Changing our lives, one jar at a time.

If you’ve been reading our blog religiously (or at least semi-religiously) you’ve encountered blog posts about Spanish culture, the IBO (International Baccalaureate), and British accents.  These topics relating directly to our school and intercultural experience are great…but I’d like to side-track a bit and discuss something that has been on my mind since the moment I stepped foot into the kitchen of our apartment four weeks ago.  This thing, which will be unveiled in a moment, has had a profound effect on the seven of us over the last 30 days in Spain.  In fact, if you aren’t in the mindset for a deep, highly intellectual piece of writing, I suggest you either a) postpone reading this, or b) quickly grab a cup of coffee and hustle back in front of your computer screen, because today…(long pause) I’ve decided to write about (even longer pause…and drum roll)…Nutella.

Drew is caught brown-handed.

Nutella?  Did you just say NUTELLA?  As in the luscious, creamy, chocolate-hazelnut spread originally developed in Northwest Italy during World War II (Ferrero, 2010)?

Yes.  As a matter of fact, I did.  Nutella has found a special place in our hearts, stomachs, and kitchen cupboards.  As a matter of fact, if I were to walk into our kitchen right now—keep in mind there are four of us in this apartment—I would find seven jars of Nutella, Sharpie-tattooed with the names Julz, C.A.S., Sara, and Drew, patiently waiting to be enjoyed. 

Would you like some bread to go with that Nutella?

 The unique ritual of spreading Nutella on its substrate can best be described by Brittani Matzke, when she recalled:  “The amount of Nutella on my butter cracker is typically double the mass of the actual cracker.  Also, when I’m spreading it, I always make sure to leave plenty on the knife so I can lick it off.”  Upon hearing this, my respect and understanding for Brittani as a friend and person nearly doubled, as I too leave extra “licking Nutella” on my butter knife. 

While the Nutella corporation suggests serving their product on a whole-wheat bread or cracker, many trials and kitchen experiments have lead me to conclude that Nutella can be enjoyed on just about anything in the fruit, grain, or dairy families.  I have yet to experiment with the meat and vegetable groups, but part of me hypothesizes that it wouldn’t be that bad… Amazingly, Nutella can also be enjoyed on inorganic materials.  Sometimes when I need a quick fix, or for dessert after a nice Nutella-on-toast meal, I bypass the need for any medium and enjoy my Nutella directly from a stainless steel spoon.  Ah, simple pleasures.      

Are you NUTS?  Nutella vs Peanut Butter:  The Great Debate

 One recent morning, Sara and I were debating the nutritional value of Nutella as compared to peanut butter.  They are surprisingly quite similar.  Your average serving of peanut butter has triple the amount of protein per serving (7g vs. 2 g) and six times less sugar (3g vs. 17g), but it also packs on 30 more Calories and has a slightly higher fat content.  As far as we’re concerned, it’s a toss-up.   

Hazelnut vs. Peanut:  its going down (the esophagus) tonight. 

When making such drastic life decisions such as the choice between P.B. and Nutella, the holistic health approach is certainly one to consider:  what is best for the body may not always be what is best for the soul.  After many trials of carefully documented enjoyment, we have concluded that the psychological and emotional benefits of consuming Nutella over peanut butter far outweigh Nutella’s nutritional Achilles Heel.    

Economics and consumer psychology also play a role in this decision to purchase enormous amounts of this edible magic.  In the mind of a poor student teacher, the price tag presented in Euros is a much more alluring 2.60, and causes far less guilt related side-effects that result from paying $4.25 for the same jar back in the States. Finally, I would like to note that peanut butter is far less common in Spain, and is typically higher in cost than Nutella—at least, that is the case from our Supermercado experiences thus far.  This PB vs. N debate will continue upon our return home.  Until then, Nutella has the winning case.   

What would you do for a Klondike Ba…I mean, Nutella Jar. 

Several of the Gusties were asked, “To what lengths would you go for a jar of Nutella?”  Here are their responses:

Drew:  "I would swim across the Mediterranian Sea from West to East, with a school of sharks as my travel companions."  (After doing some research, we learned this swim would be approximately 2400 miles...no information was found about suppressing a shark's appetite for that long). 

Julia:  “For one jar of Nutella?  I would shave off my left eyebrow.  I might consider having that eyebrow permanently removed via electrolysis for a lifetime supply (if the opportunity were presented to me).”

Chris:  "I would walk across the city of Estepona barefoot...without dodging the numerous piles of dog doo-doo which tend to appear frequently on the sidewalks." 

Yep, 1.6667 jars per person at any given time.

In conclusion...

My last comment about Nutella:  Had it last night.  Had it for breakfast this morning.  I made room for it after a large Thanksgiving meal… and I’m probably going to have some when I get home today after school.  Without Nutella, this trip to Spain just wouldn't be the same...

As always, thanks for reading!  I hope you have been inspired to splurge on a jar for yourself.   

Julz