Raw Organic Ice Cream @ Zella Juice in Washington

[Zella Juice]

We finally did it. Raw Ice Cream coming out of a soft serve machine.

I can only do one flavor at a time for now. This week it's Chocolate.

We are going to have various toppings...so far there is Fudge Pieces, Chopped Nuts, and Granola. I am working on a Chocolate Sauce and Strawberry Sauce today.

We are in Snohomish, WA (near Everett) about 25 minutes north from Seattle.

[snowdrop]

yeaaaaaah for you!
...and your overjoyed customers :)

[barose]

*drool*


....

[Sunshine9]

oh my gosh lady, i just might be takin 3 buses out there to have some ice cream. yum!

[Apasaraw]

What a delish addition! Yum yum yum! :p (sticking my tongue out to lick that photo)

[Anabbytree]

Oh, my oh my. I just don't know what to say! How amazing!

[Zella Juice]

We don't have many raw fooders in our neck of the woods...but we do have alot of non-dairy folks. You should see their eyes light up when they taste the ice cream. Most of them have only tried the yukky stuff Rice Dream makes that's rock hard and has no taste.

Thanks to all of you for your encouragement :)

[LightLover]

Great, let us know how it goes.
I would advise you to put a little text on the machine, or somewhere, saying:
"non-dairy". Then: 1) people don't have to ask you about this; 2) Many people
would otherwise avoid your icemachine, thinking it will be WITH dairy.
By putting a text, you win on these 2 points.

Succes!

LL

[Sunshine9]

*what will the flavor be next week? *

[Sunshine9]

oh, and er, what will it be the week after that?

[Zella Juice]

good point Lightlover. There are signs everywhere saying non-dairy. We have converted our whole juice bar to Non dairy. The only thing left is the cream cheese on the bagels. I haven't found a cream cheese that is cost effective and that the non-rawers like.

Next week is chocolate again..because I started with chocolate in the middle of this week. But I am going to make variations with the chocolate by adding other things:

Rawky Road ~ chocolate ice cream, chopped sprouted nuts, fudge, little pieces of coconut

Creamy Praline ~ Honey Covered almonds in chocolate ice cream

Peanut Butter & Chocolate ~ Peanut Butter (or raw almond butter), swirled chocolate sauce in chocolate ice cream

The week after that will probably be Strawberry...cause I want to do a strawberry swirl with strawberry sauce and some of my cheesecake crust.

I'll try and remember to take pics. :p

[spicyfull]

I wish you the Very Best...Thanks for Sharing.....

[juliebove]

Just curious what you use as a base. Daughter would love this but she has a banana allergy.

[Zella Juice]

cashews, honey (sorry andy, not totally vegan), water, raw cocoa, and celtic sea salt.

I haven't figured out a banana flavor so your in the clear for now. I don't see how it's possible because the bananas get too yukky.

about the honey...we use local honey and discussed the whole ethical treatment of the bees with the owner and came to the conclusion that we could live with using honey. It's more of a natural form that the processed agave. But that's just us...I know us raw fooders all have our opinions on this subject. Honey was just what we decided to use in order to help our customers get away from the sweetened yogurt that we were using in our smoothies.

[barose]

I love raw honey!

DP was thinking of getting a mini soft serve machine. Ill try it to see how it works with nut milk. We can always send it back if it doesn’t work.

What model is your machine? I know its industrial but I'm curious.

[juliebove]

cashews, honey (sorry andy, not totally vegan), water, raw cocoa, and celtic sea salt.

I haven't figured out a banana flavor so your in the clear for now. I don't see how it's possible because the bananas get too yukky.

about the honey...we use local honey and discussed the whole ethical treatment of the bees with the owner and came to the conclusion that we could live with using honey. It's more of a natural form that the processed agave. But that's just us...I know us raw fooders all have our opinions on this subject. Honey was just what we decided to use in order to help our customers get away from the sweetened yogurt that we were using in our smoothies.

Thanks! Maybe one day we'll come out there.

[Zella Juice]

the brand is Taylor. it's the only brand I know of for commercial units.

I think a cuisenart would work just fine. or just an ice cream maker from target or something.

before we had this we would freeze our ice cream mix and then cut it into ice cube size pieces (or put in ice cube tray) then put in the food processor.

[barose]

the brand is Taylor. it's the only brand I know of for commercial units.

I think a cuisenart would work just fine. or just an ice cream maker from target or something.

before we had this we would freeze our ice cream mix and then cut it into ice cube size pieces (or put in ice cube tray) then put in the food processor.


Thanks! He wants SOFT SERVE, LOL. I'm thinking of getting a Cuisenart. Regardless, I want ice cream! Thankfully, we have Cafe Gratitiude very close to us to help out for a bit.

[LightLover]

Zella, are you selling a lot of the ice cream?


LL

[Zella Juice]

LL,

It has only been a week and the sales keep rising. Alot of people just want to try it to see if a non dairy ice cream can be that good. We give out samples and people keep coming back for more.

This week we are doing Strawberry. I made a "Strawberry Shortcake" ice cream by crumbling my cheesecake crust on top.

I am also going to have a "Strawberry Swirl"...by swirling in the frosting from my cinnamon rolls in the strawberry ice cream.

I haven't had the money to advertise yet...but word of mouth is working so far. And the shiny sign I put out by the road.

Thanks for checking in with me. I love to share the excitement. :p

[Zella Juice]

Oh ..by the way...we are looking to expand to other cities in Washington.

We are looking for financial support and partners to help us do this. So far we have considered opening in Everett, Bellingham, and Olympia, Washington.

Anyone is welcome to contact me if they have any ideas. Thanks.

[LightLover]

I can remember I asked the same regarding your green smoothies:
Can you an affordable price for the ice towards your clients?
Because the ingredients are quite expensive.


LL

[dahlila]

Man, I wish I lived in your town! :(

[SmilingRawDancer]

When your ice cream expands and takes over the world, can I have a guaranteed job? hahaha

[Zella Juice]

dahlila, I don't think most the people in this town know how good they got it.

raw dancer...any raw fooder is going to have an advantage to being hired. :p

LL, the kids size is 8 oz that's 3 bucks

12 oz is the medium for $ 4.00

16 oz is the large for $5.00

so kinda expensive for organic raw...but people are wiling to pay because they can't find anything like it.

I make a decent profit on it. The chocolate ones not so much because raw cocoa is expensive. But you wouldn't believe how much water you can add to the cashews and the mix is still pretty thick because we don't strain the cashews. And it's like a cup of honey for the 45 ounce mix and that makes it really thick too. Lukily we have a local bee guy here who sells it to us by the pound at a good rate. We just bring our buckets in and he fills them up.

[dahlila]

I've been contemplating how I can get my hands on this raw soft serve....

I know you have just gotten started it with it, but maybe you could pitch the idea to raw restaurants and juice bars across the country (esp. in Baltimore :))

You could brand it and sell the recipe or the mix?

I really think people would go nuts for this raw fooders and non-raw-fooders alike. Everyone is getting more health conscious these days and fat-free and low fat ice cream alternatives are getting discounted.

can ya tell this has been on my mind?

That is what I miss most since going raw- good ice cream!!

[Sunshine9]

open in seattle! open in seattle! puhhhhleeeeeaaaaasssseee come open in seattle!!!

:)

[SmilingRawDancer]

No, LA!!! haha

I'm copying my resume as we speak!!

<3

[Zella Juice]

dahlila,

The recipe isn't that much of a secret. I think most raw fooders could figure it out. Most people who have raw restaurants are way ahead of me. But I am always thinking of ways to expand and do what I love to do...which is spread the word of RAW and make some great food.

sunshine...

I want to do 5 locations our current location Snohomish. The other locations would be Everett, Olympia, Bellingham, and leaving the 5th location open to ideas. But Seattle does seem like the obvious choice. We looked at property in the Greenlake area awhile back.

raw dancer...

LA as in L.A. or Louisiana?

California would be in the way future. But I was thinking more San Diego...cause that's where I am from. But if it gets big..prolly LA too. Bringing Raw Vegan into the mainstream would be so cool. It's like Jamba Juice...but actually good for you. I think Jamba Juice let a bunch of people down when people started realizing that their drinks weren't as healthy as they claimed them to be.

so anyways...thanks for all the responses...I am going to start selling banana splits next week...complete with cherries on top. I am going to see if I can come close to a merichino cherry. :p

[LightLover]

[QUOTE=Zella Juice;299438]dahlila, I don't think most the people in this town know how good they got it.

raw dancer...any raw fooder is going to have an advantage to being hired. :p

LL, the kids size is 8 oz that's 3 bucks

12 oz is the medium for $ 4.00

16 oz is the large for $5.00

so kinda expensive for organic raw...but people are wiling to pay because they can't find anything like it.

QUOTE]

* Zella, it seems a decent price, I don't know what "haegen dasz" ice is costing in the US? Probably more..?

LL

[SmilingRawDancer]

Yeah, I was thinking L.A.....Los Angeles :p
It seems most raw things are in San Diego.
I've never been to Rawvolution though...that's Santa Monica, no?
When you do L.A.....in the way future...let me know!

[Zella Juice]

LL, I think they are decent prices for Organic Raw Vegan. It's about the same for regular ice cream. We load ours up with raw toppings too. I was going to check Baskin Robbins down the street but can't really bring myself to go in there. EWWW. frozen PUSS everywhere...ACK.

Raw Dancer...I will certainly keep you in mind. :D

[Apasaraw]

dahlila, I don't think most the people in this town know how good they got it.

raw dancer...any raw fooder is going to have an advantage to being hired. :p

LL, the kids size is 8 oz that's 3 bucks

12 oz is the medium for $ 4.00

16 oz is the large for $5.00

so kinda expensive for organic raw...but people are wiling to pay because they can't find anything like it.



WOW! Lucky town!

People wouldn't blink when asked to pay that price for raw ice cream here...actually they'd pay double! It's neet you help another local biz too...the honey farmer.

[LightLover]

[QUOTE=Apasaraw;300456]dahlila, I don't think most the people in this town know how good they got it.

raw dancer...any raw fooder is going to have an advantage to being hired. :p

LL, the kids size is 8 oz that's 3 bucks

12 oz is the medium for $ 4.00

16 oz is the large for $5.00

so kinda expensive for organic raw...but people are wiling to pay because they can't find anything like it.

** I think Haegen Dasz is more expensive..!!

LL

[Misty*Mountain]

Hi there Zella Juice....

I'm breaking out of lurker mode for a moment because this thread is geting me so excited!!

I will be moving to Duvall, WA (about half an hour from Snohomish/Everett area!) in a couple of weeks, and I simply cannot wait to get over to Zella Juice and try your yummy ice cream!!!!

I think you guys should whip up a raw vegan version of Cherry Garcia ice cream using local Washington cherries and cacao nibs! That would be soooooo yummy!!!!

Also, in regards to your post about expanding operations, may I suggest that you look into vending at music festivals and other types of gatherings? I am a huge music festival-goer, and I have been a raw vegan for about a year and a half. There is such a need for raw food vendors at music festivals! There are so many people at these festivals who are interested in raw/want to go raw/would love to eat raw food at festivals, yet there are none/very limited raw options available at these gatherings! If you started up a raw food booth and vended at various music festivals during the summer, you would do SO well, plus you would make so many people happy! Seriously! So yeah, think about it..... and let me know what you think because I would LOVE to get involved with that sort of thing..

Looking forward to checking out your cafe sometime soon.....

Peace,
Melissa:D

[Zella Juice]

Hey Melissa,

Thanks for your reply. That's not a bad idea. People had suggested vending back when we just did smoothies and I couldn't imagine bringing my freezers and blenders and setting up somewhere. BUT..the raw foods..I could just prepare ahead of time and have them in coolers.

Thanks so much for the suggestion. I will definatly keep that in mind.

Hope to see you soon.

~Kelly
Zella Juice

[tinystrawberry]

oo please come to Pennsylvania with that nice machine..

[Cinnamon]

Well, how did I miss this thread?? I will really have to take a trip across the water to see you and have some ice cream. What a treat and a GREAT idea, congrats on the success you are having. I know it will only continue to increase!!

[fjernsyn]

Blossoming Lotus, a vegan restaurant in Portland (and they've got one in Hawaii, as well as a beautiful half vegan/half raw cookbook) has vegan soft serve. They also sell both raw and cooked food, so I'm not sure why they don't just make it raw vegan, because I'm sure the vegans wouldn't mind. Just make it raw agave instead of the honey and they'd be set. Silly place!

[Zella Juice]

Thanks Cinnamon..hope to see ya soon.

Fjernsyn,
I know alot of vegans don't want to use honey. I am looking into seeing if I can use dates instead. Gotta get a decent price for them..or I cannot make any money. I am not going to use Agave because it is processed too much. Basically I read this article and it made sense to me...

http://www.living-foods.com/articles/agave.html

[Tk2dsky]

dahlila,


It's like Jamba Juice...but actually good for you. I think Jamba Juice let a bunch of people down when people started realizing that their drinks weren't as healthy as they claimed them to be.



No kidding I went to jamba juice yesterday, for the first time in years and was appalled. I finally decided to get a fresh apple juice and they were out of apples :mad:

Getting back to the main point....I wish you immense success in your business. We need more places like yours.

[rawsurfer]

i dont see what the problem with honey is anyway... its not like the bees are stuck in boxes suffering their whole lives. they do the same thing they always do, except we benefit from their labor. it's not like we are eating flesh or anything.

[Zella Juice]

yeah..they would make the honey either way.

[cashewy]

wait a second...where are you in washington??? I'm in anacortes...will ride for raw:)

[Zella Juice]

Snohomish, WA....8 minutes from Everett...25 minutes from Seattle.

not sure how far from Anacortas. I have a few people who make the drive from Seattle.

Hope to see ya soon. :D

[cashewy]

Anacortes is about an hour north of everett but 8 minutes is a quick pop off on my way to the city!!! :D

[Nimisha]

wow that sounds yummy. btw where do you live? i would like to visit sometime. Can you post your full address here?

[tinystrawberry]

is that anywhere near washington D.C........? i'm goin there on the 15th for a protest (btw everyone should go - it's for a good cause :) impeach busH!)

[Zella Juice]

YAY....Impeach Bush! I wish I could go with you. But no...I am in Washington state.

Nimisha, Our address is:

Zella Juice
723 Avenue D
Snohomish, WA 98290
we are in the Panther Square strip mall with Subway sandwiches on the end.

This weeks flavor ice cream is Strawberry. We make a Strawberry shortcake where we top the ice cream with raw pie crust.

We also have small 7" personal size strawberry cheesecakes.

We are working on making raw chocolates. Peanut butter cups, snickers, etc.

Below is a pic of our Carrot Cake and Peach Cobbler Soft Ice Cream.