Nothing screams "summer" louder than that sweet treat we call ice cream. On any given hot sunny day, I crave a bowl of mint chocolate chip – so when I found out that my digestive system and dairy products don't get along, I had to look for another way to satsify my sweet tooth. Enter Turtle Mountain's non-dairy coconut ice cream. When I heard they launched a new line of coconut milk ice creams, I was excited to try them – not only because I love ice cream, but also because I LOVE anything with coconut in it.
Coconut Credentials
In anticipation for my chance to sample Turtle Mountain's Purely Decadent pints and So Delicious novelties made with Coconut Milk, I learned a little more about the company. Their coconut milk ice creams are vegan, dairy-free, free of soy proteins, and made with organic ingredients. Even better for me, the Purely Decadent pints are all gluten-free (even the Cookie Dough). Founder and current CEO/President of Turtle Mountain Mark Brawerman created his all natural, dairy-free treats after seeing a need for non-dairy frozen treats that tasted like ice cream all the way back in 1990. Thank you, Mark Brawerman! You are my hero!
Our Savvy Sample
The entire Naturally Savvy team anxiously awaited the arrival of the Purely Decadent pints and So Delicious novelties. Bowl and spoon in hand, Lisa Tsakos, Naturally Savvy's very own Nutritionist, said she'd never seen me so excited as when the post man showed up at the office. The folks at Turtle Mountain certainly spoiled us – we got to sample their Purely Decadent made with Coconut Milk mint chip, cookie dough, chocolate, chocolate peanut butter swirl, vanilla bean, coconut and passionate mango pints, and the So Delicious made with Coconut Milk coconut almond bar, vanilla bar, banana split sandwiches, and coconut sandwiches. It wasn't easy stuffing in all that ice cream, but we sacrificed our bellies for the sake of the review.
Flavor Breakdown
We started off with the Purely Decadent ice creams. As soon as we tasted the ice cream, we were all impressed with how very creamy and decadent the products were, with a texture identical to premium dairy ice creams.
- Vanilla Bean – very strong (and delicious) vanilla flavor
- Passionate Mango – perfect for people who love sorbet or fruity ice cream flavors, and awesome with some fruit on top
- Cookie Dough – nice big chunks of cookie dough and a touch of a mocha flavor. Anyone who's ever made cookies using dough from the refrigerator knows that cookie dough is crumbly when chilled, and thankfully, the cookie dough pieces in this ice cream behaved the same way (not like the gooey bits you'd find in conventional cookie dough ice cream)
- Mint Chip – spot-on mint flavor and refreshingly white (not artificially green) ice cream
- Chocolate – absolutely delicious, tasting exactly like any other premium chocolate ice cream without any hint of coconut (perfect for anyone who's not a huge fan of the fruit)
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl – just like the chocolate flavor, but with an added ribbon of peanut butter that added a smooth, rich, and creamy peanut butter flavor, reminding me of the flavor of a chocolate peanut butter cup and my clear favorite. Lisa said it is hands down the best ice cream flavor she has ever tasted.
Though we all agreed that every flavor was delicious, it was unanimous that the ice creams with the chocolate bases were the best. But don't ask us to choose between Chocolate and Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl – that decision still has our office divided.
Other Yummy Treats
With our heavy stomachs, we moved on to the So Delicious novelties:
- The Coconut Sandwiches and the Coconut Almond Bars were the only samples we tried that had a strong coconut flavor, much to the chagrin of the one Naturally Savvy team member who doesn't really like coconut (though he did like all the other ice cream treats we tried).
- The Vanilla Bar, on the other hand, certainly gives your standard ice cream bar a run for its money with the super creamy, rich ice cream center coated in a decadent chocolate coating.
- Taking a new approach to the ice cream sandwich, the Banana Split Sandwiches have a subtle fruit flavor that makes them unlike any other ice cream sandwich we've ever tried (these were a major hit amongst our younger Savvy Samplers).
We loved every bite we took of Turtle Mountain's coconut milk ice creams. Aside from the coconut flavored treats, it was easy to forget we were eating coconut at all. For making a delicious non-dairy ice cream that everyone will enjoy (including vegans), Turtle Mountain's Purely Decadent pints and So Delicious novelties made from coconut milk certainly earn The Naturally Savvy Seal of Approval.
Turtle Mountain's Ice Creams made with Coconut Milk are available at Whole Foods and other natural food stores. For more information, visit www.TurtleMountain.com.
