Guest guest Posted August 31, 2007 Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 Taster's Choice Whole Soy dessert crowned non-dairy queen Carol Ness, Chronicle Staff Writer Wednesday, August 22, 2007 Ice cream-like desserts made without milk or cream are proliferating, increasingly popular with vegetarians, vegans, the lactose-intolerant and people who just like them or want to avoid dairy. Six years ago, the last time Taster's Choice looked at frozen vanilla soy desserts, there were only five. This time around, we found eight, plus two similar products made from rice and one that's cashew milk-based. Overall, though, the tasting panel didn't like these desserts much more than they did the last time around. Many were too sweet, or had odd textures or flavors. Prices have gone up quite a bit since the previous tasting. In 2001, they cost $2.39-$2.89 a pint; this time, prices ranged from $2.89 to $4.99. Fat content ranges from 0 to 8 grams per serving, very little of it saturated. The top desserts were all soy-based. The winner was Whole Soy Co. ($3.19 for a pint, Whole Foods). The panel commented on its " coconut " flavor, saying they liked it " but it's supposed to be vanilla. " The ingredient label says nothing about coconut, though it does mention " natural flavors. " Tasters generally liked its " smooth texture " and " pleasant " flavor. Three would buy this brand; two would not. Second place went to Tofutti ($2.99 a pint, Rainbow), which was described as very sweet and " vanilla-y " - too much so for some of the tasters - with a creamy or " almost fatty " texture. Two would buy it, one might and two wouldn't. Soy Delicious Fruit-Sweetened ($3.45 a pint, Rainbow), one of three products in the tasting from the same company, came in third. It was " smooth and creamy " with a " mild " flavor and a bit of a " green tint. " One panelist would buy it, two might and two would not. Fourth-ranked Soy Cream ($2.89 for a pint, Rainbow) dazzled one taster with its specks of what looked like vanilla bean; another commented on its " pure vanilla flavor. " But several panelists thought it was " too sweet " with a " one-dimensional flavor. " Two would buy this dessert; three would not. Freezees ($3.59 for a pint, Rainbow) came in fifth and scored poorly, but drew a lot of interest because of its distinctly nutty flavor, as if slightly salty nuts had been mixed into vanilla ice cream. That's because it's made from cashew milk. Despite its novelty - or maybe because of it - only one taster might buy this brand. Vanilla non-dairy frozen desserts Whole Soy 65 Tofutti 61 Soy Delicious 55 Fruit-Sweetened Soy Cream 51 Freezees 32 Soy Delicious Purely 31 Decadent Soy Dream 26 Organic Rice Dream 22 So Delicious 20 Good Karma Organic Rice Divine 18 Panelists were Linda Anusasananan, food writer and consultant, San Mateo; John Carroll, cookbook author, San Francisco; Marc Halperin, director, Center for Culinary Development, San Francisco; Shelley Handler, consultant, San Francisco; and Karola Saekel, former Chronicle Food staffer. All products are tasted blind; a perfect score would be 100. Prices listed are the lowest found, but products may be available at other stores. E-mail Carol Ness at cness. To look up past Taster's Choice columns, search online at sfgate.com/food/tasters/archive. What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know, it's what we know for sure that just ain't so. - Mark Twain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 1, 2007 Report Share Posted September 1, 2007 Dont you get Swedish Glace over there? The only one I recognise from over here is the Toffuti. Peter H fraggle <EBbrewpunxvegan chat ; vegan-network <vegan-network >; TFHB <TFHB >Friday, 31 August, 2007 10:39:13 PM i happen to adore freezees dang it Taster's ChoiceWhole Soy dessert crowned non-dairy queenCarol Ness, Chronicle Staff WriterWednesday, August 22, 2007Ice cream-like desserts made without milk or cream are proliferating, increasingly popular with vegetarians, vegans, the lactose-intolerant and people who just like them or want to avoid dairy. Six years ago, the last time Taster's Choice looked at frozen vanilla soy desserts, there were only five. This time around, we found eight, plus two similar products made from rice and one that's cashew milk-based. Overall, though, the tasting panel didn't like these desserts much more than they did the last time around. Many were too sweet, or had odd textures or flavors. Prices have gone up quite a bit since the previous tasting. In 2001, they cost $2.39-$2.89 a pint; this time, prices ranged from $2.89 to $4.99. Fat content ranges from 0 to 8 grams per serving, very little of it saturated.The top desserts were all soy-based. The winner was Whole Soy Co. ($3.19 for a pint, Whole Foods). The panel commented on its "coconut" flavor, saying they liked it "but it's supposed to be vanilla." The ingredient label says nothing about coconut, though it does mention "natural flavors." Tasters generally liked its "smooth texture" and "pleasant" flavor. Three would buy this brand; two would not. Second place went to Tofutti ($2.99 a pint, Rainbow), which was described as very sweet and "vanilla-y" - too much so for some of the tasters - with a creamy or "almost fatty" texture. Two would buy it, one might and two wouldn't. Soy Delicious Fruit-Sweetened ($3.45 a pint, Rainbow), one of three products in the tasting from the same company, came in third. It was "smooth and creamy" with a "mild" flavor and a bit of a "green tint." One panelist would buy it, two might and two would not.Fourth-ranked Soy Cream ($2.89 for a pint, Rainbow) dazzled one taster with its specks of what looked like vanilla bean; another commented on its "pure vanilla flavor." But several panelists thought it was "too sweet" with a "one-dimensional flavor." Two would buy this dessert; three would not. Freezees ($3.59 for a pint, Rainbow) came in fifth and scored poorly, but drew a lot of interest because of its distinctly nutty flavor, as if slightly salty nuts had been mixed into vanilla ice cream. That's because it's made from cashew milk. Despite its novelty - or maybe because of it - only one taster might buy this brand. Vanilla non-dairy frozen desserts Whole Soy 65Tofutti 61Soy Delicious 55Fruit-Sweetened Soy Cream 51Freezees 32Soy Delicious Purely 31DecadentSoy Dream 26Organic Rice Dream 22So Delicious 20Good Karma Organic Rice Divine 18Panelists were Linda Anusasananan, food writer and consultant, San Mateo; John Carroll, cookbook author, San Francisco; Marc Halperin, director, Center for Culinary Development, San Francisco; Shelley Handler, consultant, San Francisco; and Karola Saekel, former Chronicle Food staffer. All products are tasted blind; a perfect score would be 100. Prices listed are the lowest found, but products may be available at other stores. E-mail Carol Ness at cness (AT) sfchronicle (DOT) com. To look up past Taster's Choice columns, search online at sfgate.com/food/ tasters/archive. What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know, it's what we know for sure that just ain't so.- Mark Twain For ideas on reducing your carbon footprint visit For Good this month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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