CONNECT WITH US

+

Mashed Blueberry Panini with Peanut Butter and Nutella

January 7, 2015

Breakfast Main Dish Recipes Kelly 4 Comments

I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council. I received a stipend to facilitate my purchase for my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation.

Mashed Blueberry Panini with Peanut Butter and Nutella @hiddenfruitnveg

Do you make New Year’s resolutions each year? Normally I don’t because I don’t think you should wait until January to make a positive change in your life, but I totally love everyone switching into healthy mode for the month of January.  Now if we could just get those resolutions to last all year, we’d be getting somewhere. That’s why I’m a fan of making little changes — taking the stairs, skipping the fries, using less sugar. They’re small steps that don’t make me feel deprived and it’s easy to get back on track if you happen to screw up. It’s unrealistic to beat yourself up about taking the elevator once, but it’s easy to splurge when dieting and never get back on track. Plus, these small changes will become habit and you won’t even realize you’re making good choices.

Mashed Blueberry Panini with Peanut Butter and Nutella @hiddenfruitnveg

I’m always looking to reduce my sugar intake, which is hard when you have a sweet tooth. Luckily, I can swap out sugary treats for blueberries and just a little bit of chocolate or peanuts or almonds. Annnnnd now I’m hungry. But my real weakness? A peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Extra, extra jelly. Bonus points if it’s a fancy PBJ. A local bar has a grilled sandwich with blueberry preserves, Nutella, and peanut butter. It’s so overly sweet and incredibly with potato chips <– and that’s definitely not a healthy dinner! I lightened it up with just a small smear of each Nutella and PB, and mashed fruit in place of the jelly. Have you ever checked how much sugar is in jelly and preserves? I’ve even seen some with more sugar than fruit! Yikes. Mashing up fresh blueberries (or frozen if you can’t find fresh! My market has fresh blueberries from South America all winter long) is a great lower cal, no/less added sugar swap for that jelly + 1 c has almost 4 g of fiber.

Mashed Blueberry Panini with Peanut Butter and Nutella @hiddenfruitnveg

Are you making any little changes this year? The U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council is hosting a sweepstakes to win a trip for two to the Little Changes Kitchen Challenge. Runners up can also win $500 gift cards to Whole Foods or Lululemon. If you’re just looking for more info on blueberries, check out www.littlebluedynamos.com (cutest website name ever) or follow BlueberryLife on Pinterest.

Mashed Blueberry Panini with Peanut Butter and Nutella @hiddenfruitnveg

Print
Mashed Blueberry Panini with Peanut Butter and Nutella
Author: 
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 

Serves: 4 sandwiches
 

Ingredients
  • ½ c blueberries, mashed until no whole berries remain
  • agave or honey, to taste (optional)
  • Nutella (store bought or homemade for less sugar)
  • Peanut butter (I used natural crunchy with no sugar)
  • Whole grain or gluten free bread
  • Butter/margarine/nonstick spray

Instructions
  1. Microwave the mashed berries in 30 second intervals, stirring after each, until the mixture resembles jam (mine took a total of 2 minutes). Add a few drops of agave or honey if the blueberries aren’t sweet enough for you. Stash the mixture in the freeze to cool for around 5 – 10 minutes.
  2. Preheat a panini maker or place a nonstick skillet over medium heat.
  3. Spread a thin layer of peanut butter on one slice of bread and Nutella on another. A little goes a long way, you don’t need a very thick layer. Spritz the outside of the slices with nonstick spray or spread with butter/margarine. Place the PB slice in the pan, PB side up. Top with ¼ of the jam and the Nutella slice (Nutella side down). Press in a panini pan until crispy and lightly browned or cook like a grilled cheese (cooking in a pan and flipping once the bottom side is brown and crispy). Repeat with remaining filling.
  4. Let cool slightly before cutting so you don’t lose the filling.

Notes
The jam can be saved in the fridge for several days or frozen, so it’s ready whenever a craving strikes. The Nutella adds a lot of sweetness, so I recommend leaving the jam wholely unsweetened or just adding 1 – 2 drops of sweetener. You can also use a homemade Nutella to control the sugar and/or make this sandwich vegan.
I purposefully avoided giving exact amounts of the peanut butter or Nutella — that’s personal preference. I used a under a tablespoon of each for a less messy sandwich.

Nutrition Information
Serving size: 1 sandwich

And an extra photo just because I’m hungry 😉Mashed Blueberry Panini with Peanut Butter and Nutella @hiddenfruitnveg

Tagged with: • • • • • • • •

4 Comments
    Erin @ The Speckled Palate Jan 08, 2015

    You’re TOTALLY speaking my language with this sandwich, Kelly, and I now desperately want one… even though I just ate dinner not too long ago. I haven’t had blueberries in entirely too long, and I think it’s high time I went out and got some so I can make this exact sandwich! YUM.

    Becky @ Olives n Wine Jan 07, 2015

    OMG YES. Totally need these in my life. PB + Nutella with a bit o’ fruit to make it healthy 😉 Hehe!

    Hannah @ CleanEatingVeggieGirl Jan 07, 2015

    I am already a fan of grilled pb&js, so I’m sure I would LOVE this! It is the best when the pb (and in this case, Nutella) get all melty and good! And since this is made with blueberries, I can make it around my boyfriend and not have to worry about him stealing mine 😉

CONNECT WITH US

Subscribe via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Top Posts & Pages

Badges


recipe redux