudding in a pie crust, right? Well let me tell you, this is no ordinary chocolate cream pie. When you add in the creaminess of Lindt milk chocolate, and the hazelnut yumminess of Nutella… I have no words.
I’ve made the crust extra flaky by adding the moist goodness of canola oil. I developed this recipe originally for EatInEatOut™ Fall 2014 magazine. Check out the article with 3 great pie crust and filling recipes using canola oil.
I really suggest you garnish the top of the pie with a dusting of cocoa and some chopped toasted hazelnuts. I love the bit of crunch from the nuts combined with the smooth creamy pie filling- totally amazing! If you’ve got the energy, try roasting your own hazelnuts from raw. Here’s a step-by-step recipe from my Hazelnut Banana Cake with Buttered Rum Sauce from January 2014.
Did you miss our latest issue? The EatInEatOut SPRING 2015 issue is now online. I suggest you get a coffee and settle in for a great read over the long weekend. It’s the Healthy Eating issue, so there are lots of fresh and tasty meals to get you on the right track for spring. There is also an awesome new contest to win 1 of 3 UP Fitness Trackers. They are those cool bracelets that link by bluetooth your smart phone. They track your steps, diet, sleep and lots more. Enter to win!
Sweet of the Month will be sponsored by the awesome folks at Manitoba Canola Growers. All twelve recipes this year will contain canola oil, with it’s clean neutral flavour and powerful omega-3 fats… yah! Thanks in advance for supporting the great products that support EIEO.
I’m taking an extra-long weekend break so there will be no post on Monday. I’ll be back with a new recipe on Thursday April 9th, so in the meantime, enjoy your pie!
Milk Chocolate Nutella Cream Pie
EMAIL Recipe Share on FacebookIngredients
Pie Crust
- 2-1/2 cups all-purpose Flour
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup canola oil, chilled in freezer for 2 hours or overnight (Freeze until it’s opaque and congealed but still somewhat soft, like the consistency of slightly melted sorbet. If it’s over-frozen, that’s ok, just let it thaw a bit so that you can work with it.)
- 4 Tbsp ice water
- 1 Tbsp cider vinegar
Filling
- 1 Tbsp 1 packet unflavoured gelatin
- 1/3 cup boiling water
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup cocoa
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 3 cups 1% milk
- 100 g milk chocolate, broken up ( I use Lindt Milk Chocolate Bar)
- 1/3 cup Nutella
- 1 tsp vanilla
Cream Top
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1/3 cup hazelnuts, toasted and chopped
Instructions
- Whisk together the flour and salt. Cut in canola oil using pastry blender or two forks until crumbs and pieces of about 1/2” appear.
- Mix water with vinegar, add by tablespoon until it begins to form a soft dry ball – do not over mix.
- Turn dough out onto floured board and bring dough together. Divide in half. Use immediately or wrap each dough ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use. Makes 2-9" crusts, so freeze one for another time.
- Preheat oven to 425ºF. Roll out one half of the pie crust dough and lay into a 9-inch pie plate. Press into sides and turn under and create fluted edge. Prick shell many times with a fork. Blind bake on lower rack 12-15 minutes. Remove and allow to cool.
- In a small bowl combine gelatin and boiling water, stirring until dissolved. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan whisk together sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt. Gradually add milk, whisking until smooth. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and comes to a boil, about 10 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in milk chocolate, Nutella, reserved gelatin and vanilla. When melted and smooth, pour into baked pie shell. Press a sheet of plastic wrap against the entire surface. Refrigerate until very well chilled and set, at least 4 hours but preferably overnight.
- To make whipped cream top, whip all ingredients with a mixer until stiff peaks form. Spread over pie. Top with a dusting of cocoa and chopped hazelnuts.
There’s no mention of the gelatin after step 5.
I posted the revision.