Coconut vs Almond vs Soy vs Goat Milks: Conclusion

goat milk

goat milk

Have you been reading my alternative milk posts in total suspense? For the past month or more I've been trying out all sorts of anything but cow milks. Yes, I've had coconut cream and liquid, almond, goat and soy milks.

Let's start with the very worst flavor, according to my taste buds. That's the goat milk. It was so awful, that if that was the only alternative milk available, either I'd make do with a bigger waistline or give up coffee entirely. Even adding a bit of sugar didn't help at all.

soy milk

Continuing from bad to best, the next is soy milk. First of all it has terrible press mostly because of the fact that it is similar to estrogen. Well, at my age, and being female, adding a bit of estrogen isn't a major problem. And I very rarely eat tofu products, so I don't find it a real health issue. I didn't enjoy the flavor, though that improved with some sugar added. Now, since I'm trying to lose weight and keep it off, adding sugar is not a good idea. And when I compared nutritional data  of soy milk with almond milk, I found that they have the same calorie count. Adding sugar to the soy milk in coffee changes that.

coconut liquid

I also had tried coconut cream, which tasted good and was sweet enough not to need any sugar. But there are a few problems with it. It's hard to find in my neck of the woods. What I did find locally had all sorts of "E" additives, which aren't healthy. And the cream separates into a hard mass leaving a weak liquid. I froze the liquid, later using it in coffee. For some strange reason, the coconut taste/aftertaste stayed with me all day. It was rather annoying and made me suspicious of the health benefits. Some people claim it's great and others vehemently disagree.

almond milk

IMHO, according to my taste buds, the best "alternative milk" is the almond milk I bought in the local grocers, in the refrigerator section. It had a pleasant taste and didn't need any added sugar.

Yes, the almond milk does contain sugar, more than in the other milks I had tried. But other food experiments I've made of late show that my body needs/craves sugar early in the day. I recently switched my breakfast from a nice hearty omelet to a fruit and goat yogurt. And I've lost a few kilo since then.

A lot of friends have recommended making my own almond milk, daily, or a few times a week, but, sorry I'm not looking for more chores. Since when I'm home, at least, I can usually get almond milk, that's what I will buy for the time being.

I searched some large stores, health food and "natural" department in a large supermarket to see what else can be bought here. There wasn't much I would buy, and logistics are problematic. Convenience is also a major consideration, so I'll be buying the almond milk locally and will probably get my husband a liter bag of cow milk whenever possible. The bags are much less expensive than the containers.

I hope that my search has helped others. What do you think?

almond milk