We’re already considering what a 5th year anniversary of World Nutella Day might look like – what about you? If you have any suggestions, please feel free to pass them along via comment, tweet @nutelladay, or on the Facebook fan page (8,500 fans and growing!).

Here’s my own contribution: Nutella & Mascarpone Cream Chocolate Tarts

On to the rest of the community…..in no particular order, there were so many of your entries! We’re going to add all of these great recipes to the World Nutella Day Recipes page sometime later this week.

	David Lebovitz pulls out all the stops and makes his own version of Nutella with a homemade Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread. Grazie, David!
	Jasmine from Amore in Cucina made not one, but two entries: treccia / bread braids with Nutella and Cheesecake with Nutella. Grazie, Jasmine!
	Maria and Lisa from The Art of Two Tarts takes 4 simple ingredients and make wonderful Nutella truffles! Grazie Maria and Lisa!
	Paola from In My Life, Banutella Brioche Puddings, little individual bread puddings made with brioche sandwiched with Nutella. Grazie, Paola!
	Meeta from What’s For Lunch, Honey? will inspire you to try her Black Sesame and Nutella Macarons! Grazie, Meeta!
	Robin from MyMelange makes Bite-Sized Amaretti and Nutella Sandwich Cookies. Grazie, Robin!
	Jessica from My Baking Heart made some soft and chewy chocolate fortune cookies filled with Nutella! Grazie, Jessica!
	Jamieanne from The Sweetest Kitchen made a variation of her fried peanut butter and banana sandwich. Grazie Jamieanne!
	Pamela from The Cooking Ninja makes Chinese Steamed buns with Nutella filling. Grazie, Pamela!
	Joanne from Frutto della Passion makes two tasty treats – profiteroles and cannoli! Grazie Joanne!
	Andrea Meyers takes a good thing and makes it even smaller: Mini Chocolate Whoopie Pies with Nutella. Grazie, Andrea!
	Sue from Couscous & Consciousness whips up Chocolate Panettone French Toast Sandwiches – a great way to use your leftover holiday panettone! Grazie, Sue!
	Ivonne from Cream Puffs in Venice tells you to step away from her Nutella and offers you a Nutella Ripple Cheesecake instead. Grazie, Ivonne!
	Cheryl from Have your cake and eat it! tries to figure out what kind of Nutella lover she is and makes Individual Nutella Tiramisu – I can’t wait to be a guest! Grazie, Cheryl!
	Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once gets naughty with bananas and Nutella and wraps them up into Nutella and Banana Pastries! Grazie Haalo!
	Emma from The Cake Mistress makes some “ridiculously decadent” Baci Nutella Cupcakes. Grazie, Emma!
	Deanne from On A Wim drools over her Nutella rolls ready to be eaten. Grazie, Deanne!
	BonnieBeth from Some Pink Flowers writes a lovely oath to Nutella and the country where they first met: France. Grazie, BonnieBeth!
	Nastasha from Domestica makes a Nutella Mocha Frappe and an easy Nutella Tart! Grazie, Natasha!
	Arlene from nyc/caribbean ragazza whips up some French Nutella Toast and uses up some of her precious syrup stock for Nutella Day! Grazie, Arlene!
	Alessandra from La Casin@ di Ale (Ale’s little home) makes her favorite Nutella cake to share with all of you (in Italian). Grazie, Alessandra!
	Kathy from Food Lover’s Odyssey remembers her first time with Nutella and makes a Gianduja – Nutella Cheesecake with Nutella Ganache Topping that looks amazing! Grazie, Kathy!
	Barbara from Art and Barbara Live In Italy swirl some Nutella into a traditional pound cake for a Nutella-Swirl Pound Cake. Grazie, Barbara!
	Kate from the Kat Eye View of the World shares her most essential recipe with Nutella: a spoon! Grazie, Kate!
	Mardi from Eat, live, travel, write whips up a marbled baked Nutella cheesecake with a molten Nutella sauce. Grazie, Mardi!
	Food Hunter’s Guide whips up some orange-Nutella sweet ravioli to not share with her husband! Grazie!
	Wic from delicious kitchen therapy makes some delicious Nutella Cinnamon Bread from scratch! Grazie, Wic!
	Kokomama from My Adventures in Food pipes out some pretty cupcakes with Chocolate Hazelnut Frosting! Grazie, Kokomama!
	Amy from The Petite Filet makes Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting. Grazie, Amy!
	Allie from Zucchero Dolce makes a homemade praline for her Hazelnut Cake with Hazelnut Florentine, Praline Buttercream, and Nutella Mousse! Grazie, Allie!
	Linda from Ciao Chow Linda rounds up some of the world’s fascination with Nutella. Grazie, Linda!
	Stephanie from Plain Chicken posts a roundup of her favorite Nutella creations. Grazie, Stephanie!
	Susan from My Life’s Joys wraps up some Nutella in wonton wrappers. Grazie, Susan!
	Eryn Chandler from Cappuccino Chit Chat suggests milk for her chocolate butter cream frosting on her Nutella cupcakes. Grazie, Eryn!
	Michelle from Culinography takes the chance to make her own Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread. Grazie, Michelle!
	Rachel from Coconut & Lime mixes creamy cream cheese with Nutella in her mini Nutella Black Bottoms. Grazie, Rachel!
	Laurel from Un’Americana in Cucina gets spicy and mixes up some Spicy Nutella and Pequin Pepper Truffles. Grazie, Laurel!
	Karen from Shortbread resists eating from the jar and instead swirls in into rich, buttery pound cake. Grazie, Karen!
	Silvia from “Ao Longe o Mar” shows you what it looks like to have a double pack of 750g Nutella jars up close (in Portuguese). Grazie, Silvia!
	Elaine from The Italian Dish recommends keeping one of her Nutella pound cakes on hand and one in the freezer at all times! Grazie, Elaine!
	James from The Cotswold Food Year ponders the question “Coffee then toast or toast then coffee?” with Espresso, nutella and hazelnut brioche crown Grazie, James!
	Jayka from The Giant Typo ladles out some Nutella crepes and suggests you add some ice cream on top. Grazie, Jayka!
	Christina from Mausi swirls up some Nutella into a Nutella Cinnamon Swirl bread. Grazie, Christina!
	Jen from My Kitchen Addiction rounds up her Nutella recipe favorites and shares a new recipe: Crispy Nutella Treats! Grazie, Jen!
	anna l’americana from Only in Maine adapts a classic and makes it her own: Nutella and Nutella Streusel-Topped Nutella Banana Bread. Grazie, Anna!
	F_A from Seelensturm (soulstorm) makes some really yummy Nutella Mozart Cupcakes with almond marzipan, pistachio marzipan, nougat and chocolate. Grazie!
	Kathleen from Kathleen’s Confections makes something someone should have thought of a long time ago – the CupCrepe – a cupcake built with crepes. Grazie, Kathleen!
	Åsa from Miss Meister’s mat med mera… tells us what it feels like to celebrate Nutella Day in Sweden! (in Swedish) Grazie, Asa!
	Patricia from Brownies for Dinner skips brownies this time and makes vanilla bean Nutella sandwich cookies. Grazie, Patricia!
	Ellen from Mangia, Mangia, Mangia sustains Nutella Day is a holiday she can get behind, and puts it to a test…a Nutella taste test! Grazie, Ellen!
	Joy from Gourmeted tries her hand at “The Asian Ferrero Rocher” and makes Nutty Nutella Mochi. Yum! Grazie, Joy!
	Mary from The Food Librarian celebrates just a little smaller with her Nutella Bread Pudding for World Nutella Day. Grazie, Mary!
	Shannon from Adventures in Food of a Stay-at-Home-Mom rounds up her Nutella recipes for all the fans. Grazie, Shannon!
	Wandering Chopsticks has a spicy Nutella meltdown with her Mexican Nutella Hot Chocolate with Chilies. Grazie!
	Vanessa from Chefdruck Musings asks how do you worship Nutella? And answers: with Chocolate Hazelnut Banana Bread. Grazie, Vanessa!
	Lizzy from Geek Chica had a breakfast of champions to celebrate the day – with Nutella, of course! Grazie, Lizzy!
	Karen from The Shock of the Old shares a good way to eat Nutella when you aren’t alone, but don’t want to share: the Grilled Nutella sandwich. Grazie, Karen!
	Isabelle from Eat my Cake now takes a crumble and adds a magic flavor to it to give us Nutella Fudge Squares. Grazie, Isabelle!
	Sara from Pixel3v Weblog uses a classic “glass” of Nutella and makes some Sorrisi di Sfoglia Ripieni di Nutella (in Italian) Grazie, Sara!
	Palma from Palmabella’s Passions made a simple but deliciously effective and heavenly Nutella Mousse! Grazie!
	Achim from Cookelani makes a Torta all gianduia (Schokoladen-Haselnusskuchen) (in German), Grazie, Achim!
	Carlotta from Kitchen Confidential mixes both almonds and hazelnuts in a cake called Torta Mandonutella (in Italian). Grazie Carlotta!
	Lindsey from LindseyBee shares where she first fell in love with Nutella – can you guess where? Grazie, Lindsey!
	Wendy from Pink Stripes doubles up the Nutella in her Nutella and Hazelnut Brownies. Grazie, Wendy!
	Tracy from Trailer Park Karma waxes about how Nutella is one of the World’s Most Perfect Road Trip Foods. Grazie, Tracy!

And some more blog posts about World Nutella Day from some of our community:

• Grapefruit from Needful Things gets her weekly Nutella fix with a Grilled Nutella Sandwich. Grazie!
• Avanika from Yumsilicious Bakes guest posts at her friend’s blog with a Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse Cake! Grazie, Avanika
• Something Just To Start swirled Nutella into her Pound Cake. Grazie!
• Sarah from What Smells So Good? recommends you indulge once or twice a year with her Home-From School Special! Grazie, Sarah!
• Anali from Anali’s First Amendment wrote a Nutella Day-inspired poem! Grazie, Anali!
• Juicy and Delicious reminds you about World Nutella Day
• Raymond from Holland shows us how to make his famous Raymonds Cocktail – orange juice, passion fruit alcohol, eggs, and Nutella – only for the very brave!

Looking for more Nutella Recipes? Don’t forget to check the World Nutella Day Recipes page for hundreds of recipes, check more pictures in the World Nutella Day Flickr pool where there are some great shots!

Betty Squirrely from Bad Manors Squirrel Diner had her squirrel friends make a special tribute to World Nutella Day: Although we couldn’t use the actual Nutella (squirrels + chocolate = badness) we did EAT all the Nutella, then have the squirrels celebrate the day SAFELY.

See you next year on February 5, 2011!

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Related Articles at Ms. Adventures in Italy:

• 4th Annual World Nutella Day is on February 5, 2010
• Announcing World Nutella Day 2009: February 5th
• World Nutella Day – February 5th, 2008!
• Nutella & Mascarpone Cream Chocolate Tarts Recipe for World Nutella Day
• Nutella Virgin? 50 Ways to Eat Nutella and Nutella Lover Types

It’s our 4th year celebrating and every year we’re surprised by the level of excitement and participation – be sure to head over to www.nutelladay.com to see what’s happening around the globe! Be sure to come back here and Bleeding Espresso.com on Monday, February 8th for the round-up.

You can also see my recipes for past World Nutella Days like Hazelnut Macarons with Spicy Nut Centers or Nutella Mousse, Cupcakes and Clusters.

This year I was craving little tarts…little chocolate tarts…filled with Nutella, and just in case it wasn’t rich enough for you, mixed generously with mascarpone so that biting into one feels like eating the inside of a Lindt Lindor truffle – you know those truffles with an inside that melts? That’s what this is.

I suggest mixing it up with some salted nuts, too, to contrast and make it oh, so, sweeter.

Nutella & Mascarpone Cream Chocolate Tarts Recipe

Note: this is close to a pate brisee or pasta frolla recipe, with the addition of the cacao powder. You are welcome to make this with a food processor, but it’s important that the mixture is not overmixed or heated up too much as the butter will melt. Try handling it as little as possible. Also, I used mini tart pans, so be sure to roll out your dough to fit your pan.

For the Chocolate Crust
170g flour
30g cacao/cocoa powder
100g cold butter, in small cubes
66g sugar
1 egg and 1 yolk
1 pinch salt

1. Cut the butter pieces into the flour and cocoa mix with a pastry cutter or use your fingers to create the consistency of large crumbs. You don’t want the butter to get too warm and start to melt, so work quickly.
2. Make a well in the middle of the crumb mix and add the egg and extra yolk. Continue cutting the mixture until the egg has been incorporated and distributed. With your hands, start to form a single mass – if the mixture is too crumbly you can add a small amount of cold/ice water and mix that in. You don’t want to work the dough too much.
3. Flatten it into a disk and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
4. Remove the dough from the plastic wrap and preheat your oven to 350F (175 C). On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough with a rolling pin, being careful not to add too much flour as it will change the composition of the dough. Roll it out until it’s between a 1/4 and 1/2 inch thick (around 1cm).
5. Depending on what pan size you’re using, you’ll want to cut the dough to fit or try to fold it in and fix it with your fingers. You’ll want it to come up the sides of the pan evenly, and I like a little to peek above the top of the pan. Otherwise you can put it just even with the pan top.
6. Next, we’re going to blind bake them – cut out a piece of parchment paper larger than the tart pan, enough so that it sticks up above the pan edges, so you can remove it easily later, and fill the center with dried beans or lentils that will help keep the crust from rising and deforming.
7. For small tarts, bake 8-10 minutes, keeping a close eye on them that they don’t burn. Remove the pie weight and return the tarts to the oven for several minutes (3-4). Remove the tarts and let cool completely before filling.

For the Nutella & Mascarpone Cream Filling

Start with a 1:1 mixture of Nutella:Mascarpone. In this recipe I used roughly 125g of Nutella with 125g Mascarpone. I whipped the Nutella for a minute or so with an electronic (whisk) mixer so it would incorporate easier with mascarpone. Mix in the mascarpone and mix for a few seconds until completely mix. Taste, a little, to see if you want to add more Nutella at this point, or more mascarpone.

Refrigerate the mixture for 20-30 minutes, then fill the tarts just before serving, so the crust stays crisp and the filling stays cool. The tarts can be refrigerated after filling, but the crust will lose the snap so it’s best to serve them the same day.

To contrast nicely with the Nutella flavor, I recommend chopping up some salted pistachios or peanuts and sprinkle them on top, or add a little filling to the tartlette, then a layer of chopped nuts, and then the rest of the cream on top.

Did you make something for World Nutella Day?

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Related Articles at Ms. Adventures in Italy:

• Mini Nutella Tiramisu for World Nutella Day
• Vote for World Nutella Day on Technorati’s WTF
• World Nutella Day – February 5th, 2008!
• Announcing World Nutella Day 2007 – February 6th
• Announcing World Nutella Day 2009: February 5th

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Related Articles at Ms. Adventures in Italy:

• World Nutella Day – February 5th, 2008!
• Nutella Virgin? 50 Ways to Eat Nutella and Nutella Lover Types
• Announcing World Nutella Day 2009: February 5th
• Nutella & Mascarpone Cream Chocolate Tarts Recipe for World Nutella Day
• Announcing World Nutella Day 2007 – February 6th

We know that not everyone is a blogger, and not everyone is online and not everyone has heard of the Menu For Hope. But that doesn’t meant that you can’t give the gift of the Menu for Hope to everyone you know!

Don’t forget my two bid items: EU01 Made in Italy Chocolate Basket (2+ kilos of Italian chocolate!) and EU38: Moleskine notebooks Mega Mix!

I’ve updated the “Menu for Hope Gift Card Insert” – something you can print out yourself after you make a donation to Menu For Hope that then you can give to friends/family/loved ones to help them understand this great cause and get them excited about the donation you made in their name!

Here’s  a suggestion to make it work:

1. Check out the master bid item list on Chez Pim and use the really handy donation form (SO easy!) to pick the items you’d like to donate money for.
2. Make the donation to Menu for Hope via Firstgiving.com (the easy donation form above will also take you to FirstGiving) in the name of your friend/family/loved one/colleague, indicating the bid item(s) as instructed on Chez Pim and/or the donation form.
3. Send that person an email explaining you’ve donated in their name and attach the following image or PDF, or print it out and slip it inside a gift card!
4. You’re done! You’ll be done with your holiday shopping in about 3 minutes flat!

The file is approximately sized 8.5×11″ and has space to list which bid item(s) you’ve donated for, and a reminder to check ChezPim.com on January 18 to see if their name has been extracted for that bid item!

Note: You MUST donate via the Firstgiving.com website in order to make a donation to the Menu for Hope fundraiser. These gift card inserts are in no way representative of a donation to the Menu for Hope and do not serve as receipts or as a proof of donation.

Download the IMAGE (JPG) version of the gift card insert:

Download the PDF version of this gift card insert:

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Related Articles at Ms. Adventures in Italy:

• Give the Gift of A Menu For Hope
• Poll: Italian Goodies for the Menu for Hope Basket
• Holiday Baking Kama Sutra
• Menu for Hope III: The Artigianale Basket
• Menu for Hope Extended until December 31st!

Last year after being the Europe host for Menu for Hope bid items, I really gained an appreciation for how much work it takes to pull off something of such a global proportion. I’m so happy to take part again and offer you some great bid items!

What is Menu for Hope?
Menu for Hope is an annual fundraising campaign hosted by Chez Pim and a revolving group of food bloggers around the world.  Five years ago, the devastating tsunami in Southeast Asia inspired her to find a way to help, and the very first Menu for Hope was born. The campaign has since become a yearly affair.  For the past three years, Menu for Hope raised nearly a quarter of million dollars in support of the good work of the UN World Food Programme, helping to feed hungry people worldwide.

This year, we are supporting a new initiative at the WFP called Purchase for Progress (P4P). P4P enables smallholder and low-income farmers to supply food to WFP’s global operation.  P4P helps farmers improves farming practices and puts more cash directly into their pockets in return for their crops.  This will also help buoy local economy by creating jobs and income locally.  We food bloggers understand the importance of buying locally and supporting our local farms, P4P helps do the same for farmers in low income countries around the world.  More on P4P at http://www.wfp.org/purchase-progress.

How Can You Help?

Easy! Just buy as many $10 “tickets” for bid items offered by bloggers as you can, and 100% of the money goes directly to the WFP Purchase for Progress! Bidding takes place from today, December 14th until December 25th! A donation also makes a great present for someone, and they could win something!

Here are the other Menu for Hope bid item lists – note that most of the items will ship worldwide, so visit all of them!

• Europe and UK bloggers’ items hosted by David Lebovitz
• US East Coast bloggers’ items hosted by Tartelette
• USA: West Coast hosted by Gluten Free Girl
• Canadian bloggers’ items hosted by Seven Spoons
• Wine bloggers’ items hosted by Vinography
• Asia Pacific hosted by Ed of Tomatom

Below are details about my own bid items and how to make a donation- read on!

Bid Item EU01 : Made in Italy Chocolate Basket – ready for baking and a chocolate tasting party!

For the past 3 years I’ve contributed a basket of Italian goodies but this year I thought I’d do something different - a basket of all Italian chocolate! Italy has some great chocolate makers and especially some great flavor combinations I think you’ll all enjoy. In fact, I recommend having a chocolate tasting party at your house and getting creative in the kitchen with the basket.

Some of the names are very famous and others are small chocolate makers – but you’ll love them all! I will ship this fabulous mix WORLDWIDE.

• Amadei Toscano Black 70% dark chocolate (50g) [Tuscany]
• Amadei 9 75% dark chocolate (50g) [Tuscany]
• Amadei Toscano Brown milk chocolate (50g) [Tuscany]
• Amadei Toscano Nut Brown gianduja hazelnut chocolate (50g) [Tuscany]
• La Molina white chocolate bar (75g) [Tuscany]
• Slitti 90% dark chocolate (100g) [Tuscany]
• 3 Bars Quetzal Fair Trade Modica Chocolate – Cinnamon, Pistachio, Almond flavors (60g each) [Sicily]
• T’a Limone di Sorrento – 66% cacao with lemons from Sorrento (50g) [Lombardy]
• T’a Pepe Giapponese – 66% cacao with Japanese pepper (50g) [Lombardy]
• La Perla Dark Chocolate with Puffed Farro (120g) [Lazio]
• La Perla Dark Chocolate with Hot Pepper (130g) [Lazio]
• La Dolce Vita 71% dark chocolate with Coffee (50g) [Lombardy]
• La Dolce Vita Milk chocolate and Olive Oil (50g) [Lombardy]
• Le Coloniali di Dolce e Amaro – Fennel and Juniper chocolate bar (100g) [Piedmont]
• Novi 72% dark chocolate (100g) [Piedmont]
• 2 Bars Perla dell’Etna Modica chocolate – Hot Pepper, Citrus flavors (100g each) [Sicily]
• 4 Bars Maestri del Cioccolato: Fondente 71% with mint [Piedmont], Milk chocolate with Chestnut Honey [Veneto], White chocolate with blueberries [Piedmont], Gianduja Extra (hazelnut chocolate) [Piedmont] (75g each)
• Novi Block Cioccolato Fondente Extra (great for cooking!) dark chocolate (50%) – (500g) [Piedmont]

That’s more than 2 kilos of chocolate – that’s 4.5 pounds of chocolate for tasting and baking! To bid for this item, make sure you remember the item code: EU01!

Note: The photo above, graciously provided by David Lebovitz, is not indicative of the basket or its contents.

Bid Item EU38: Mega Mix of Moleskine Notebooks

I have gotten to know, professionally and personally, Moleskine (headquartered here in Milan) and I am proud to be able to offer you a bid item directly from Moleskine corporate! They will ship this amazing mix of 20 different types of Moleskine anywhere in the world.

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Related Articles at Ms. Adventures in Italy:

• Give the Gift of a Menu for Hope with Gift Card Inserts
• Poll: Italian Goodies for the Menu for Hope Basket
• A Plea for the Menu for Hope
• New Additions to the Artigianale Basket for a Menu for Hope
• Menu for Hope IV: Artigianale Basket – A Taste of Italy!