Edible Food Finds: Mrs. Moriconi's Ice Cream
Photos by Linda Campos
It’s not one or the other with Mrs. Moriconi’s Ice Cream—it’s both an art and a science. A Penn State University food science and safety graduate, Julia Moriconi brings an unbounded creativity and drive for perfection to her artisan ice cream.
Founder and owner of the 2-year-old brand, Julia didn’t grow up eating gourmet ice cream. A native of Chicago, her childhood favorite was Good Humor’s strawberry shortcake—“the closest thing to entremets for a 5-year-old”—because that’s what was available.
Today, she delights at watching children slurp her chocolate half-pints on a hot summer day, knowing they’re enjoying an ice cream made with high-quality ingredients sourced from local producers.
After almost two decades in the first responder industry, and 11 years as a firehouse cook, Julia enrolled as a baking student at the French Culinary Institute in New York City, now part of the Institute of Culinary Education. There, Julia thrived in the frozen dessert portion of the curriculum.
“I excelled, I was having the most fun,” she said. Seeing her delight, an instructor suggested she enroll in “ice cream college,” aka Penn State University’s food science and safety programs.
From the diversified Penn State curriculum, Julia chose to specialize in dairy—which, she explained, covers the whole gambit: “butter, ice cream, yogurt, cottage cheese, sour cream, you name it.” (Students can also choose to specialize in meat or produce.)
When the year-long program wrapped in 2019, armed with the outline of a business plan, Julia went in search of top-quality ingredients. “Super premium in, super premium out,” she said of her search for just the right cows and just the right milk. In ice cream, “nothing is going to mask low-quality milk.” Julia found what she was looking for with a herd of Jersey cows at High Lawn Farm in Lee.
A scoop of Mrs. Moriconi’s Ice Cream is unlike any other you’ve licked and it’s the result of her formula. At Penn State, she explained, “they taught you how to do it right, but they also taught you how to do it wrong.”
Instructors guided students as they tempered dairy to different pH levels in order to observe the dairy’s characteristics as it reacted. Knowing how to troubleshoot at each stage of her production process—which she completes in small batches, preparing ingredients by hand, tasting at each step—sets Julia’s ice cream apart.
Research and flavor evolution is an extensive process for Julia and includes every element of sensory evaluation—appearance, smell, taste, mouthfeel and, yes, sound.
“Dairy has very specific attributes,” said Julia. Take peach ice cream. With such a “fragile” fruit, she explained, artificial flavorings and colors are often used and, if the producer isn’t careful, “before you know it, the ice cream tastes like chemicals.”
It was only after Julia returned to her pastry training, and a tried-and-true peach compote recipe, that she exclaimed: “Holy Hannah, I have a true peach ice cream!”
“As a pastry chef, I want to bring unique and worldly flavors to Worcester,” said Julia. Excited to expand the community’s ice cream appreciation one scoop at a time, she plans to add cloudberry, lingonberry and elderflower to her seasonal offerings.
Pints and half-pints of Mrs. Moriconi’s tantalizing flavors, including a collaboration with Worcester’s Crust Artisan Bakeshop, are available for purchase at many local farmers markets as well as for pickup and delivery to Worcester and bordering towns.
farmstanding.com/shop/mrs-moriconis-ltd
This story appeared in the Summer 2021 issue.
