dairy substitute suggestions

When you tried almond milk, what did you try? I buy Silk original unsweetened. It's low in calories and I don't find it too sweet at all.

But if that doesn't work for you, I've also had unsweetened quinoa milk and didn't find it too bad, especially in a smoothie where you don't really taste it, but get the nutrients.

I never understood trying to reduce something and then replacing it with a "fake" version of x, y, or z. If you want less dairy, don't drink milk or eat yogurt? Find other snacks that you enjoy.

Of course, I also eat cereal dry, so I don't really need any kind of milk in my day...

I like to use coconut cream instead of milk. Not the "milks" in cartons but the stuff from cans. It's super tasty in smoothies and coffee. Be aware of the "Dream" products like Rice Dream or Soy Dream because they were having some contamination issues a few years back and I'm not sure if it got sorted out or not.

For sour cream substitute, I use plain coconut yogurt. Coconut yogurt isn't bad to eat as a yogurt treat, but it has a different texture. If you eat it, approach it as yogurt-like, if you want it to be like a creamy full fat greek yogurt, you'll be disappointed - it's too different.

As a cheese substitute I use daiya (sp?) which is good when melted. Nutritional yeast is a pretty good stand in for parmesan. For butter, I used Earth's Balance or coconut oil.

I'm a celiac too, and I couldn't handle dairy for about a year. It seems to take many a good six months to a year before dairy is no longer a problem. I still have some issues with lactose so I find that I need to limit my dairy. I never drink milk, and rarely eat yogurt except in tzatziki. I eat a bit of sour cream and the occasional ice cream. Happily hard cheeses have almost no lactose in them so I can eat that every few days now.

Good luck.

nvsmomketo wrote: »

auddii wrote: »

I never understood trying to reduce something and then replacing it with a "fake" version of x, y, or z. If you want less dairy, don't drink milk or eat yogurt? Find other snacks that you enjoy.

Of course, I also eat cereal dry, so I don't really need any kind of milk in my day...

Most celiacs can't eat dairy for the first year of going gluten free because the intestinal villi that make lactase, which digests the milk sugar, lactose, have been destroyed. It often isn't a matter of wanting to reduce dairy, it's often a medical need to avoid dairy.

Ah, sorry. Skipped over the second paragraph entirely. I tried soy and almond milk at one point (bought protein powder that tasted pretty nasty just mixed with water). Wasn't a huge fan, but I could do the vanilla (my fiance though it was waaay too sweet).

No clue on non-dairy yogurt. I've heard good things about the So Delicious ice creams though.

Eat real food. Not fake dairy.

klmnumbers wrote: »

I feel like people are lovingly skipping the part where I explain why I am looking for non-dairy alternatives. I have a digestive disease??

I did. And I apologize. I tried to provide the little information I have to give. Sorry that you are having to give up foods you enjoy due to medical reasons. :flowerforyou:

For my smoothies, I love Califia Farms coconut almond milk blend. 50 calories per 8 ounce, 45% RDA for Calcium, minimally sweet (total carbs=1 g, sugars 0 g, if you're into watching carbs). Plus, it's tasty. For yogurt- I find that the plain soy yogurts are pretty bad. I much prefer the coconut-milk-based ones and think the So Delicious cultured coconut milk is the yummiest (plain and unsweetened). Hope this helps- I've been doing a plants-only diet for years and I've tried them all!

My usual "milk" is Silk organic plain unsweetened soy (green box). Works well on its own, in coffee, and for cooking.

Have you tried making your own almond or coconut milk. It is real easy, I do both, also made my own cashew milk. Do a search on how to make almond/coconut.cashew milk.

For person eating cereal dry - have you tried eating cereal with carrot juice - yes. It make a big different. We have been doing this for over 5 year or more now. We have carrot juice with all the dry cereals.

For smoothies you can use soft tofu, which also gives you some calcium.

Yeah, you can make your own "parmesan cheese" by processing raw cashews with some nutritional yeast & a pinch of salt. Sunny side Farms is the only almond milk I really like, but you can use water & add a banana or tofu to your smoothies, as others have said.

If you want a pretty good cheese sauce, Google "veggie on a penny cheese sauce." I love that stuff. You can try it over GF pasta. Or try adding cumin & chili powder & pouring it over GF tortilla chips with veggies & black beans for some yummy nachos.

Good luck. : )