I first heard about the Magnum Non-Diary Ice Cream bars when they were announced in February, but it has taken me until now to find them in a store (Thanks, Harris Teeter!). It's been 90 degrees here all week, and July 21 is National Ice Cream Day, so this seems like the perfect excuse to buy two boxes of ice cream bars for myself.
The only other non-diary ice cream I've tried and liked is Ben and Jerry's almond milk pints, but those don't come as single serving bars, and I need something that will prevent me from eating an entire pint of ice cream in once day.
Initial Impressions
The bars are a good size, enough for a full serving, but not too much that they melt before you finish. Three, individually wrapped bars come in each box. The boxes are flat, and easy to store in the freezer. However, be careful, the wrappers on each bar are identical, so once you take a bar out of its color-coded box, it's hard to tell if you have the almond one or not.
They aren't cheap, however. Each box costs $6.49 at Harris Teeter in Maryland. That works out to about $2.17 per bar, which if you were to go out and get ice cream, is cheap, but on the pricey side for grocery store ice cream bars.
One bar is either 230 (classic) or 250 (almond) calories. One bar is equal to one serving. They aren't exactly healthy (19 or 20 grams of sugar), but I wasn't buying these for the health benefits.
Chocolate
The classic bars were everything I'd hoped they'd be, and more. The chocolate coat is thick, and cracks when you bite into it. The vanilla ice cream is creamy, and doesn't taste fake.
These bars are perfect for a hot summer day. You get a good ratio of ice cream to chocolate in each bite, and the chocolate helps hold it together. It is thick enough not to melt right away, so you have a moment to enjoy your bar and get a picture for the 'gram.
Chocolate and Almond
I don't usually like nuts in my dessert, but these changed everything. The almond bars are amazing. The almonds are cut into small pieces throughout so you don't get a whole mouthful at once (think: the opposite of an AlmondJoy). They help balance out the rich Belgian chocolate and add a nice crunch.
Each bite has a good ratio of chocolate, almonds and ice cream. The almonds are covered in chocolate (not on top of the bar), so they won't fall off or start running down your arm. They also don't have skins on, eliminating the possibility of any weird textures.
In addition to being diary free, both flavors are vegan. The vanilla ice cream is also coconut based, not almond, so it's creamier than other diary alternatives, and doesn't come with any strange after-taste.
These bars are great to have handy in the freezer. The individual portions are good for single servings, or for when you have multiple people to share them with (and there's no messy clean-up!) Go forth, and enjoy #NationalIceCreamDay!