Here's the thing about Nutella, once you've tasted it and fallen in love with it, it's hard to find anything at a Canadian grocery store to beat it.
Hi, my name is Mira and I'm madly in love with Nutella. The creamy hazelnut chocolate spread is found in my kitchen all year round. Some might see that as a problem, but I see it as my little jar from heaven.
When I'm looking for a bit of sugar or sweetness that I know would instantly bring up my mood, Nutella is where I turn to. I've had my fair share of the spreadable chocolate worldwide and can tell you wholeheartedly that France has the best jar.
But the thing with the famous Ferrero chocolate spread is that it is expensive and not too healthy. Hence, people try using imitation brands, but I can instantly point out "fake Nutella" anywhere and anytime.
Hazelnut chocolate spreads from Canadian grocery stores.Mira Nabulsi | Narcity
Now that we know I'm a professional Nutella eater, is there something in grocery stores that can beat it or act as a close second?
I never took the time to analyze if there are any hazelnut spreads in Canadian grocery stores that are actually better than Nutella. So I went down to my local Loblaws and bought all the hazelnut spread I could find, which included Kraft, BeaverTails and President's Choice.
But out of all three, only one could be a Nutella dupe, but nothing could steer me away from the OG. Here's how I ranked them from worst to best.
BeaverTails
BeaverTails Crunchy Hazelnut Chocolate Spread.
Price: $5.49 per 375 grams, which is $1.46 per 100 grams.
When I go to BeaverTails to get one of their crispy doughs, I usually go for their Hazel Amour, which is the pastry with chocolate hazelnut spread and some icing sugar, and I love it.
Now, I don't know if the chocolate used on the pastry is the same one I found at Loblaws, but the one from the grocery store was not good.
For starters, it's crunchy, and even though I like crunchy peanut butter, this was not the vibe.
Additionally, when I opened the BeaverTails hazelnut spread jar, there was a layer of oil sitting on top of it that I had to mix with a spoon for a couple of minutes to let it blend in, which was pretty unsettling.
However, the taste didn't resemble what I expected from a spoonful of hazelnut chocolate, mainly because it was darker in colour compared to all the rest.
Anyways, I would probably never reach for this again — Sorry, not sorry.
Ingredients: Sugar, Vegetable Oil (contains Tocopherols), Modified Milk Ingredients, Cocoa, Hazelnuts, Soy Lecithin, Sorbitan Monostearate, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, and Natural Flavours.
Score: 3/10
Kraft
Kraft Hazelnut Chocolate with Cocoa.
Price: $7.99 per 725 grams or $1.10 per 100 grams.
Kraft's Hazelnut Spread with Cocoa was good. It has a nut-forward taste, which I imagine people who enjoy eating hazelnuts would want. It does taste more chocolatey and you can thank the cocoa for that.
It is super creamy and similar in colour to Nutella but feels like an adult version of the Ferrero spread.
Interestingly enough, its packaging states "no palm oil" on the label and has modified sunflower oil as an ingredient, which is a healthier alternative.
So, you could say that Kraft's Hazelnut Spread with Cocoa is healthier than Nutella and is a few cents cheaper, but it doesn't give the same feel as its competitor and it would be difficult to compete with.
Ingredients: Sugar, Modified Sunflower Oil, Hazelnuts, Cocoa, Skim Milk Powder, Cocoa Butter, Whey Powder, Sunflower Lecithin, Artificial Flavour, Citric Acid.
Score: 5/10
President's Choice
President's Choice Chocolate Hazelnut Spread.
Price: $4.29 per 375 grams, which is also $1.14 per 100g
President's Choice has recently surprised me with its delicious and cheap offerings. Their mac and cheese was the best in my grocery store boxed dinner taste test and they also won the top spot when I compared chocolate chip cookies.
Now, PC has the closest thing to Nutella that I've ever tasted and I would buy it as my next big thing if I needed to.
Similar to Nutella, the PC option has palm oil, which isn't a great ingredient to have because it has been a significant driver of deforestation but is also high in saturated fat.
However, putting that aside, the creaminess and consistency cannot go unnoticed. This can easily be called the Nutella dupe and it's cheaper than its counterpart.
The only difference is the hints of hazelnut you can taste in the spread, but it's not as overpowering as the Kraft version. It would be great to spread on pancakes or used in a cake.
This is a yes from me!
Ingredients: Sugar, Modified Palm Oil, Roasted Hazelnuts, Modified Milk Ingredients, Cocoa, Sunflower And/or Canola Lecithin, Vegetable Oil, and Natural Flavour.
Score: 7/10
Nutella
Nutella.
Price: $8.49 per 725 grams, which is $1.17 per 100 grams.
Last but not least, Nutella.
After trying all the other chocolate hazelnut spreads from Canadian grocery stores, I can wholeheartedly say that Nutella stays at the top of my list and nothing else can beat it, to be honest, even though President's Choice's version comes close.
As much as people say it is the least healthy option, it's also the one with the shortest list of ingredients, which raises many questions.
The creamy to chocolate and hazelnut ratio cannot be imitated and it's perfect just the way it is, hence why it's so popular.
Nutella in Canada is made in Brantford, Ontario and spread out from coast to coast.
In the Ontario location, they make around 150kg of Nutella every minute and approximately 1,000 tonnes each week, according to their website.
The Ferrero chocolate tastes great on bread, pancakes, croissants and more, but my personal favourite is to lick a spoonful of it.
If you want a Nutella fix but don't want the denseness of the spoonfuls, you can always buy Ferrero Rocher or Kinder. They are all owned by the same company and offer similar flavours.
Ingredients: Sugar, Modified Palm Oil, Hazelnuts, Skim Milk Powder, Cocoa, Soy And/or Sunflower Lecithin, Vanillin.
Score: 10/10