5 Healthy Ice Cream Spots In Sydney

By Melissa Fine, ellaslist 

Sounds like an oxymoron, but healthy ice cream is a thing! Have your dessert and eat it too at one (or two!) of these health conscious ice cream joints - sans the dairy and the sugar headache. 

1. Earth To Table, Bondi Junction

This plant-based, insta-worthy cafe is pumping on the weekends, and for good reason: wholefood desserts that taste like the real thing. Treat yourself to one of their Chocolate Hazelnut or Golden Gaytime 'Magnums'...you won't believe they're dairy free, gluten free and refined sugar free. The almost too-pretty-to-eat raw cakes here are also pretty epic. So that you don't arrive with the little one only to find it closed, take note that Earth to Table is open Wednesday through Sunday. It's cosy and pram friendly too, making a perfect and novel spot for a mother's group weekday catchup. 

2. The Blob Down Under, Zetland

We'd make a point of checking out this pop-up vegan soft serve store before it travels elsewhere come 1 April, 2018. The Blob's ever-changing dairy free and gluten free soft serve flavours - like Blobbero Rocher and Heart Beet (that's Lychee, a hint of Beetroot, and Rosewater) - are handmade will all natural colours and flavours, and the kids won't even know it's good for them. Even the waffles cones are made in-house and studded with chia seeds for some extra crunch. We love Blob's creative and clean take on toppings...think quinoa puffs, desiccated coconut ('coconut snow'), cacao peanut butter and freeze-dried mandarin. 

3. Gelato Blue, Newtown 

Famous for their non-dairy, coconut milk artisan gelato, everything at Gelato Blue is vegan, although many customers aren't even aware of this. With 'planet friendly' flavours like Mint Choc Chip, Passionfruit Cheesecake and Pannacotta (drool!), even non-vegans will be happy here...the only hard part will be choosing a flavour - or two! 

4. Cocowhip, Various Locations

Soft serve done differently, Gold Coast-born Cocowhip is made from coconut water, probiotic-rich 'organic coconut bio-fermented coconut powder', and plant-derived stabilisers...so it's healthy enough to have for breakfast! It's sweetened with xylitol, a plant-derived sweetener that's lower in calories than sugar, and cafes serving the stuff like to pimp it up with fun wholefood toppings - think raw chocolate, fresh fruit and date 'caramel'. You'll find Cocowhip at locations all around Sydney, including Girdlers Dee Why, Dr Earth Newtown and Hugh Jackman's favourite cafe, Speedo's in Bondi. Click here to find a Cocowhip supplier near you. 

5. Chacha's, Bondi Beach

Cha cha over to Chacha's for cashew-based 'ice cream' in countless unique flavours like Turmeric, and Miso Caramel - a crowd favourite. We're hoping this Campbell Parade pop-up is here to stay. They sweeten their ice cream with fruit and rice malt - a better-for-you, fructose free sweetener, and although on the pricier side, it's healthy and filling enough to eat for a lunch treat after a morning at the beach. It's pretty rich too, so you could even share a cup with the kids...or not!