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D E LV E I N TO T H E B O L D F L AV O R S O F F R OZ E N M E X I C A N T R E AT S Story and photo by Melissa Rubalcaba Riske
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ith flavors so rich and deep, all it takes is one taste to know this isn’t your typical ice cream.
With its bright bold colors and flavors of tropical fruits, there are so many delicious ways to indulge during a visit to La Michoacana, the ice cream shops based on the flavors and recipes from Mexico. “We try to bring the flavors of Mexico in different ways,” says Carlos Juarez. Juarez and his wife, Diana Moreno, opened La
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Michoacana Sweet Bliss in St. Charles in January 2020 following the success of their Yorkville location, which opened in 2017. Moreno, who had experience working in another La Michoacana, convinced her husband it was time to launch their own business. Their leap into the business has been a sweet one. Each week Juarez makes more than 3,000 pounds of ice cream for the two locations. Offerings include ice creams as well as popsicles, known as paletas. Each flavor is made by hand, using either a waterbased or milk-based recipe and lots of fresh fruit.
Juarez says the strawberry ice cream alone requires 10 pounds of fresh hulled strawberries for a single container of ice cream. “This is very different than American ice cream or even gelato,” Juarez explains. While the unique flavors and recipes are part of the allure, it was also part of the risk, Juarez says, as his family worried about the business finding success. “We didn’t know if people would accept us,” he says. Add to that the challenges of the pandemic, yet Juarez and his family continued to churn out fresh
DINING & ENTERTAINING JULY 2021
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