Ice Cream or Nice Cream?
Written By Melissa Avalos, PNW Intern, Summer 2021
It’s officially summer! That means it’s time for some refreshing, cold snacks to get us through these hot months. Ice cream is a definite favorite during this season and the good news is that vegan options are available at most grocery stores, and in so many different flavors! In efforts to make healthy habits within your diet, allowing yourself time to freely enjoy your favorite snacks & desserts is important. It’s also important to note that not all vegan ice creams have the best ingredients and can be high in saturated fat and sugar. As an alternative to purchasing store bought options, there are some really fun and delicious recipes for homemade vegan ice cream (AKA nice cream) & other fun frozen desserts. Read on for comparisons of different ice creams and for our favorite frozen treat recipes!
Vegan Ice cream VS. Dairy Ice Cream
One of the many perks of plant-based ice creams is that in comparison to dairy, they can be lower in overall fat and saturated fat. However, it’s very easy to make the automatic assumption that just because something is vegan, it’s healthy which is not true. Depending on the main base of the vegan ice cream, e.g. coconut oil, it can also be high in saturated fat. Diets high in saturated fat are correlated with heart disease, diabetes, stroke, & high cholesterol, so it’s important to be aware of how much you are consuming in your diet. Furthermore, most of us could stand to lower the added sugars in our daily lives. Again, just because it’s vegan or plant-based, does not mean that it doesn’t have a ton of added sugar too.
Here’s a comparison of 2 different plant based ice creams & 2 dairy ice creams:
In the comparison above you can see that traditional dairy ice cream tends to be higher in overall fat & saturated fat. Furthermore, the coconut milk vegan option has more than twice the saturated fat than the cashew milk option, while the homemade Nice cream basically has none. It’s also important to note that, aside the homemade option, vegan ice cream is not significantly lower in added sugars than its dairy counterpart.
Plant-Based Ice Creams
Ice cream is a staple dessert for a lot of us, especially during the summertime. Being vegan is easier than ever in 2021 with multiple options available throughout different grocery stores. Even big brands like Haagen-Dazs and Ben & Jerrys have released dairy free options. Some of the most popular vegan brands carrying vegan ice cream are, So delicious, Oatly, & Nadamoo. There’s a large variety of flavors and ice cream bases like oatmilk, coconut milk, soy milk, and cashew milk.
In the table below is a comparison of fat content among the 4 most common plant based ice cream bases. So delicious was used for each plant milk category.
The highest in overall and saturated fat content are the coconut milk and oat milk based ice creams. The oat milk option is made with oat milk and coconut oil; both coconut milk and oil are primarily made up of saturated fats. Most oat milk based ice creams and some cashew milk ice creams will have coconut oil listed as a part of the main ingredients. Although coconut oil provides a wonderful creamy texture, it's not the best for our health. Soy milk ice cream has the lowest fat content out of all 4 bases. Since there isn’t much fat in the soymilk base, a variety of gums are added to it for a creamy consistency.
Home-Made Vegan Frozen Desserts
Store bought plant-based ice creams are a wonderful option for a great dessert with loads of creamy flavor, although some can be a little pricey and high in fat. As a healthy and fun alternative, try your hand at some homemade recipes.
Have you heard the term “nice cream” before? This is referring to homemade vegan ice cream, usually prepared from a base of frozen bananas, avocados, or different fruits combined with your favorite flavors. Nice cream is one of my favorite ways to enjoy ice cream because it is so refreshing, versatile, affordable, and a great way to get a serving or two of fruit. It’s naturally lower in fat & sugar in comparison to store bought vegan ice creams. It can also be really fun because you get to play around with different flavors!
Here are some simple Nice Cream recipes you can make:
Peanut butter Nice cream:
Blend all of these ingredients together until smooth & creamy. Just a heads up, the blender might need some breaks & stirring in between.
1 large frozen ripe banana
1.5 tablespoons of peanut butter
¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract
A splash of plant milk of your choice
1 tablespoon of maple syrup (optional if you like it on the sweeter side)
Top with a few vegan chocolate chips for more fun!!
Mango Nice Cream:
Mango has a very creamy texture when blended frozen similar to banana.
So this one’s pretty easy, just blend until creamy.
1 cup of frozen mango chunks
Splash of water or plant milk of your choice
Top with crumbled pistachios or some hemp seeds for that crunch factor
Be very careful with the amount of water or plant milk you add, it can turn into a smoothie very quickly.
The Minimalist baker has a really great recipe for nice cream & shows how to add different flavors and toppings to modify the base of the nice cream.
Nice cream isn’t the only way to stay refreshed during the summer months! Smoothies, popsicles, and agua fresca are other fun and healthy options for the summer.
Smoothies are creamy, refreshing, and full of flavor. They are also a great way to incorporate more fruits and veggies. Definitely one of my favorites for the summer months!
Here are a few fun dessert-y smoothie recipes to try out this summer:
Aguas fresca is a traditional Mexican summer drink that is usually made by combining fruit, water, a little lime juice, and some sort of sweetener. It translates to “fresh water”, so you already know it’s refreshing. Since agua fresca is blended the fiber is not separated from the liquid like juice, so you are able to enjoy it with all the benefits of fiber!
Here are some different aguas frescas to try out:
Horchata Agua Fresca (this is on the sweeter side)
It’s not summer without popsicles, am I right? Check out these fun & tasty recipes:
Banoffee Pops (side note: we don’t recommend adding the protein powder - here’s why.)
Almond Butter Banana Popsicles
Bottom Line
I think we can all agree that ice cream is amazing, delicious, and necessary for summer! Store-bought plant based ice creams are tasty and convenient, not to mention they can really hit the spot for that specific craving! Just remember to keep an eye out for the overall & saturated fat content, especially those that contain coconut oil and/or coconut milk. Sometimes it’s better to put something together at home. If you feel like having something sweet and refreshing but don’t feel like having ice cream, you can try any of the different recipes for nice cream, agua fresca, and smoothies listed above. They are all refreshing, affordable, & healthy options on a hot summer day!
What’ll it be for you this summer?