If you, like thousands around the country over, miss having that cool, velvety ice cream treat on a hot summer day due to a lactose intolerance issue, listen up. If you enjoy the taste, the texture and everything else about ice cream but sadly can no longer treat yourself to it, then coconut milk dairy free ice cream is the goodie for you.

Coconut milk is a wonderful, useful and, most importantly, dairy free milk that can be used to make any number of scrumptious desserts. And no matter how hard you try, snow cones, popsicles, or sorbets just can’t replace the creamy goodness of ice cream!

Coconut ice cream takes troublesome dairy completely out of the yummy equation. If you’re not inclined to make your own coconut ice cream, no worries (who has the time?). You’re still not left out of the party.

Without using any dairy products like milk or cream, or even eggs or sugar, we’ve created a dessert that simply tantalizes. And, using only coconut milk, brown rice and agave nectar (for that sweetness no dessert would be complete without) we create flavors that will become your hearts desire.

With the crisp, tropical flavor of coconut dancing on your tongue, you just can’t help but smile.  And if you don’t have any dietary restrictions to fully enjoy coconut ice cream, you’re still invited, and you’re gonna like it. Be sure to bring a spoon!

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Ingredients:
1 tablespoon nondairy milk
3 tablespoons flour (of your choice)
2 tablespoons unrefined sugar
1.5 tablespoons non-dairy butter or neutral oil
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Non-dairy regular or mini semisweet chocolate chips (as many as you want)
Pinch of salt
NadaMoo Vanilla…ahh! or Creamy Coconut
Splash of non-dairy milk

To make cookie dough pieces, combine first seven ingredients (flour through salt) together in a small bowl. Pinch dough into little cubes or balls and set aside.
Using a blender or hand blender, whip the NadaMoo with a little non-dairy milk. Depending on how frozen your ice cream is, you may need more or less. You want the ice cream mixture to be thicker than a milkshake but a little fluffy–about the consistency of soft serve ice cream.
Fold cookie dough pieces into ice cream and enjoy immediately.

If you’re struggling to find yummy vegan desserts you can heave a sigh of relief in knowing that there are plenty to choose from.  It ranges from the basic easy to prepare types of desserts to sophisticated epicurean gourmet style preparations.  Whatever your preference and past favorite, it’s always possible to make it vegan style…the only limit is your imagination.

Just to give you an idea of how easy it is to come up with your ideal vegan dessert, here are two some samples for your imagination to feast on:

Choco Brownies

Vegan choco brownies are one of the most popular Vegan desserts available.  It cuts across geographic and cultural divides. Actually, it is hard to find anyone in the free world that’s not a fan of brownies.  So it makes perfect sense that a vegan approach to it be made at the same time.  It is also easy to prepare and very easy on the budget.

Ice Cream Desserts 

Yes, a vegan ice cream!  Whoever said that this is not possible without dairy milk is grossly mistaken and probably has been in deep slumber for eons. Or a couple decades anyway. There are many ice creams made with strictly vegan recipes, sans cream, milk and butter. Whip it up yourself and come up with your own favorite flavour.  There is the vegan sorbet which can be concocted with a blender using as few as four ingredients.  Each offering offers the same delightful taste of a regular dairy ice cream, once you’ve found your favourites.

There are plenty of creative ways to come up with vegan desserts.  This is due to the growing awareness of enthusiasts to come up with more recipes that will eventually entice others to make that important switch towards a healthy diet.  The next time you visit your local supermarket, grab a pint of NadaMoo. You’re sure to fall in love!

photo credit: Premshree Pillai via photopin cc

Ingredients:
1/2 cup non-dairy chocolate chips (or purchased chocolate fudge sauce)
1 pint NadaMoo Gotta Do Chocolate
1 pint NadaMoo Java Crunch
Marshmallow crème (such as Suzanne’s Ricemellow Creme)
1/4 cup chopped toasted almonds

Melt chocolate chips over a double boiler (if you don’t have a double boiler, a metal bowl placed over a pan works, too. Just be careful of the steam when lifting). Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally and watching closely, until melted.
Place one scoop each of both flavors of NadaMoo into a bowl or sundae dish. Put a scoop of marshmallow crème over the ice cream and top with the melted chocolate chips and a sprinkle of toasted almonds.

Are you lactose intolerant, allergic to dairy products or have chosen to follow a vegan diet? When you walk down the aisle of a supermarket, or while casually walking down the street you come across a shop selling dairy ice creams, you feel like having an ice cream but you can’t because you are committed to lead a dairy free life. If you have opted out of consuming dairy products that shouldn’t mean that you cannot enjoy those mouth-watering frozen ice creams like you did before; you can have its alternative: a dairy-free ice cream!

Milk contains a disaccharide called lactose which, for those suffering from lactose intolerance, cannot be broken down into two monosaccharide, glucose and galactose. This happens because their digestive system does not produce the required amount of lactase, an enzyme found in the small intestine which breaks down lactose.

There are some people who are allergic to dairy products. It is to be noted that being allergic to dairy products is different from being lactose intolerant. Lactose intolerance occurs due to lactose while allergy mostly happens because of the presence of casein, one of the many proteins that are found in milk. When a person has a milk allergy, he not only suffers from gastrointestinal disorders but also suffers from respiratory problems. He may also have dermatological issues.

Vegans adapt to such a lifestyle because they do not want to exploit animals for human uses. So they do not consume meat, poultry, fish, honey and various dairy products that include butter, cheese, smoothies and even the ice creams that makes you want to go weak in your knees.

If you fall into one of the three above-mentioned categories and are someone who is unable to enjoy his cups and cones of ice cream, you don’t have to suffer at the sight of dairy ice creams. The dairy-free ice cream made with coconut milk allows you to enjoy ice creams the way you did before.

photo credit: ulterior epicure via photopin cc

You can also use grape juice instead of orange for a Purple Shake (also omit vanilla extract). For orange creamsicles, freeze shake in popsicle molds or in a cup with a stick in it.

1 cup non-dairy milk
1/2 cup orange juice (fresh squeezed is best, but from-concentrate also works)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups NadaMoo Vanilla…ahh!

Combine first three ingredients in a blender. Add ice cream and blend until just combined. Serve immediately.

For people who are lactose intolerant, finding edible and tasty treats can be troublesome. Most treats, such as chocolate, ice cream and sponge cakes have cream or milk in them, and conventionally they are cow’s milk. This makes them unsuitable for people with lactose intolerance.

Only some forms of lactose intolerance allow the sufferers to still eat small amounts of chocolate, and even simple things like a cup of tea are hard to stomach if you are unlucky enough. But, nowadays, there are alternatives to the ordinary treats and sweets of the norm which contain no dairy products, and therefore no discomfort! The alternatives use goat’s milk, sheep’s milk and even coconut milk to make their products suitable for people with lactose intolerance.

You can get ice cream that is made from coconut milk. This is just as creamy, and even has a unique flavor to it that ice cream alone could never hop to achieve without the coconut. You can still get this ice cream in all the different flavors of ordinary dairy ice cream, which means there is no difference between them. In fact it almost seems the coconut ice cream is tastier!

Some people who are lactose intolerant can eat small amounts of chocolate at a time without having any bad reaction to it. This is all well and good, but why restrain yourself when you can get chocolate made with coconut milk that tastes just as good and you can eat as much as you like, within normal reasoning and part of a balanced diet, of course!

Coconut chocolate actually tastes very similar to bars such as Bounty that you get with bits of coconut in them. Only this time, the chocolate is actually made with coconuts! Which saves you the hassle of buying coconut bars especially in shops and only being able to eat them in small doses; now you can eat as much as you like without any consequences!

So, if you like coconuts, try some of the coconut products available to you today! You won’t regret it!

NadaMoo Vanilla…ahh!, Creamy Coconut, or mmm…Maple Pecan
4 flour tortillas
Oil or water, for spritzing
1 tablespoon unrefined sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 large apple, finely chopped
1 tablespoon unrefined sugar, maple syrup, or agave nectar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut flour tortillas into strips or wedges using a pizza cutter or knife. Place on a cookie sheet and spritz with oil or water (this will help the cinnamon sugar to stick). Mix together the cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle evenly over spritzed tortillas. Bake for 11-14 minutes, or until crispy.

Remove from oven and set aside.

In a small saucepan heat chopped apple, sweetener, and cinnamon over medium low heat until apples are soft and bubbly. Stir often and add a little water if they start to stick (they will release their own juices as they cook, though, so go easy). Set aside.

On a plate or bowl place one scoop of NadaMoo. Top this with a spoonful of the apple topping and stick in one or two of the tortilla strips. Finish with an extra sprinkle of cinnamon and serve immediately.

What is Organic?

In a few words, organic is healthier. You do not have to worry about the use of chemicals or genetically modified seeds. It’s farming the way it used to be before fear of bugs got to large multinationals that had to step in and protect their crops. As consumers, we don’t benefit from the use of these pesticides. It’s more for the guys who grow them so they can sell more instead of lose out to animals that may eat some of their harvest.

What’s Coconut Milk?

This is the liquid squeezed out from the coconut meat. It’s different from coconut water which is a juice beverage. The coconut milk really looks like milk –white and creamy especially the fresh variety. You may not be aware but if you’ve ever eaten curry, then you’ve had coconut milk. It is an essential ingredient used to make the sauce smoother and tastier. It is used for desserts in countries like Uruguay. It is also the milk doctors will recommend to young toddlers over one year who are allergic to formula or cow’s fresh milk.

Put Together Organic and Coconut Milk and You Get Magic!

There are just too many reasons why everyone should start a habit of drinking organic coconut milk. Here are just a few:

• It’s healthy, toxin-free, and an environment-friendly product (now that’s 3 reasons bunched together)
• No irradiation or methods to hasten the growth and long shelf life are used. You do know that there are some irresponsible companies that add a little something to vegetables and fruits to extend their shelf life?
• It’s delicious
• Coconut milk and juice can cleanse our system. This is especially true for women who suffer from chronic UTI
• It’s nourishing

Organic is nothing new. We’ve come a long ways realizing our mistakes in using chemicals and synthetic products on our food, and beginning the work to reverse the trend. This isn’t about small farmers versus large farms. There’s nothing political about wanting to eat fresh, nutritious food. It keeps us from getting sick and enjoying life longer, and passing the technology to our children for their children. With all that’s been said about organic coconut milk, don’t you think cartwheels are called for?

If you have a mini ice cream scoop, you can use that to make little ice cream truffles instead of the squares. These are pretty served on a mini muffin liner. You can also make these squares bigger and put a stick in for an cream bar treat. For peanut butter chocolate bites, add a tablespoon or two of peanut butter to the chocolate chips and sprinkle them with chopped peanuts.

1 pint any flavor of NadaMoo
3/4 cup non-dairy semisweet chocolate chips
Chopped nuts, cookie crumbs, sprinkles, dried fruit, or coconut to sprinkle on top (optional)

Spread NadaMoo into an 8 inch square pan lined with parchment. Score the ice cream into 1 inch squares using a knife. Freeze overnight, or until completely frozen.
Remove from freezer and cut ice cream into cubes using score mark. Place the ice cream cubes on a cookie sheet lined with parchment and return to freezer.
Cover lightly with plastic wrap. Freeze overnight or until completely frozen (make sure your freezer is turned down low enough for the ice cream cubes to get really hard.
Melt chocolate chips over a double boiler (if you don’t have a double boiler, a metal bowl placed over a pan works, too. Just be careful of the steam when lifting). Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally and watching closely, until melted. Allow melted chocolate to cool to room temperature, but not to harden.
Remove ice cream squares from freezer and carefully and quickly dip them into the room temperature chocolate. Place back on the parchment paper and sprinkle with toppings of your choice (or leave plain). Return to freezer until completely hardened. Once they have refrozen, they are ready to eat!