Blueberry Swirl Pancakes with Nutella® Hazelnut Spread

Special thanks to Nutella® for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.

Nostalgia comes in many forms. For me, a jar of Nutella® hazelnut spread fills me with warm childhood memories. Pastries made with love and an encouraging nudge from my mom to help myself to the delicious spread. Nostalgia so perfect, that I want to recreate it for my own daughter. So you can imagine my squeals of joy when the heavenly brand asked me to design a breakfast recipe to complement their scrumptious spread. Wanting to capture the whimsy and warmth of happy childhood memories, I whipped up today’s fun recipe – Blueberry Swirl Pancakes with Nutella® hazelnut spread.

Some of my favorite memories growing up took place on Sunday mornings. It was my dad’s only day off from work and my parents always made sure to make the best of it. Sometimes I’d wake up to the smell of freshly baked cinnamon buns, my mom in the kitchen lovingly putting together a breakfast feast to kick off our day of adventure. And if there was a jar of Nutella® hazelnut spread on the table, then I knew it was going to be an extra special day. Or sometimes, my dad would wake me bright and early so we could go on a hiking excursion. He always had a secret backpack of supplies that would miraculously emerge as we set off into nature. Then when we had found a scenic perch along a mountain top or beside a lake, he would lay out a French baguette, some cheese, and a jar of Nutella® hazelnut spread. We would proceed to take in the sites and talk about life, while adding the delicious spread on baguette slices. My parents knew that it was my favorite breakfast spread, so they made sure it made an appearance throughout significant moments in my childhood. It is the loving details like these that I now try to incorporate into my own daughter’s life.

My munchkin absolutely loves pancakes. She calls them ‘happy cakes’, which gives me a clear insight into her association with the special events that often accompany the rare morning treat. If it’s going to be a day of adventure, then like my parents before me, I try to start it off with a whimsical feast. And I always make sure to place a jar of Nutella® hazelnut spread on the table. Being in charge of my daughter’s future nostalgia is a hefty responsibility and I take it seriously. To ensure a childhood filled with whimsical memories, I’ve upped my pancake game. An unexpected berry swirl perfectly complements a delicious serving of Nutella® hazelnut spread on top of these fluffy cakes. So if you need a bit of inspiration yourself, I am happy to share with you my recipe for Blueberry Swirl Pancakes…

Blueberry Swirl Pancakes with Nutella® Hazelnut Spread

Total Time: 35 minutes

Yields: 20 5-inch pancakes

INGREDIENTS:

Pancakes

• 2 cups of all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup of granulated sugar
• 4 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 2 cups of whole milk
• 2 eggs (separated)
• ¼ cup of butter (melted)
• Nutella® Hazelnut Spread

Blueberry Swirl

• 2 cups of fresh blueberries
• 1 cup of granulated sugar

DIRECTIONS:

1. To make the blueberry swirl, add the fresh blueberries into a food processor and chop until a thick paste consistency is formed. Combine the blueberry paste and sugar into a medium sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until thickened (or approximately 10 minutes). Make sure to stir continuously so as not to burn the sauce. Remove from heat and set aside to let cool. Once cooled, pour the sauce into a squeeze bottle.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix together the milk, melted butter, and egg yolks. Gently add in the mixed dry ingredients from the medium bowl. Do not overmix, clumps are okay!
4. In a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Pour into the pancake batter bowl and gently mix until integrated. Add the whipped egg whites will make the pancakes extra fluffy.
5. Heat a skillet and generously grease. Add ¼ cup of the pancake batter to the skillet. Then immediately use the squeeze bottle to swirl the blueberry sauce into the pancake. Let it cook for approximately 1 minute (or until many bubbles have formed and start popping in the batter), then flip the pancake. Cook another 30 seconds and plate. Repeat until all the pancake batter and blueberry sauce is used up.
6. Serve the Blueberry Swirl Pancakes with the Nutella® Hazelnut Spread to make some delicious memories. Enjoy!

If it wasn’t already obvious, I am a big fan of Nutella® hazelnut spread. Not only for its nostalgic place in my heart, but also because it is stellar product. Nutella® hazelnut spread is made with seven quality ingredients, such as roasted hazelnuts and cocoa. For parental piece-of-mind, it does not contain high fructose corn syrup and no artificial colors or preservatives. I always have a jar of Nutella® hazelnut spread in my pantry. It is a great way to bring versatility to everyday items like toast, fruit, or even yogurt. And I really like that a little bit of the spread goes a long way, so not much is needed to dress up a tired dish. That’s why Nutella® hazelnut spread is a great addition to today’s pancake recipe!

Although the most important pancake ingredient is ‘love’, it doesn’t hurt to top it off with a bit of Nutella® hazelnut spread. What are your favorite childhood breakfast memories? Shout them out below!