Before our very hot (and awesmazing) summer comes to a close, you should really indulge in some of our local (dairy-free) ice cream culture. One of the newest brands in Toronto’s lineup of organic, vegan ice creams is Pleasantville Creamery. Although, they say they are “Better. Than. Ice Cream.”, which is quite the claim, and you’ll have to justify that for yourself! The flavours that I have tried are incredibly delicious, and my cousins who tried them, and do not enjoy many vegan ice creams, loved these ones.
What is most unusual about Pleasantville is that all of their ice creams are packaged in glass jars instead of plastic containers – how awesome is that?! All of their varieties are vegan, organic, gluten-free, nut-free, and delicious. Also to note – it’s a small Toronto-based business, which makes it even a better brand to support!
Pleasantville starts their impeccable desserts by using Canadian-grown hemp hearts & cold-pressed virgin coconut oil, so they are packed with nutrition on top of being sweet and delicious. Then, they add the best ingredients from direct-trade vanilla to raw cacao, bean-to-bar artisan chocolate and herbs, whole & seasonal fruits and vegetables from local and sustainable farms. They also make limited-edition flavors inspired by the seasons, pop culture, culinary history, and world trends – my cousins all loved “Steel Magnolia” which was a blend of local peaches, crumbled cinnamon pie crust, and a swirl of bourbon caramel. I personally enjoyed the Blondie, and most recently the “Elvis”, which has chocolately cookie dough, sunbutter and even potato chips. It’s always worth trying something new, because I would never have thought to put potato chips into my ice cream!
You can check for Pleasantville retailers on their website, although I’ve noticed it at a lot of my favourites stores over the past couple weeks, including The Big Carrot and Fiesta Farms.
Happy last days of summer, sunshine and ice cream!
