Nutella Joe Muddy Buddies

Nutella Joe Muddy Buddies

These Nutella Joe Muddy Buddies are a remake of the traditional muddy buddies that we all used to love as kids.  To be quite frank, I still love the original variety.  With chocolate and peanut butter mingling together in a crunchy party snack, what’s not to love?  But still I wanted a change.  I wanted to try giving this treat an adult makeover.  I wondered how Nutella might work instead of the peanut butter.  The first version I made seemed too sweet since Nutella is a little sweeter than peanut butter and lacked the saltiness it brings.  Then it dawned on me.  If I was to add instant espresso to the powdered sugar step it would not only tone down the sweetness it would also give this treat a flavor reminiscent of a cup of Joe with chocolate hazelnut creamer.  Version two was a definite success.        

Ingredients list

·         4 ½ cups Chex cereal, I used corn Chex (choose a gluten free variety) 

·         2 tbs butter or margarine

·         ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips   

·         ¼ cup Nutella hazelnut spread  

·         ¾ cup powdered sugar 

·         1 tbsp instant espresso powder or instant coffee

Video Tutorial:

Instructions:

1.      Line a baking sheet with waxed paper and set it aside. 

2.      Measure the cereal into a large bowl with enough room for mixing and set it aside.

3.      If your espresso powder isn’t fine enough put it into a small sandwich bag and crush up the granules with either a flat mallet or rolling pin before adding the powdered sugar and espresso powder to a 1 gallon Ziploc bag and shake to combine. 

4.      In a medium microwave safe bowl, microwave the chocolate chips, Nutella, and butter on high for one minute then stir. Microwave for an additional 20 to 30 seconds depending on the microwave and stir again until smooth.   Pour the mixture over the cereal and stir until the cereal is pretty evenly coated.  Work quickly to prevent the chocolate from solidifying.

5.      Add the coated cereal to the bag with the powdered sugar and espresso mixture, seal the bag, and shake it until the cereal is well coated.  Then dump it out onto the waxed paper and allow it to cool. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week

Notes:

·         When doubling the recipe be sure to use a 2 gallon zippered bag instead of the 1 gallon bag I used for this quantity.

·         For Step 4, if you don’t have a microwave or prefer a more traditional melting method you could place your heat safe bowl over a pot of gently simmering water,  be sure the water level is not touching the bottom of the bowl and as the ingredients begin to melt stir the mixture until it’s  smooth and pourable.