Post Punk Kitchen Forum

So I was a strict vegan for three years, lost the passion for a few more, and now I'm giving it another shot come January. But anyway, last night I decided to go splurge on Purely Decadent cookie dough and So Delicious coconut-based cherry ice creams. I used to LOVE vegan ice cream - it was a no-brainer transition, as it was just as good to me as the real deal.

So how come last night, when I dug into my pint of beloved cookie dough soy cream, it tasted like ice milk? Thin, no flavor, and it was just so disappointing.

Did they change the recipe or something? Are are there some more impressive brands out there I should try?

I really like Trader Joes's coconut milk chocolate ice cream. I'm not a huge fan of soy ice creams.

If you like the taste of coconut, I highly recommend Coconut Bliss. They don't refine out the coconut taste so all the flavors have coconut in the background (which would be a deal-breaker if you don't like coconut but is a super awesome bonus if you love coconut like I do), but the texture is lovely and decadent the way a pint of Haagen-Dazs is.

If you want a lack of coconut flavor in your ice creams, I agree with FabulouslyFierce that the TJ's coconut ice creams are good too. They refine out the coconut flavor. I don't recommend the So Delicious coconut ice cream... it seems like there are too many vegetable gums in there and the texture is just... not right.

I agree, look for coconut-based ones. Though also look for flavors that taste good with coconut since you can definitely taste coconut. So Delicious coconut chocolate peanut butter swirl is amazing.

Going the other direction, Ciao Bella makes some really great sorbets. They're rich and vibrant, but they're not trying to be ice cream. The chocolate is especially good.

For non-scoopable ice cream, Almond/Rice Dream ice cream bites (either kind) are good. And so is the Tofutti Yours Truly. It's like a drumstick but with chocolate pieces instead of nuts.

I like soy so maybe I'm biased, but even so I think TJ's soy cherry chocolate chip is amazing. The texture is awesome. For non-soy I remember liking Tempt- Mint Chip flavor, which is hemp-based. I also agree with Mollyjade on the almond bites and Tofutti cones- love both of those!

I think they did change the recipe. The last pint of Purely Decadent Cookie Dough Soy Ice Cream I bought had a lot of ice crystals in it and had that "ice milk" thing going on. It wasn't like that several months ago.

Come to NYC and visit Lula's. It is the best thing ever.

I've seen that at my health food store - I adore coconut, so I will certainly give the Bliss a shot.

I did favor soy ice creams, too! Tofutti Cuties and Marry-Me bars are delicious, and my mother used to eat them on me, but because they're so unhealthy it's not something I want sitting around in my fridge. Not that I should be eating ice cream every day, but...!

I go for the TJ's soy ice cream. I love the flavor and texture. The only flavors I have ever seen are Cherry chocolate chip and vanilla. I like them both. In fact I thought about it so much the other day and when I got to the store and bought both flavors. Also in my area I cannot beat the price. 3.99 for a quart compared to 5.59 for a pint of So Delicious.

I think TJ's soy ice cream might be Double Rainbow in disguise? Which is great news because whole foods carries several flavors of double rainbow soy cream including mint chip, my favorite! Definitely recommend those brands!

This makes me sad. I've always loved So Delicious--the cookie dough was my favourite. I haven't bought it for months. Is it really different? Anyone know what happened?

yes, i am a fan of soy based ice cream, and while i haven't had it in awhile, i do have fond memories of it being rich and tasty. i bought the 'choc velvet' flavor from so delicious recently and was not impressed :( not sure why the taste has changed.

i'm excited to find out that TJ has soy based ice creams! i really need to explore our TJ more! i pretty much make a bee line for the ginormous cartons of soy dream soymilk and head to the check-out.

Get Vegan ala Mode and you can have any kind of ice cream your heart desires. I rarely ever buy premade ice cream any more because it's so expensive and even the best I've bought isn't better than the simplest of recipes (Hello, Vegan Diner Vanilla made with Very Vanilla soymilk!)

If you miss cookie dough ice cream, get the enjoy life mini chips and make Isa's cookie dough from the back of VCIYCJ and some coconut based vanilla. V'cons is good for this.

It might have just been a bad pint? Every once in awhile I will buy a pint that seems like it was thawed and then re-frozen, giving it a sort of icy milk texture. Not very welcome when you pay $5 for something...

The So Delicious coconut milk cookie dough is good! I also really like the almond milk ice creams...Almond Dream? The TJs coconut and soy based ice creams are all delicious as well.

I'll be the odd ball out and I've always thought certain Purely Decadent flavors taste that way. The only ones I really like are Mocha Almond Fudge and Turtle Trails because they have enough going on in the add-ins that I forget that the ice cream part isn't the best.

Fee, you're not the odd-ball on those, I think the same thing. Maybe we just live in crappy areas for vegan ice cream?

If you live in Canada, the Natura soy ice creams are awesome! I've tried their maple, chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla ice cream and I love all of it.

I have no whole foods near. All I want for Christmas is TJ's to get the mint chip flavor.

I have had Almond Dream chocolate and it was super good. Still on the spendy side.

The only Purely Decadent I ever buy is the Turtle Trails, but it's so good! I hope that flavor is just better, and they haven't changed anything. I tried their almond milk kind, but I definitely thought it was ice-milky more than creamy, and too sweet. Wouldn't buy it again.

I would love for TJ's to get more flavors from the same company. I don't think Double Rainbow is sold anywhere here.

Sorry, sometimes I forget that not all places are weird like sf bay..there are like 1-2 whole foods per city for some reason. It looks like double rainbow is mostly available in the western us...now I feel bad. Sorry!!

GAAAHHH I LOVE TURTLE TRAILS. and peanut butter bomb or whatever it's called and cherry nirvana and goddammit why can't we have good ice cream in Britain.

if the quality really has declined as of late i will be a very sad panda, because i plan to eat many cartons while i'm visiting this month.

Are you inclined to try making your own? Then you can make it however you want, using whatever kind of nondairy milk you want.

Most nondairy milks are pretty watery (with the exception of coconut milk, which is why it's great in ice cream.) But you can improve the consistency by adding more fat or tofu.

My book has mostly ice cream recipes that use tofu in addition to whatever kind of milk you want (rice, soy, hemp, coconut, almond...) Also a few nut butter-based ice creams, and Avocado Ice Cream, which just uses the fat in the avocado. There are also recipes for sherbet, frozen yogurt (and how to make soy or coconut milk yogurt), and sorbets. The sorbets don't use any milks.

We don't have any vegan ice cream stores here at all. I make all my own. But I doubt I'd go back, anyway. They don't sell Strawberry Basil Balsamic or Chocolate Curry Ice Cream, two of my favorites!

Oh, I have a few that are an hour or so away. I will be stopping at the one next to my cousins next time.

i haven't tried it and i'm not big on ice cream (i LOVE cake so i when i want to splurge i eat cake) but i've heard Genuto is the shiitake. very expensive though.

i've always wondered why there aren't more cashew based ice creams out there. or avocado based ice creams.