I have the beginning of an idea for a Christmas dessert for my family's Christmas Eve Seafood Feast...

I would like to have a chocolate Hazelnut cake of some sort and would like it to be 4 inches high... Then drizzle with hazelnut ganache and surround by Pirouline's (similar to Cigarellos I think??) and tie with a Christmas ribbon.

Anybody have any great recipes using Hazelnut or Nutella?? Any hints for surrounding a cake with cigarellos??

Thanks!!

I don't have any advice about Nutella in a cake, but I did mix it in with some buttercream once, hoping to make a chocolate type icing using something that didn't require refrigeration. I started with a really nice, super smooth buttercream, and when I added the Nutella, I found that the bc almost seemed to seize up and get really hard. I could hardly spread it on the cake ( as a filling) although it tasted great (like chocolate ice cream). I posted a question on here, asking if anyone else had the same experience, and I did get some people who had. I think I should have added more liquid after adding the Nutella to loosen it up. I just figured that because my bc was spreadable and Nutella alone is spreadable that they would mix into something spreadable without a problem. I soon found out that was not the case. Good luck in your search. I too am intereste in making a pirouette style cake and would love to see yours when it's done.

Thank you for that tip!

I did find a Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut cake recipe, but I'm wondering if it is stackable since it sounds more like a Mousse and I wanted something 4 inches high or so! I think I will try it anyhow, part of the fun of cake making is experimenting and who better to experiment on than my family???