Mashed Survey: Who Makes The Best Non-Dairy Ice Cream?

Making a good non-dairy ice cream can be a bit of a tall order, after all, it has "cream" right in the name. Dairy-free ice creams have come a long way since they launched in 1983 with dairy-free grande dame Tofutti putting the product on the map. According to Vegan, Tofutti created the first mass market version of the product, although they weren't courting the vegan market at the time. The first dairy-free ice cream was created for those following a Kosher diet, which prohibits consuming meat and dairy together in the same meal (via OUKosher).

While Tofutti is still in the game making their classic Frozen Dessert (ice cream) and Cuties (ice cream sandwiches) as well as dairy-free cream cheese and ricotta alternatives, the playing field has widened enormously. Grocery store Stop & Shop, for example, currently vends several brands of non-dairy ice cream, including big-name players in regular ice cream like Ben & Jerry's and Halo Top. the store also carries niche products like Wildgood, an ice cream made from peas that allows people with nut allergies to partake in the dairy-free ice cream craze, and Cado, which harnesses the power of avocados to mimic the creaminess and texture of ice cream. 

When Mashed ranked dairy-free ice creams from worst to best in February of this year, we ranked 14 options across 9 different brands, including several brands not featured at Stop & Shop, like Van Leeuwen and Coolhaus. Now, we wanted to get our readers' opinions.

The results are in on our new ranking. We asked 604 foodies what their favorite non-dairy ice cream was from a selection of six of the most popular brands out there right now and here's what they said. Three brands stuck together with a similar number of votes, Coolhaus, Van Leeuwen, and Jenni's all got between 5 and 6% of the vote, pulling in 30-something votes a piece. Coolhaus was technically the least popular, but only by a hair. Classic dairy-free brand So Delicious also trailed way behind with only 55 votes and roughly 9% of the vote.

Picking up speed significantly was Halo Top, which garnered roughly 24% of the vote or 143 votes for best dairy-free ice cream. Filling in the top slot in a landslide with its over-the-top flavors is a perennial favorite, Ben & Jerry's with 301 votes and a whopping approximately 50% of our foodies finding in their favor. So there you have it, if you're reaching for dairy-free ice cream, reach for Ben & Jerry's.