I scream for this ice cream

Originally posted on August 23rd, 2008.



If you're lactose intollerant like me, check this out:



[Snag a coupon and this little guy could be all yours, you cheap bastard!]

A host of new coconut milk-based vegan ice cream approximations have hit the shelves lately. On the West Coast, we have an especially wide selection: there's Maggie Mudd in San Francisco and Coconut Bliss in Eugene, Oregon. They're great for anyone looking to trim a little soy from their diet (seriously, who couldn't benefit from that?) - but until recently, they've been a pricey specialty affair.
But the new flavors from Turtle Mountain's So Delicious Purely Decadent line (based out of Oregon) are the most widely available, the least tummy-achingly decadent and very affordable. A pint of Mudd will set you back about $5, while Coconut Bliss clocks in closer to $6. They're tasty, but S.D.'s is more accessible - creamy, but not too sweet (made with agave, not sugar!), though perhaps a little coconutty for some. (If you're looking for a seriously decadent dessert that'll knock you out for a good hour and a half after you've inhaled it, you'd best look elsewhere.)
The cookie dough and mint chip versions can be a bit disappointing. They're tasty but you can taste the coconut-milk base, and they're overall not as rich as I want those flavors to be. The vanilla bean and coconut ones, on the other hand, are orgasmicly good - or so I've been told.
Mix a serving of vanilla with some fresh cut fruit to cut down on total snack calories and foodie guilt. And then go out trick your favorite omnis because seriously, this stuff ain't no Tofutti. They'll be shocked. Then sweet-talk them into buying another carton for sharesies.

A pint will set you back less than $3 at the Park Slope Food Co-op, but more like $4 at Whole Paycheck - though S.D. has some generous coupon offerings on their Web site. It comes in vanilla bean, chocolate, coconut, mint chip and cookie dough varieties. They're up for the VegNews Awards (vote for SV, too!) against Mudd and Bliss. Just so you know.

Update: the Purely Decadent chocolate is yum!