Product Faceoff! Ice Cream Cones

Hello all! We hope you enjoyed your holiday weekend. This week we're back with more recipes and lifestyle tips. But first, here is the weekly Product Faceoff! This week I compared one of my childhood favorites. Tofutti’s dairy-free version of an ice cream cone went up against Hood’s ice cream cone (Red Sox!). It wasn’t easy picking a winner this week – see below for our findings!

Price
$5.19 – Tofutti
$3.23 - Hood
Winner of Price category: Hood is the obvious winner of the price category. Plus you get 6 cones instead of 4.

Taste
Tofutti – Chocolate cookie crunchies top delicious dairy-free vanilla cream. The cone is also lined with chocolate and there is a chunk of chocolate at the bottom of the one. There was nothing about the taste that indicated this was dairy-free. Job extremely well done, Tofutti!

Hood – This was delicious as well. The only difference is the Hood version has nuts on the top instead of chocolate crunchies.

Winner of Taste category: I preferred Tofutti. I liked the chocolate crunchies on top versus the original coating of chocolate & nuts.

Nutrition Info
Tofutti – 220 calories, 13 grams fat, 3 grams saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 135 mg sodium, 24 grams carbs, 2 grams fiber, 21 grams sugar, 2 grams protein

Hood – 220 calories, 12 grams fat, 7 grams saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 75 mg sodium, 26 grams carbs, 0 grams fiber, 18 grams sugar, 4 grams protein

Winner of Nutrition info: Tofutti is the winner here since it contains some fiber, less saturated fat & no cholesterol. Calories, fat, sugar, and carbs were all pretty similar.

Accessibility
Both were from the neighborhood grocery store – most sell Tofutti dairy-free ice cream products. If you're not from New England, you may not have Hood products in your grocery store, but the Drumsticks brand is a very close substitute.

Winner of Accessibility category: It’s a tie

Texture
Tofutti – my only gripe about this brand is their sugar cone was kind of soggy. This is just my personal preference, but I like my cones.

Hood – in contrast to Tofutti, Hood’s cone managed to stay crunchy.

Winner of Texture category: In the end, I still pick Tofutti. I liked the texture of the ice cream more, as well as the toppings.

Final Results: Tofutti is the clear winner this week!

Product Faceoff! Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese vs. Stop & Shop Light

I love bagels so knowing where to find some delicious cream cheese is an absolute must. Based on some not-so-great experiences with dairy-free products (Amy’s soy mac & cheese anyone?), I was a bit nervous to try this out. I ended up being pleasantly surprised. Tofutti went up against a store brand light cream cheese & here are the results!

Price
Tofutti - $2.49 (or 2 for $3 at Stop & Shop this week!), 8 oz.
S&S - $2.29 for 8 oz.

Winner of Price category: Negligible difference in price for 1, Tofutti wins for its sale prices

Taste
Tofutti – although it didn’t quite have the same taste as regular cream cheese, it was great. It was more sour compared to the S&S stuff. I think it borders on tasting more like fat-free cream cheese, although Tofutti is definitely better than that stuff!
S&S – tasting good as always!

Winner of Taste category: Overall I could barely tell the difference between the two, but I preferred the real stuff this week. S&S it is.

Nutrition Info
Tofutti – 2 tbsp serving
60 calories (45 from fat), 5 grams fat, 2 grams saturated fat, 2 grams trans fat, 120 mg sodium, 2 grams carbs, 0 grams fiber, 0 grams sugar, 1 gram protein

S&S – 2 tbsp serving
60 calories (40 from fat), 4.5 grams fat, 3 grams saturated fat, 0 grams trans fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 140 mg sodium, 2 grams carbs, 0 grams fiber, 2 grams sugar, 2 grams protein, 2% Calcium & 8% Vitamin A

Winner of Nutrition info: Sorry, have to go with S&S here based on Tofutti’s trans fats alone!

Accessibility- Both were from your neighborhood grocery store

Winner of Accessibility category: It’s a tie

Texture
Tofutti – it has a great consistency, spreads just like the original cream cheese would. I think it would make a wonderful baking ingredient as well.

S&S – I was slightly put off by the fact the light cream cheese seemed more watery than it should have been.

Winner of Texture category: Tofutti is better here.

Final Results: It’s a tie at 2.5 wins each! In the end, I loved both of them and would definitely recommend Tofutti’s Better Than Cream Cheese to all of our lactose-free readers. I am lactose-tolerant but wouldn’t have a problem happily substituting if Tofutti didn’t have 2 grams of trans fat!

Product Faceoff! Amy’s Soy Mac & Cheese vs. Stouffer’s

This week I compared one of my favorite staples, macaroni & cheese. I’ve just tried about every mac & cheese out there (boxed and frozen), and as the sole lactose-tolerant writer of this blog, I couldn’t wait to see if soy mac & cheese could stand up to my regular lineup. Below are the results!

Price
Amy’s - $2.79

Stouffer’s - $2.00

Winner of Price category: Stouffer’s… and bonus, you get 12 oz with Stouffer’s vs 9 oz in Amy’s

Taste
Amy’s – Could definitely tell this was not the real thing. It had a very sharp, odd taste to it. It had a very strong smell to it as well, and it wasn’t a nice one…

Stouffer’s – the regular stuff didn’t disappoint in this category. It had a nice mild taste and it smelled delicious.

Winner of Taste category: This was not a close call – Stouffer’s gets the win

Nutrition Info
Amy’s – 9 oz serving
370 calories, 15 grams fat, 2 grams saturated fat, 500 mg sodium, 42 grams carbs, 4 grams fiber, 2 grams sugar, 16 grams protein, 15% calcium

Stouffer’s – 6 oz serving
340 calories, 16 grams fat, 7 grams saturated fat, 25 mg cholesterol, 810 mg sodium, 32 grams carbs, 2 grams fiber, 4 grams sugar, 13 grams protein, 30% calcium

Winner of Nutrition info: With the Amy’s soy mac & cheese, you get a 50% bigger portion for similar calories & fat, and much less saturated fat & sodium. With Amy’s you’ll also save on sugar and gain some fiber instead.

Accessibility
Both were from your neighborhood grocery store

Winner of Accessibility category: It’s a tie

Texture
Amy’s – Although the taste was very disappointing, the texture was alright. It was pretty similar to the regular stuff. The cheese melted well and the pasta cooked well in the microwave.

Stouffer’s – the cheese sauce was slightly thinner than the soy cheese version, but overall a great texture – better than the soy cheese

Winner of Texture category: Stouffer’s wins again

Final Results: This is no surprise – I couldn’t get past the taste and smell of Amy’s soy mac & cheese. It just had a very fake, strong taste and smell to it. If you have another dairy-free mac & cheese option, we would love to hear about them. Leave your comments below!

Product Faceoff: Dark Chocolate

Jaclyn here bringing you this week’s product faceoff.
I decided to review dark chocolate. Since I’m minorly lactose-intolerant I figured I could handle with something with traces of lactose in it. Dark chocolate typically has little to no lactose in it, so it is generally safe for the lactose intolerant. The general rule for dark chocolate is: the higher the percentage of cocoa (or cacao) the less lactose traces in the chocolate. Chances are 70% cocoa and higher will have minute or no traces of lactose, while below that the greater the chance of lactose. Kosher Pareve chocolate will have no lactose in it whatsoever. To test the Kosher versus non-Kosher I bought 2 bars, both organic. I could not get the Kosher Pareve and regular to line up on cocoa percentage so, I got one the non-Kosher at 85% and the Kosher at 80%.

Green and Black’s Organic Dark Chocolate (referred to as G&B)
Vs
Equal Exchange Chocolates, Kosher Pareve (referred to as EEC)

Price

G&B: $3.69
EEC: $2.99
Winner: EEC

Nutrition Info (both have a serving size of 40 grams)

G&B: 250 calories, 20g fat, 12g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol,
10mg sodium, 15 g total carbs, 4g dietary fiber, 8g sugar, 4g protien

EEC: 230 calories, 20g fat, 12g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 4mg
sodium, 15g total carbs, 5g dietary fiber, 7 g sugar, 3g protein

Winner of the nutritional information is EEC!!

Accessibility
Both were found in the candy or bakery aisle of your local grocery store.

Winner – it’s a tie!

Texture
Again, a tie. Both taste like semi-sweet chocolate and have the same
texture. They’re hard chocolate bars that slowly melt in your mouth. No
difference in sweetness even though the cocoa percentage varies. Had the cocoa
percentage been more like 15% difference I think there would be a difference in
sweetness.

Final Results
Overall EEC is the winner due to the price and the nutritional value
and you are sure you will be completely safe from lactose!

Product Faceoff! Amy’s Soy Cheese vs. Regular Cheese Pizza

This week I compared Amy’s products. After the experience I had last week with the Trader Joe’s soy creamer, I was pretty nervous to try the soy cheese pizza. Below are the results!

Price
$5.99 for both kinds

Winner of Price category: It’s a tie

Taste
Amy’s soy – I was pleasantly surprised. I thought the soy pizza tasted very similar to the regular version. I couldn’t even tell the cheese was dairy-free.

Amy’s regular – This was delicious - everything about it was great, from the cheese to the sauce to the crust

Winner of Taste category: Both pizzas had the same crust and sauce, just the cheese was different. I’m going to give Taste to the dairy-free version simply because it was so close to the real thing, I was extremely impressed.

Nutrition Info
Amy’s soy – 290 calories, 10.9 grams fat, 1 gram saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 590mg sodium, 37 grams carbs, 2 grams fiber, 3 grams sugar, 12.1 grams protein

Amy’s regular – 310 calories, 12.1 grams fat, 4.1 grams saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 590 mg sodium, 38 grams carbs, 2 grams fiber, 4.1 grams sugar, 12.1 grams protein

Winner of Nutrition info: Soy pizza is the winner here since it doesn’t contain saturated fat or cholesterol. Calories, fat, fiber, sugar, and carbs were all pretty similar.

Accessibility
Both were from the neighborhood grocery store – most sell Amy’s products

Winner of Accessibility category: It’s a tie

Texture
Amy’s soy – Although the soy pizza rocked in the taste category, the texture will still slightly off from the regular version. The soy cheese didn’t melt as well as the regular version. The sauce and crust were still just as good as the regular stuff. The end result was still a tasty pizza, but it was very easy to decipher which pizza was soy and which was the regular version.

Amy’s regular – The cheese melted perfectly in the regular version. The crust was delicious too.

Winner of Texture category: Due to the soy cheese melting (or lack thereof), the regular version wins out here

Final Results: I was pleasantly surprised with the soy cheese pizza and it wins this week’s product faceoff. Even though the cheese didn’t melt like regular cheese would have, Amy’s still managed to make a tasty dairy-free pizza that rivals the original. Sometimes you just need to eat some pizza, and if you are lactose-intolerant, Amy’s should be your go-to brand.

Product Faceoff! Trader Joe’s Soy Milk Creamer vs. Trader Joe’s half & half

This week I compared coffee creamers. As an avid coffee drinker (and the sole lactose-tolerant writer of this blog), I was very interested to find out if soy milk creamer tastes similar to my usual staple, half & half. Below are the results!

Price
Soy creamer - $1.49 – 1 pint, 16 oz

Half & half - $1.29 – 1 pint, 16 oz

Winner of Price category: Although the regular half & half is 20 cents less, I feel the 20 cent markup on soy creamer is worth the price to pay for a dairy-free alternative.

Taste
Soy creamer – unfortunately I was not happy with the taste of soy creamer. It took over the taste of my usually delightful caramel vanilla coffee. Even with the coffee cup sitting on a table far away from me, all I could smell was the creamer. It was very obvious this was a dairy-free substitute.

Half & half – the regular stuff didn’t disappoint in this category. It blended in perfectly with my caramel vanilla and didn’t overpower the coffee taste. It was a perfect compliment to my freshly brewed caramel vanilla coffee.

Winner of Taste category: This was not a close call – regular half & half wins the taste category

Nutrition Info
Soy creamer - 15 calories for a 1 tbsp serving
1.5 grams fat, 1 gram carbs, 0 for every other nutritional category

Half & half - 40 calories for a 2 tbsp serving
3 grams fat, 2 grams saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 15 mg sodium, 1 gram carbs, 1 gram sugar, 2% Vitamin A, 4% Calcium

Winner of Nutrition info: Soy creamer appears to be the winner here since it doesn’t contain saturated fat or cholesterol. It is worth mentioning that I needed to use more soy creamer to get my coffee as “light” as I normally take it. I had to use 2 servings to get there, so the calories between the two were practically the same for me.

Accessibility
Both were from Trader Joe’s - Available at any Trader Joe’s location. As of July 2011, Trader Joe’s has 361 stores in 29 states and Washington, D.C.

Winner of Accessibility category: It’s a tie

Texture
Soy creamer – slightly thicker than the regular stuff, also left a slight film in my coffee cup. It also took more soy creamer to make my coffee as “light” as I normally like it.

Half & half – it took less half & half to get my coffee “light”. Thinner than its soy counterpart & doesn’t leave a film in my cup.

Winner of Texture category: Half & half all the way

Final Results: This is no surprise – I couldn’t get past the taste and smell of soy creamer, so half & half is clearly the winner. Although the price is practically the same, I could not overlook soy creamer’s disappointment in the taste and texture categories. Maybe I picked the wrong dairy-free substitute for my Product Faceoff. What dairy-free coffee creamers do you swear by? We would love to hear about them. Leave your comments below!

Product Faceoff! Trader Joe’s Gluten & Dairy Free Pancakes vs. Aunt Jemima Homestyle Pancakes

Hello! My name is Alyssa. As the sole lactose-tolerant contributor to this blog, I am excited to perform the weekly product faceoff. Each week, I will taste-test a food product and compare it to a lactose-free substitute. The first face-off is Trader Joe’s Gluten & Dairy Free Pancakes vs. Aunt Jemima Homestyle Pancakes. I am a huge fan of Trader Joe’s and was delighted to see the great selection they offer of lactose-free products.

Here is how the two products stacked up (pun intended):
Price
Trader Joe’s - $2.99 - 12 pancakes per box, wrapped in 4 packages of 3 each.
Aunt Jemima - $2.50 – also 12 pancakes per box, wrapped in 1 larger package

Winner of Price category: Although Aunt Jemima was 49 cents less, it is worth noting that their box contained 14.8 oz of pancakes while Trader Joe’s packed a full 16 oz into theirs.

Taste
Trader Joe’s Gluten & Dairy Free – these tasted just like a “regular” pancake. If it was a blind taste-test, I doubt I would ever know the difference! These were delicious.
Aunt Jemima – slightly sweeter than its dairy-free counterpart but also a great tasting pancake.

Winner of Taste category: While this was a close call, I preferred the taste of Trader Joe’s product over Aunt Jemima.

Nutrition
Trader Joe’s Gluten & Dairy Free - 240 calories for a 3 pancake serving (116g)
5 grams fat, 1 gram saturated fat, 50 mg cholesterol, 430 mg sodium, 42 grams carbs, 3 grams fiber, 5 grams protein, 11 grams sugar
Aunt Jemima - 250 calories for a 3 pancake serving (105g)
6 grams fat, 1 gram saturated fat, 25 mg cholesterol, 450 mg sodium, 41 grams carbs, 1 gram fiber, 7 grams protein, 8 grams sugar

Winner of Nutrition: The differences between the two are negligible. Trader Joe’s has 3 grams of fiber compared to Jemima’s 1 gram, so that is the deciding factor in Trader Joe’s taking this category.

Accessibility
Trader Joe’s Gluten & Dairy Free - Available at any Trader Joe’s location. As of July 2011, Trader Joe’s has 361 stores in 29 states and Washington, D.C.
Aunt Jemima Homestyle - Available at any grocery store

Winner of Accessibility category: Aunt Jemima has the upper hand in the accessibility category because my local Stop & Shop is much closer than the nearest Trader Joe’s.

Texture
Trader Joe’s Gluten & Dairy Free – They cooked up better in the toaster oven than Jemima. They had a delicious “cakey” texture yet slightly crispy on the outside (I cooked them in a toaster oven).
Aunt Jemima Homestyle: Thicker and chewier than the cake-like TJ’s, these also had tasty, crispy outer edges.

Winner of Texture category: Trader Joe’s!

Final Results: Trader Joe’s takes 3 out of the 5 categories. Aunt Jemima was very good as well, so this goes to show just how great Trader Joe’s gluten & dairy-free pancakes are. As a lactose-eating person, I have no reservations about keeping these pancakes in my freezer. They will definitely be finished up very soon!