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, natch) are the most widely available, the least tummy-achingly decadent and the most affordable in these tight times of ours. 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. But 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.
Maybe that’s why the cookie dough and mint chip versions were kind of disappointing for me. They’re tasty, no doubt, but you can really 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, far surpassed my expectations. The vanilla has now become my go-to summer snack (I have a lot of those “free pint” coupons saved up, okay?). Great for anyone looking to cut some soy and indulge in some summertime junk food. (Might I suggest some ripe summer peaches?) Mix a serving 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. I won’t tell you who I voted for, because that would violate my journalistic integrity — but let’s just say I’m kind of a cheapskate.
