I still remember the first time I tried Nutella. I was studying abroad in Switzerland, and the hit of sweet chocolate-hazelnut was a revelation. I couldn’t believe that the spread hadn’t yet made its way to America.

Fast-forward (more years than I care to count) to today, and Nutella has become widely available Stateside, prompting the migration of other regional dessert-y spreads — like the Belgian speculoos, which is made from shortbread cookies — to American grocery-store shelves and kitchen tables. In that time, I moved to Italy, where I discovered another (better) nut-based delicacy that I foresee filling pantry shelves far and wide: pistachio cream.