Sunday, May 17, 2009

Another vegan ice cream cookbook


OK, so I don't yet own a copy of The Vegan Scoop. But since I just reviewed Lick It, I figured I should note that there's another new vegan ice cream book out on the market!

And with a much better title. Because it doesn't make me think dirty, dirty thoughts.

How do the two rivals compare? Can't tell you (yet), but I'm excited. Add these two to Vice Cream, and we've got a slowly growing canon of recipes.

A few people have asked me why I haven't written The Great Vegan Ice Cream Cookbook. Because, you know, I'm pretty awesome and who wouldn't buy my book? Right? So I like to claim that I'm all about new media, the democratization of information, the power of freely shared ideas. But, really, the truth is that I'm lazy (and more recently have been stuck with Lyme disease), and I'm more than happy to leave the real work to others.

Anyway, I'm psyched to check out The Vegan Scoop. And I'd also love to hear what you, my beloved readers, have to say! What do you think of our growing collection of vegan ice cream books? Hungry vegans want to know!

19 comments:

  1. I haven't tried making my own vegan ice cream yet. It's good to know that more books are made for us to try more recipes.

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  2. valerie8:04 AM

    Hey there!
    I just got my copy of Vegan Scoop the other day in the mail and it is indeed a beautiful book.
    I loved the added surprise of baked treats at the end of the book as well.
    I thought I would start with the vanilla ice cream recipe first. Well, when I looked over at my non-vegan husband after about five minutes into his serving, he was licking the bowl!
    I'd say that was a success. :-)
    I have family coming to visit in a few days(no vegans among them) and I can't wait to dazzle them with the other recipes in this amazing book.

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  3. Kelsey11:03 AM

    I got The Vegan Scoop last week and I've already tried chocolate, cookie dough, pumpkin, rhubarb, and grapefruit. The chocolate is without a doubt the best ice cream I've ever had, vegan or dairy. I am disappointed with the unoriginality between recipes. 90% or more of the recipes just use the vanilla base with added flavors. They all call for 1 TB of vanilla, where I feel some don't need it at all and others need less. I feel like this was done to save time and I really don't think this is the way Wheeler del Torro makes his ice cream at his ice cream shop. The book is covered in statements about how the vanilla is 80 calories, but if you pay attention it says Wheeler's ice cream company's vanilla is 80 calories. I did the math for the vanilla in the book, and it's 145 calories per serving. There are too many recipes that are very similar, that take up an entire page each. There's chocolate, chocolate marshmallow, and Rocky Road. They are all the same except for the addition of marshmallow and nuts. There are a lot like this. I do think it was worth the $14 for the basic recipes and the flavor ideas, but I would like to see more variety! I had to add salt or reduce vanilla or other seasonings in most recipes. The only one that is perfect is the chocolate, if you use dutch processed because it contains salt. If not, add 1/8 tsp salt.

    ~Kelsey

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  4. OH! How wonderful! I just found your blog and am impressed that you can make a whole blog about vegan ice cream. I love making my own ice cream. It's fun and tastes soooo yummmy! I'm a veggie but not vegan. Check out my blog sometime if you like, the recipes can be easily modified for vegans.

    http://tastyveggiefoods.blogspot.com/

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  5. I got the Vegan Scoop a few weeks ago and just got a Cuisinart ice cream maker..loving these recipes! I will have to check out "Lick It" too but honestly, just in the little I've seen I think your "cons" are right on..the title, the photos, the colors. If we're going to take over the world with vegan ice cream, we gotta make it look as delicious as possible and that includes the books..he he he!

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  6. On your recommendation, I got psyched up to make vegan ice cream so I ran out and bought a copy of The Vegan Scoop. First I made chocolate ice cream and I have to agree with one of your posters that it was terrific! I was on a roll because I had leftover ingredients. So I looked at the ice cream recipes on your blog and I decided to make your coconut squared ice cream and your butter pecan recipe. I was struck by the fact that the ice cream formula in The Vegan Scoop is practically identical to your ice cream formula! You both use non-dairy creamer, non-dairy milk, arrowroot, sugar, and flavoring in similar amounts. Even the instructions are the same. Is this a coincidence or did Mr. Del Toro consult with you on the recipes for his book??

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  7. Mary--I'm glad that you're enjoying your ice cream! As for the similarity between recipes, it's no doubt a coincidence. Nearly all of my recipes follow the same general formula, so it's reasonable to think that his would too. :)

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  8. Thank you for your prompt reply, I surmise you don't have a copy of The Vegan Scoop. Have you seen the book? If you have seen it, you would see what I mean about the author's recipes being identical to your recipes. Are there any other posters who own the book, The Vegan Scoop, who see what I'm talking about?

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  9. Mary--No, I don't have a copy. I plan on getting one eventually, but my "wish list" is so long!

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  10. I just found your blog and I was so excited to see a blog just about vegan ice cream. I recently found an ice cream parlor in my area that has vegan ice cream! You can check it out on my blog:

    www.capitalregionvegan.blogspot.com

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  11. I met the author of this book yesterday!
    I didn't know he owned an ice cream shop where I live.
    I really love this blog, and that Apple Crisp is the best I've ever made. That's why I'm here again tonight, to snatch that recipe.

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  12. A good book for ice cream lovers who want to make a variation of ice cream at home .. :)

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  13. Ok, I am not vegan, but I am lactose intolerant. I LOVE ice-cream an wish I could find more dairy free brands in stores. I have found ONE ice-cream shop that sells ONE flavor of vegan frozen yogurt but I have not been able to find other flavors. Soy Dream is mo longer sold in stores around here. Can anyone suggest some brands or stores that may sell it??

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  14. Anonymous7:41 AM

    Wow I just found out about your blog and Im so happy to see a blog just about vegan ice cream. I was looking forward to make my own ice cream. Can't wait to try your recipes!

    I added you blog into my blogroll :)

    ~Laury
    www.vegandlishes.wordpress.com

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  15. Anonymous9:43 PM

    Does anyone know where to buy the non dairy creamer needed for all the recipes? I have a copy of the vegan scoop but no idea where to get this ingredient.

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  16. Anon-- You can usually find a soy or coconut "creamer" in the refrigerated section, near the soy milk or near the dairy cream, in health food stores or well-stocked supermarkets.

    But if you can't find it, don't worry. It's just there to increase the fat content of the ice cream, because fat = creamy. So you could just add a little coconut milk, or even a tablespoon of canola or flax oil. (Most soy creamers are just soy milk with added fat.)

    Similarly, if the recipe already has a high fat content (say, a peanut butter coconut ice cream), then you can probably just forget the "creamer" and substitute whatever non-dairy milk you like best.

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  17. I tried the Peanut Butter recipe from the Vegan Scoop last night and it was rather disappointing... too much sugar and too much peanut butter, the ice cream is really rich and heavy. I think the liquid to peanut butter ratio is off.

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  18. Anonymous5:01 PM

    Hi, I'm from Australia and have just bought a copy online of 'The Vegan Scoop'. One of the main ingredients is 'soya creamer' which we can't get here. Hmmm? Any suggestions?

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  19. Anonymous6:46 PM

    I just emailed asking about what to do if you can't access soycreamer. I didn't notice the response above about using oil, coconut milk or flaxseed oil. So I guess that answers my question - and now I just have to try it and see if it works. Jyoti from Australia.

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