Living a dairy-free life can be a struggle, but fortunately, Reddi Wip released two dairy-free flavors in June. They have non-dairy whipped topping made with almond milk, and they also have a coconut milk version. King Soopers only had the almond milk version, but I was excited nonetheless. The holidays are upon us and all of my friends are drinking hot cocoa with mountains of whipped cream on top. I was feeling left out with my herbal tea, and now I can join them with my own dairy-free version.
Initial Reaction
When I first saw the news on Twitter, I was thrilled. As a former eat-it-straight-out-of-the-can whipped cream fan, I was devastated when I had to go dairy-free last spring. I have slowly been finding dairy-free alternatives to my favorite foods, and Reddi Wip seemed to have the solution to all of my problems.
At first glance in the store, the dairy and dairy-free versions look the same. The cans are similar, but fortunately the almond and coconut varieties are clearly marked.
Upon further inspection, the almond milk was actually a healthier alternative to the original Reddi Wip. The almond milk version has 10 calories and .5 grams of total fat per 2 TBSP serving as compared to 15 calories and 1 gram of fat for the same serving as the original flavor. The first ingredient in the almond milk topping is almond milk, and it only contains "sugar" whereas the original's contains both sugar and corn syrup.
All that was left was for me to head home and taste it.
Taste Test
I told all my friends about my discovery and I was excited to try it with them. However, I got impatient and ate some straight from the can in my room. The almond milk whipped cream comes out of the can the same way that normal whipped cream does. It had the same texture and sound as I squirted it out. That is where the similarities end.
Almond milk whipped cream just tastes funny. The consistency and sweetness are the same, but the flavor is off. It has a nutty, but not almond-y, taste at first, and it is not pleasant. It is like someone snuck the faintest hint of almond butter onto your spoon right before you ate it, but the flavors didn't mix in your mouth. Each of the several squirts I tried had this same taste. The aftertaste is not much better; it resembles if you ate one old almond and didn't have any water to wash it down with. I had to drink a lot of water to get rid of the taste. I shared my disappointment with my friends and they consoled me in my sorrows.
To put it nicely, I do not like almond milk whipped cream. I will not finish the rest of the can. If you put a little bit on top of a big mug of dairy-free hot cocoa, it is not so bad, but that is because you cannot really taste it. In an emergency, it could pass, but I will not voluntarily be buying it again. I still plan to try the coconut milk version sometime in the future, but for now, I will stick to dairy-free Halo Top ice cream.