Okay, let me tell you about my adventures with kosher non-dairy desserts. It’s been a journey, let me tell ya. For ages, if someone said “kosher dessert” and “non-dairy” in the same sentence, my mind would just draw a blank, or picture those sad, dry cookies you sometimes find.
It really all started when a few folks in my family had to go dairy-free for various reasons, plus, you know, keeping things parve after a meat meal is a big deal for us. Suddenly, our usual dessert spread wasn’t cutting it. I felt bad, especially during holidays or big family get-togethers. I thought, “Someone’s gotta step up,” and somehow, that someone ended up being me.
My first few attempts were, well, let’s call them “learning experiences.” I remember trying to make a parve chocolate cake. I grabbed a regular recipe and just swapped out the butter for oil and the milk for some watery almond drink. The result? It was dense. Like, seriously dense. You could have probably used it as a paperweight. And the taste was just… off. It was a bit of a disaster, and I almost gave up right then and there.
So, I started really looking into it. I spent hours wandering the grocery store aisles, squinting at labels. What oils worked best? Which non-dairy milk wasn’t going to taste weird? What could I use instead of eggs sometimes? It felt like I was back in chemistry class, but with way more potential for things to go wrong and taste bad. I bought so many different kinds of margarine, shortenings, soy milk, oat milk, you name it. My pantry was a mess of half-used cartons and tubs.
Figuring Things Out Slowly
The first thing I realized was that trying to perfectly copy a dairy dessert was often a recipe for disappointment. Some things just don’t translate well, or they require a ton of weird ingredients I didn’t want to deal with.
My breakthrough really came when I started focusing on desserts that were either naturally non-dairy or could be easily adapted without tasting like a compromise.
So, what did I actually do? I started simple.
- I got really into fruit crisps and crumbles. Apples, berries, peaches – whatever was in season. You just toss the fruit with some sugar and spices. For the topping, I found a couple of non-dairy margarines that actually tasted pretty good and worked well when cold and cut into flour and sugar. That was a game-changer.
- Chocolate was another area. I learned that a lot of good quality dark chocolate is naturally parve. So, I started experimenting with things like chocolate avocado mousse. Sounds strange, I know! But you just blend ripe avocados with melted dark chocolate, a sweetener, maybe some vanilla, and a splash of non-dairy milk. It gets surprisingly creamy and rich. My kids were super skeptical at first, but now they actually ask for it.
- I also played around a lot with coconut milk, especially the full-fat kind in a can. It’s great for making creamy puddings or as a base for no-bake pies when you whip it up.
It Wasn’t Always Smooth Sailing
Oh, there were definitely more flops. I remember trying to make a non-dairy “cheesecake” using a popular online recipe. It involved a whole bunch of cashews and lemon juice. The picture looked amazing. Mine? It was a soupy, grainy mess. Didn’t set, tasted… nutty, but not in a good cheesecake way. That one went straight into the bin, and I was pretty frustrated.
But, bit by bit, I found my footing. I learned which brands of non-dairy butter baked well, which plant milks had the most neutral flavor for cakes, and that applesauce or mashed banana can be your best friend for moisture in some recipes. I stopped being so scared of experimenting. If it didn’t work, well, it didn’t work. At least I learned something.
Now, I have a pretty solid rotation of kosher non-dairy desserts that I can whip up without too much stress. It’s not like I’m a professional pastry chef or anything, but I can make a decent batch of cookies, a nice fruit pie, or a rich chocolatey thing that everyone can enjoy, regardless of their dietary needs. It just took a lot of trial, a fair bit of error, and a willingness to just get in the kitchen and try.
