Final Milk Experiment IMHO: Soy vs Almond vs Coconut vs Goat

In the past month or so, I've been experimenting with various non-cow milks. I was trying to cut down on the sugar in my coffee in order to lose weight. One thing I discovered very early on was that my stomach seemed flatter when avoided cow dairy products.

frozen cubes of

coconut liquid

During the past few years, especially as we were trying to cut expenses, my dairy eating was almost only the milk I put in my coffee. I've been having sesame paste, which is extremely healthy and inexpensive, with foods that most people would eat with some sort of cheese. My husband still eats cottage cheese. Besides that, our protein consists of organic eggs, from a producer here in Shiloh, chicken and sometimes beef or fish.




First I tried coconut cream. The container had been in my closet for a few months. I didn't need any sugar with it to enjoy the coffee. Then I realized that it had separated, leaving a fatty block of coconut cream and some liquid. I mixed the cream with a ripe mashed banana, a bit of vanilla and cinnamon. To that I added chocolate chips and left it in the refrigerator until serving it at a nice meal. It was a great success. And the liquid I froze as "ice cubes." One morning I had those in my coffee. The flavor was fine, and I didn't need sugar to make it palatable. But the "taste of coconut" stayed with me all day.

goat milk

almond milk

Next I tried almond milk, and I must admit that I really liked it. It was sweet and didn't need any added sugar. Of course that was most probably be because there is a lot of sugar in the "milk." I was told by someone that it's not a real milk and there aren't many almonds in it. She suggested I drink goat milk.

The person who suggested the goat milk claimed that "it's delicious." So, yes, my next experiment was that. And I must admit that it was the worst milk I had ever tasted. I was rather surprised, since I love plain goat yogurt and have it daily as part of my breakfast.

almond vs soy milk side by side

Yesterday I needed more milk and planned on getting almond milk, but the first store I went to only had soy. So I began to rationalize the advantage of buying soy milk. I know that there are many people who consider it a terrible health danger. I checked the Nutritional charts of soy and almond milks side by side. Both are marketed/produced by Tnuva, Israel's largest dairy company. Even if you don't understand Hebrew, you can see that many of the number matchup. I have no doubt that Tnuva did this on purpose, since they both have all sorts of vitamins added. Even the calorie count is the same. Soy and almond milks are the only two non-dairy protein based milks I could find in the refrigerator section of the store. I am not interested in trying the rice milk, because I try not to eat rice; it's a carbohydrate.

I sent the above photo to Instagram and facebook to ask advice. People weren't shy. Soy milk has many disadvantages, which was pointed out numerous times. Many people suggested almond milk made without sugar. It wasn't an option, though when I had it in my coffee, I didn't need sugar.  I also have a number of friends who make their own almond milk in a blender, but since I only need it for coffee, and I don't have a blender, nor am I interested in adding to my chores, that's not an option for me. No doubt you're curious about what I decided to buy. My facebook friends know already, and you can see the picture below.

soy plus sugar

Since being female, especially at my age, the "estrogen" in the soy isn't a real issue, and this is an "experiment," I bought the soy. This morning I poured it into my coffee. I did not like the taste at all. I even found myself adding a bit of sugar to make it palatable.

My conclusion is that I will buy almond milk whenever possible, and I'll check out coconut milks in other stores. The canned ones I saw all had those "E" additives which I don't want.

On the whole, this has been a very interesting experiment. I'm very grateful that it is very easy to buy a variety of milks here in Israel. I also wish to thank all of those who contributed their knowledge and opinions about the milks. Of course, taste is very subjective. Also, since, thank Gd bli eyin haraa, I don't have any medical condition forcing me to look for an alternative milk, I can be very flexible in how I "accessorize" my  morning coffee.

Your advice and opinions are still welcome, thanks.