If you’re going to spend $8 on a pint of ice cream, it better be amazing. When Chowhound tried 13 coffee-flavored ice creams to find our favorite, one of the more expensive options was our least favorite. Unfortunately, the $8 Planet Based Foods Dairy-Free Coffee Chip Frozen Dessert came in dead last.
It’s easy to jump to conclusions and blame the poor flavor on this ice cream being dairy-free — it’s not even called ice cream, but a “frozen dessert.” However, our taste testers specifically reported that, “It’s not bad because it’s plant-based … it’s just bad.” Valid. Ice cream should be sweet and creamy, something that many dairy-free ice creams are, but the Planet Based Foods pint did not meet this bare minimum. The texture was icy, and the flavor tasted watered down with little sweetness. The tasters also noticed an overpowering, artificial flavor of erythritol.
What Planet Based Foods Coffee Chip does have going for it is its use of organic and nutritious ingredients. All of the ingredients are organic, and the pint of frozen dessert is dairy-free, soy-free, gluten-free, and approved for vegans. The first ingredient is hemp milk — while this is a nutritious, protein-rich dairy alternative, it simply may not bring enough creaminess to something like ice cream.
Finding an alternative to the Planet Based Foods ice cream
If you do eat dairy, then the solution for great coffee ice cream is simple: Choose Talenti’s Coffee Cookie Crumble. This was Chowhound’s top choice for both the rich coffee flavor and a surprise layer of crumbled cookie in the center of the pint. Luckily, Talenti also offers a dairy-free cold brew coffee sorbetto, which gets a 4.5-star rating from 276 customers on the company’s website. Sadly, this option does contain egg, so it is not suitable for vegans.
For something super creamy and totally vegan, go for Jeni’s Cold Brew with Coconut Cream Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert. With a coconut milk base, it tastes like a frozen latte. Nada Moo is a reliable vegan brand with a thick, creamy coconut milk base, a good balance of sweetness, and spot-on flavors. The company offers a Caramel Cold Brew & Cookies if you want your coffee fix in the form of dessert.
If you’re eating ice cream with health in mind or have dietary restrictions, Planet Based Foods may not be the worst option for you — and remember, taste is subjective. When looking in the frozen aisle for a good dairy-free ice cream, go for those with a base of the creamiest alternative milks, like coconut, cashew, oat, or soy. If you know you’re not a fan of how artificial sweeteners taste, select pints that use cane sugar or agave. Or, you could also stop by one of the ice cream shops that scoop up dairy-free flavors.
