Homemade Valentine’s Day chocolates are a wonderful gift idea. They are easy to make with few ingredients, a great recipe even for those who do not spend much time in the kitchen. Giving a sweet treat made by us is so lovely, especially if it’s for the most romantic holiday of the year. There can be many variations for the chocolates, both for the nuts and the glazing. My preferred combination has been dark chocolate and hazelnuts; but as for the nuts, you can use almonds, walnuts, pistachios, and for the glazing, milk or even white chocolate. The choice is yours! But now let’s see together the ingredients for this exquisite treat!
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 30 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: No cooking
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Winter, Valentine's Day
- Energy 236.66 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 25.55 (g) of which sugars 12.78 (g)
- Proteins 3.34 (g)
- Fat 13.87 (g) of which saturated 6.60 (g)of which unsaturated 3.96 (g)
- Fibers 2.85 (g)
- Sodium 17.93 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 1 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for Valentine’s Day Chocolates
- 8.11 oz hazelnut wafers
- 3.88 oz Nutella®
- 8.82 oz 70% dark chocolate
- as needed whole hazelnuts (Preferably toasted)
- as needed hazelnuts (toasted and chopped, about 7.05 oz)
Tools
- 1 Mixer
- 2 Bowls
- 1 Teaspoon
- 1 Plate
- 1 heart-shaped box
- 2 Skewers
- 1 Microwave
Steps for Valentine’s Day Chocolates
The ingredients are for about 22 chocolates, which can be coated only with hazelnuts or also with glazing.
Inside the mixer, place the hazelnuts, adjust the quantity yourself; it depends on how many chocolates you want to coat only with hazelnuts, without being glazed with chocolate. I chopped about 200 g to make 10 chocolates without glaze out of a total of 22.
After coarsely chopping the hazelnuts, pour them into a bowl and set them aside for later, in the meantime pour the hazelnut wafers into the mixer and finely chop them.
Once the wafers are ready, add the Nutella and create a nice soft dough. Use a teaspoon to take a bit of the dough and form balls, but first, place a toasted hazelnut in the middle of each ball.
If you find it difficult to create the balls, just moisten your palms with a few drops of water. When the balls are ready, roll them well in the chopped hazelnuts. Place them on a tray lined with parchment paper and let them rest in the fridge for about an hour.
In the meantime, place the chopped dark chocolate in a bowl, microwave it to melt it, checking every 30 seconds to avoid burning it. Alternatively, you can melt it in a double boiler, once ready let it cool slightly, stirring occasionally.
Take the chocolates out of the fridge and dip them one at a time into the melted chocolate, then place them on the parchment paper. Finally, decorate with the hazelnut sprinkles and let the chocolate solidify at room temperature.
For those who prefer, you can do as I did, not glazing all the chocolates, but those without glaze should be stored in the fridge and taken out 15 minutes before serving. On the contrary, glazed chocolates can be perfectly stored at room temperature.
Happy Valentine’s Day and enjoy your treat!
Variations for Valentine’s Day Chocolates
Valentine’s Day chocolates can also be glazed with milk and white chocolate; especially with the latter, it will take a little more rest to ensure it compacts well. Hazelnuts can also be replaced with almonds or other types of nuts.
