Once upon a time you would have to seek out specialist shops if you wanted to find ice cream which was dairy free or vegan, today there is a huge range commercially available. I'm no longer surprised to find at least one option in small supermarkets and the choice from Ocado is truly impressive. I’m finding new varieties all the time so I will add to this list as I try them. It's a hard job, but I'm committed to the cause!

From the moment it was announced I was desperately waiting for this to hit the UK and it hasn’t disappointed me. It is available in 3 flavours: Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Chunky Monkey (banana flavour ice cream with chocolatey chunks and walnut) and Peanut Butter & Cookies (vanilla ice cream with chocolate sandwich cookies and crunchy peanut butter swirls).
I have only tried the chocolate one as I’m not a big fan of peanut or banana ice cream, but it is delicious and could easily pass for the dairy equivalent. It is certified vegan and almond based, but disappointingly for people who can’t eat soya it contains soy lecithin. 

Like all Ben & Jerry’s 500 ml tubs it is fairly pricy, with the non-dairy version costing more than the original. It retails for around £5.50 and is widely available from supermarkets (including Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco). If you are struggling to find it there is a “non-dairy locator” on the Ben & Jerry’s website. 

I originally tried the Vanilla version a few years ago and I wasn’t very impressed because I don’t like the flavour of soya. Recently I have Swedish Glace a second chance and I’m enjoying their flavoured tubs which include: Coconut & Passion Fruit Swirl Ice Cream, Raspberry (which is currently my dairy eating eldest daughter's favourite ice cream), Chocolate and Almond with a Cocoa Twist as well as the Vanilla flavour.

Made by Walls this soft scoop ice cream is widely available, although availability of flavours varies. They cost about £2.50 to £3 for a 750ml tub and I think it is a great option for dairy free or vegan kids. Made from Soy this ice cream is dairy free, vegan and gluten free.

As well as the tubs of ice cream Swedish Glace do 2 types of individual ice creams: chocolate covered ice cream on a stick and gluten free waffle cones filled with ice cream and coated in chocolate. The Magnum style ice creams are available in packs of 5 for around £2.99 in both strawberry and vanilla flavours and I really like the strawberry. The cones are available in packs of 4 in vanilla with strawberry sauce and soft caramel toffee for around £3.89. I have also seen the caramel flavour cone in many Walls ice cream freezers on days out at the zoo etc so there is finally a widely available dairy free ice cream option when you are out.

Also from Walls there is a soy based (vegan and gluten free) vanilla cornetto. Much like the dairy versions these waffle cones are chocolate lined and filled will ice cream with more swirls of chocolate on the top and a sprinkling of hazelnuts. I was impressed with the crunchy cone, but I'm not a fan of the ice cream because it tastes strongly of soya. Available in boxes of 4 for around £3.

This ice cream is not cheap at around £6- £7 a 500ml tub, but it comes in lots of interesting flavours including: Hunky Punky Chocolate, Raspberry Ripple, Caramel Pecan Praline, Hazelnut Chocolate Truffle, Chocolate Salted caramel and Vanilla. All flavours are organic and free from dairy, gluten and soya as well as being Vegan. Made without refined sugar and by reverse osmosis (!?!) there is a reason this ice cream is expensive and it’s worth it as a treat for those who like natural, luxury ice cream. The ice cream is cashew nut based and they have a lovely creamy flavour.

I have previously reviewed the Valsoia almond gelato cones and almond gelato mini sticks, but there are plenty more in the range. From Cashew based tiramisu and salted caramel gelato to soft scoop soya based cherry & cream and chocolate & cream as well as soya ice cream sandwiches. This Ocado exclusive ranges in price from £3.35 to £4.49. All contain soya, but some varieties are gluten free. Not listed as Vegan.

There are 3 flavours currently available from Alpro: A vanilla which is soya based, a chocolate which is hazelnut based and a coconut based one. The chocolate and coconut are both may contain for soya although it isn’t listed as an ingredient.

The Hazelnut Chocolate Ice Cream is quite a milky chocolate so great for anyone that doesn’t want their chocolate ice cream too dark and rich. This is currently my youngest’s favourite, unfortunately it isn’t soft scoop so it requires her to wait about 5 minutes with the tub on the side before we can get any out. 

They are gluten free and vegan and cost around £3.75 for 500ml.

I would love feedback in the comments if you have tried any of these:

Low calorie vegan, dairy free ice cream made from almonds and cashew nuts, this is listed as free from soya (as well as dairy, eggs, gluten and wheat). Flavours include mint chocolate chip, pistachio, sweet espresso, caramel pecan, double choc chip, raspberry ripple and carrot cake. They cost around £4.49 for 500ml.

Technically not ice cream these frozen yoghurts come in 500ml pots Coconut & Vanilla or Chocolate

for £4.99. 

The popular almond milk producers have 472ml tubs of Salted Caramel and Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream.

Organic and with flavours including rum & raisin, coconut caramel, creamy coconut, strawberry, raw chocolate. These 500ml tubs cost around £5.29.

These dairy free and vegan ice creams come in: Intense Chocolate, Bursting Berries and Refresh (which contains green vegetables!). They claim to be higher in fibre and lower in sugar than normal ice cream and they are also suitable for coeliacs. Around £4.99 for a 500ml tub.