Nutella as a sports team snack: Cutting the cost

At just over half an ounce, these packets are cute but skimpy.

What’s the best way to dispense Nutella as a sports team snack?

When Ben asked for Nutella and bagels when it was our turn to provide the cross country snack, my first impulse was to go with a giant package of single serve packets on Amazon that worked out to 22 cents a serving.

Trouble was, each packet was only .52 ounces – less than a tablespoon, if you compare it to the serving-size information on a typical 13 ounce jar.

To get that  price required ordering 120 packets at $26.84 – plus shipping, unless you were willing to tack on a paperback purchase to qualify for a $35 order that grants you free shipping.

The package we ordered had 3 of these 8-packs for $16.99.

I felt pretty confident that we could plow through 120 packets of Nutella, with or without the team’s help, and I’m always game for tacking a paperback onto an Amazon purchase.  But it  aggravated me that the packets were so skimpy, so we went with a 24-pack of individual cups of Jif to Go Chocolate Silk instead.

At $16.99, these worked out to 60 cents each per 1.5 ounce container – three times the size of the Nutella packets — and were just the right amount to smear on a bagel, Ben reported. Since then, the kids have been packing the leftover containers with pretzels for dunking as pre-practice snacks.

Looks like these are also available at Wal-Mart for around the same price, about $3 for 50 2-ounce containers.

The other day I came across these Diamond 2-ounce plastic condiment containers at Kroger, which might be the best option yet. I paid $3 for a 50-cup package, which comes out to 6 cents per container. At Walgreen’s yesterday I picked up two 13-ounce jars of Nutella for $6 (with 1,000 of those point thingies that supposedly translate to a future $1 savings).

If my math is correct (I’m not factoring in the bonus points schtick), those two jars should dispense 20 servings at 30 cents each. Add on the container and you’re looking at a 36-cent portable personal serving of Nutella.