Cream substitutes for the lactose intolerant

[Jurek]

So, I'm expecting a house guest soon who is lactose intolerant.
She can take a smidge of dairy milk in her tea / coffee, and will have the occasional nibble of cheese.
My problem is that several of my signature dishes contain either creme fraiche, double cream or yoghurt.
I ensure that there's a stock of soy milk in the fridge when she stays, but I don't know of any products which would substitute the cream or creme fraiche that goes into my cooking.

Anyone know of such products which might fit the bill?

Cheers

J

[andygates]

Soy yoghurt isn't entirely vile.

[Jurek]

Thanks, it's really the other two that I'm interested in as the form a key part of pasta sauces with mascarpone and the like.

[Clare]

Check if she can eat goat's milk products. I can't touch cow's milk, but goat milk/cream/cheese etc is all fine.

[pcolbeck]

Your not lactose intolerant then. It's the same lactose in cows, goats, sheep or horse milk and the same genetic mutation that lets us metabolise all of them. You either have it (as do 99% of northern Europeans) or you don't. There must be something else in cows milk that disagrees with you.

[mike]

you have "signature dishes" ??

[juliet]

You can get soy cream.  Not sure how well it would work in your recipes, of course.  Yoghurt might work for creme fraiche?

Or you could take the opportunity to broaden your cooking horizons!  (Try http://www.earth.li/~kake/cookery/ for ideas for vegan cooking.)

[Clare]

Your not lactose intolerant then. It's the same lactose in cows, goats, sheep or horse milk and the same genetic mutation that lets us metabolise all of them. You either have it (as do 99% of northern Europeans) or you don't. There must be something else in cows milk that disagrees with you.

I didn't say that I was lactose intolerant. My suggestion was based on months of not having any milk in anything as cow's milk gives me explosive diahorrea and I can't stand soya milk/rice whateveritscalled/etc etc, before discovering that goat and ewe milk products were OK.

Jurek, my suggestion was that you check this with your guest, don't just go ahead with anything until you know for sure.

[pcolbeck]

Sorry Clare I was just trying to point out that if someone is lactose intolerant all milk is bad for them as Jurek said his guest was lactose intolerant. I think my post may have read a little terse when I didn't mean it to be. I guess you have a problem with one of the proteins in cows milk as these differ a lot from mammal to mammal.

[Mike J]

You can get Alpro Soya single Cream,

[Regulator]

Sorry Clare I was just trying to point out that if someone is lactose intolerant all milk is bad for them as Jurek said his guest was lactose intolerant. I think my post may have read a little terse when I didn't mean it to be. I guess you have a problem with one of the proteins in cows milk as these differ a lot from mammal to mammal.

A lot of people 'diagnosed' as lactose intolerant aren't - they're actually casein intolerant, in particular the form of casein found in cows milk.  Hence they are OK with goats or ewes milk. 

[Jurek]

Thanks all for the advice.
Juliet - indeed this is an opportunity to broaden my culinary horizons, and I shall probably grasp it - as my waistline (and cholesterol level) are dictating that I move away from cream, creme fraiche etc.

Mike - you mean you don't have signature dishes? 
 

[Gandalf]

You can get Alpro Soya single Cream,

Granose do one as wel.

[marna]

Soy yoghurt is actually pretty good, as these things go. I've used it in place of creme fraiche before. Or soft silken tofu, blended, can add quite a bit of thicker creaminess to dishes. Almond cream (peel almonds, simmer in a little water for five minutes, and strain) is generally tastier than soy cream in sweet dishes.