GUEST REVIEW: LaLoo’s Goat’s Milk Ice Cream (Don’t Hate on the Goat)
by Jenni Simmons

I would love to see the look on some of your faces when you read that I like goat’s milk ice cream. The feedback from my friends and family has been mostly negative, as in they are disgusted, but I am here to tell you it is delicious. I would swear on a Bible, y’all.I’ve always loved goat cheese, but when I tried to imagine that same intensity in milk form, I had my doubts. Then I read about the health benefits of both raw cow’s and goat’s milk. I picked up both at a local farmers’ market and was delighted to find that each tasted fabulous and also tasted very similar. In fact, the raw goat’s milk tasted so much like cow’s milk that I was afraid I dropped by the wrong booth at the market!

So when I heard about Laloo’s goat’s milk ice cream on the TV show Get Fresh With Sara Snow, I was instantly intrigued. The flavor selection lured me in, for example: Molasses Tipsycake, Pumpkin Spice, Black Mission Fig, and Chocolate Cabernet. Oh my. Sara herself tried Strawberry Darling and looked quite pleased. I quickly made a trip to the nearest Whole Foods to give Laloo’s a try. Since the Whole Foods closest to me is on the smaller side, they currently only offer two flavors: Deep Chocolate ice cream and Brownie and Clyde frozen yogurt. I’m a passionate chocolate fan; this did not bother me.Laloo’s uses raw goat’s milk, but once the egg yolks are added they pasteurize the mixture. When I first tasted both flavors I was curious to see if they would taste too “goaty”; I’ve heard pasteurized goat’s milk is not as positive an experience as the raw version. I tried Laloo’s Deep Chocolate ice cream first. I tasted a little “goat” in my first bite, but I also tasted deep, dark chocolate, and it was GOOD. After the first bite it honestly just tasted like excellent, creamy chocolate ice cream which is attributed to simple, natural ingredients including evaporated cane juice and 77% pure Scharffen Berger cacao.Figuring dark chocolate might mask a “goaty” presence, I tried Brownie and Clyde frozen yogurt to see how a vanilla base would work. I swear to you that not even within my first bite did I taste any foul goat play. Just smooth, vanilla frozen yogurt swirled with rich, chocolate brownies. This flavor is also full of natural goodness along the lines of goat milk (of course), pure cane sugar, pure vanilla, and healthy probiotics: S. Thermophilus, I. Bulgaricus, I. Acidophilus and Bifidus. I even tested this flavor on my husband who is not as open-minded in the ways of ice cream - he is a strict Ben & Jerry’s, cow’s milk-all-the-way guy. He loved his first bite and asked for another! We both noticed the slightest aftertaste, but nothing to keep us from eating more frozen yogurt.In addition to tasting great, goat’s milk is also extremely healthy and an ingenious alternative to those of you who are lactose intolerant (much lower in lactose than cow’s milk). Laloo’s site states that “Goat’s milk is as close to a perfect food as is possible in nature. Its chemical structure is amazingly similar to mother’s milk. It is a complete protein containing all the essential amino acids without the heavy fat content and catarrh (mucus) producing materials of cow’s milk.” Therefore it is naturally low fat, more easily digestible to a lot of people, easy on the respiratory system, full of protein, and vitamins A & D. Laloo’s does not use growth hormones in its milk and the founder, Laura Howard, is a member of the Sonoma County Slow Food group. With all of those facts you know Laloo’s is an all-around healthy, decadent treat.And while perusing Laloo’s web site, you can download a $1.00 off coupon, print it at home, and take it to your local health food store and save money. I plan to do just that, pack a cooler, and visit a bigger Whole Foods to try a few more flavors of goat’s milk ice cream (praying for Molasses Tipsycake).