Is there anything greater than mother's love? Yes, and it's taking mother's love a step further. With an infant who is allergic to cow milk and eggs, Pui Voranisarakul decided to go vegan as she was breast feeding. But she missed her desserts and this was the beginning for the plant-based ice cream Soin.
Soin, which is the French word for "to take care of", is the passion of Pui and husband, Maythee. After more than a year in development, the ice cream is finally on the market. Using soy milk imported from Australia, Soin contains zero animal products and is gluten free without any preservatives. With no added enhancers for taste or colour, Soin comes in four flavours, each retailing at B120.
My flavour of choice is the Lavender Earl Grey, because I am a tea aficionado and a lavender lover. Probably not for everyone since lavender is an acquired taste. Perfect for those after-meals tea treats in the form of ice cream. My other fave was the Sea salted caramel, which is a crowd pleaser. Who doesn't like salted caramel? Since we are in Thailand, the Black sesame soy milk flavour caters to the Asian palate. The Natural vanilla is for those who still like their ice cream plain.
When picking flavours for their ice cream, Pui and Maythee decided not to pick common ones like strawberry. "We tried to find some more significant flavours. When we lived in Australia, we knew the salted caramel flavour was a hot favourite. The black sesame was because we like spreading the paste on toast for breakfast and to cater to people who like the plain stuff, we chose vanilla and because most restaurants still need the flavour to add to their desserts," says Maythee.
The Lavender earl grey flavour has a personal connection to the couple. While in Australia, Maythee took Pui on a first date to a lavender farm where they used it to make everything possible.
The best thing about the vegan ice cream is that if vegan has a taste, this isn't it. The ice cream is creamy, delicious, not too sweet (which makes it child-friendly) and won't feel like you're a hipster eating it.
Though not available on supermarket shelves yet, Soin can be found at Barefood Bangkok (Sukhumvit 61), Bonita Cafe and Social Club (Silom 26), Govinda Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria (Sukhumvit 22), Simple Natural Kitchen (Sukhumvit Garden), Loving Hut Rama III (Soi 20, Rama III), Naturefarm Cafe (Soi 30, Rama VI), via Prana Food delivery service, Yes! Vegan Bed & Vegan Foods (Thapphraya 12 in Pattaya) and Away Chiang Mai Thapae Resort (Chiang Mai).
Soin vegan ice cream, call 081-896-5559. Line @soinveganicecream or visit http://facebook.com/pg/soinvegan.
