JESSICA MORTAROTTI, Owner
Company Mission
Our mission at Carmela Ice Cream has always been to provide the highest quality farm to table, California-inspired ice cream and sorbet to our customers. We see ice cream as a blank canvas to showcase seasonal fruits, herbs and spices.
Signature Products
Our signature flavors are: Brown Sugar Vanilla Bean, Dark Chocolate Cacao Nib, Salted Caramel, Fresh Mint w/ Cacao Nib, Lavender Honey and Chocolate Sorbet. We also have incredible handmade ice cream sandwiches made with cookies that we bake in house that were designed specifically to be the perfect ice cream sandwich cookie. They are thin and soft enough to bite all the way through.
Production Tip
One of my favorite tips for people making ice cream is to get inspired by other types of recipes – not just ice cream recipes. Ingredients that pair well together in other foods usually will pair well nicely in ice cream as well. It creates a safe way to explore unique ice cream flavors. I also like to find ways to layer in flavor without resorting to artificial flavorings, so I’ll do things like cook the zest of citrus or the skin of apples in the base to infuse the essential oils and natural flavors of the fruit.
Equipment ‘Must-Haves’
Since we don’t use any stabilizers or emulsifiers in our ice creams, an invaluable piece of equipment we use is a blast chiller. It’s a powerful freezer that has a -30-degree wind chill, so it rapidly freezes ice cream without allowing “freezer burn.” When ice cream freezes slower, it slightly melts as it freezes. Then that meltage refreezes and that is what causes freezer burn, which can have a negative effect on the texture of the product. So the blast chiller allows us to achieve a nice texture without resorting to chemical stabilizers.
Secret of Success
I think the secret to Carmela’s success is our commitment to quality and our understanding that we are creating a timeless product. We are never chasing trends. We only work with local, seasonal produce and don’t cut any corners in our manufacturing process. Our ice creams don’t have any preservatives or colorings or anything artificial. Keeping it simple and delicious seems to be the key to maintaining our loyal following.
Future Goals
We recently opened a location in Palm Springs and have also started our catering services there. We are excited to expand our presence as the premium ice cream option in the Coachella Valley. We are also currently building a new ecommerce website that will allow us to ship our products nationwide by this summer.
For more info, visit www.carmelaicecream.com
(This article appeared in the Spring 2024 issue of Pastry Arts Magazine)
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