Brave Robot Ice Cream

Ice cream.  One of my favorite elements of dessert (I say "element" because I'm not the type to generally just sit down and have a scoop of ice cream, but rather, I use it to pair with warm chocolate molten cake, with every type of crisp, crumble, and pie, heck, even with a warm cinnamon roll or donut).  So even though rarely a standalone dessert, ice cream is a big part of my diet, I literally have some at least once per day (frequently, twice, with lunch and dinner desserts).  

I have my regular favorites, but of course I like to try more brands, more flavors, basically all the time.  I was quite interested when I heard of Brave Robot, a unique offering, of vegan ice cream.

"Animal-Free, Planet-Positive Indulgence."

Yup, vegan ice cream.  But unlikely nearly every other non-dairy ice cream out there, this isn't made with alternative dairy like almond milk or coconut milk.  Nope, it is made with ... animal free dairy, that is, milk that is made from a whey protein (from fungus) that is molecularly identical to dairy protein.  

I was certainly intrigued.  Most non-dairy ice cream tends to be a second-class product, really, frequently icier, rarely quite as creamy, and often with a strange underlying taste.  But if this was identical, at the molecular level, to cow milk dairy ... the consistency and texture should be the same too, right?

Now of course, even if the non-animal dairy works out well, the ice cream still needs to be good.  After all, there is plenty of "meh" ice cream out there made with regular dairy.  

Brave Robot currently offers 8 flavors, including basic vanilla, "A Lot of Chocolate" with a chocolate base, chocolate fudge swirl, and chocolate chunks, Vanilla 'N Cookies for the cookies 'n cream fans, and more unique tempting sounding PB 'N Fudge and Blueberry Pie.  I eagerly sought out Brave Robot at retailers nearby, but had a hard time finding one that stocked it, even though Brave Robot's product locator suggested otherwise.

Finally, I found it, and, wow, I'm glad I did.  This is great ice cream, and yay, better for the environment too?  Win.

Hazelnut Chocolate Chunk.

"We're gonna go out on a hazelnut tree limb and guess you've never seen a hazelnut tree before.  Because if you had then you'd know it only grows out of dark chocolate chunks. Kidding of course, but if you ever try our delicious, creamy hazelnut with dark chocolate chunks flavor you'll understand how this was a match made in heaven. Or a hazelnut tree."

Oh, wow.

One bite in and I was sold on this ice cream.  It was soooo smooth.  So creamy.  So ... luxurious tasting.  The mouthfeel was just amazing.  Did it taste "non-dairy"?  No, not in any way I've ever experienced before, honestly, it was *better* than most dairy ice cream in the texture.

The flavor also was excellent - basically, a nutella-like base, with plenty of dark chocolate chunks.  Nutella chocolate chunk basically.  I loved the bits of seemingly good quality dark chocolate, and the combo with the hazelnut base was of course a winner.

This was totally delicious, but also quite rich.  I can't imagine eating a giant bowl of it alone, although it went great when topped with copious whipped cream, or, as I found I really loved it, paired with warm chocolate cake.

Given the base of coconut oil and hazelnut, it should come as no surprise that the nutrition stats are not light, with each serving clocking in 390 calores, 25g of fat, which is much higher than most ice cream, even premium ice cream.

Delicious, and I'll gladly get it again.

****.