Sunshine adds key ingredients to Jacky’s Depot collaboration

A Maumee-based nonprofit group that helps people with developmental disabilities is partnering with an uptown ice cream business to create three new scrumptious flavors for the summer.

Yes, let’s all scream.

Sunshine Communities Inc., which supports individuals of all ages with developmental disabilities, is collaborating with Jacky’s Depot, 130 W. Dudley St. in honor of Sunshine’s 75th anniversary, Jacky’s is releasing ice cream flavored with carrot cake, blueberry crumble coffee, and pineapple upside down cake.

Carrot cake, which is based on a Georgette’s Grounds and Gifts signature bakery item, was the first flavor, which was rolled out May 23. It’s also a hit, selling out six gallons in the first few days, said Jacky’s owner, Jason Mendelsohn.

“The starting point for any good ice cream is quality ingredients. And it’s hard to go wrong when you’re using something as delicious as their carrot cake,” he said. “It partners really well with our signature vanilla, so it wasn’t too much of a stretch. The end product is amazing.”

Jacky’s Depot and Georgette’s Grounds and Gifts are neighbors in uptown Maumee. Georgette’s was named after Sunshine Communities founder Georgette Engler.

The Sunshine and Georgette’s staff came up with the idea of collaborating with Jacky’s Depot on unique flavors celebrating Sunshine’s 75th anniversary, said Cindy Kerr, vice president of community relations.

“When Mr. Mendelsohn was approached about creating a carrot cake flavor using the actual cake, he was all in. It has been a fun partnership,” she said.

“Carrot cake came to mind immediately because that’s our more popular baked good, and it’s award winning, from Georgette’s,” Ms. Kerr said. “It’s been the same recipe since we opened.”

Next on the ice cream menu is blueberry crumble coffee, coming June 17, and pineapple upside down cake, starting July 15.

The blueberry is a popular Georgette’s coffee blend, Ms. Kerr said. There is also a carrot cake coffee at the store.

“We use their blueberry coffee and then we swirl in real blueberries, and we added a ribbon of brown sugar and cinnamon ripple for that extra crunch,” Mr. Mendelsohn said.

For the pineapple flavor, the 430 Sunshine employees were asked to submit a favorite ice cream idea and the upside down cake won, Ms. Kerr said. Georgette’s will introduce a cake at the coffee shop to complement the ice cream later this summer.

Mr. Mendelsohn said Jacky’s comes up with five to 10 new flavors annually. Last year’s creations were chocolate Oreo cheesecake, honey lavender latte, olive oil, and lemon poppyseed.

All of the flavors start with quality ingredients, he said.

“Ice cream is regulated by the government,” Mr. Mendelsohn said. “In order to be considered ice cream, it has to have 10 percent butter fat by volume.”

Jacky’s is considered super premium, with 15 percent, he said.

The next factor is overrun, which is the amount of air whipped into the ice cream.

“Our ice cream is very low overrun, you have almost no air whipped into it, so our ice cream is very thick, very creamy. It almost has a bit of a chew to it before it starts to melt in your mouth,” Mr. Mendelsohn said. “Then, on top of that, we use quality ingredients. We don’t skimp on the things that we mix in. We use real Oreos, we use award-winning carrot cake.”

Jacky’s, which is located in the old interurban railroad station, has been a Maumee uptown staple since 1986.

Mr. Mendelsohn and his wife, Aimee, bought it from Jacky and Marty Pauken in 2008.

Mrs. Mendelsohn had managed Jacky’s in the summers, when she was off from teaching. The couple immediately jumped at the chance to buy the ice cream store, Mr. Mendelsohn said.

He relies on longtime employee Sophie King for the ice cream production.

“We use a very special vanilla extract,” he said. “All the recipes we have are passed down from Jacky. And a lot of the new recipes we have are just built on the knowledge that she left for us.”

Before buying Jacky’s, Mr. Mendelsohn worked for the Maumee Mirror. Mrs. Mendelsohn is still in the education field.

The couple recently started another venture, opening a commercial kitchen space for rent in South Toledo.

“If you cook for public consumption — whether it’s retail or a food truck — anything for public consumption has to be done in a licensed kitchen,” Mr. Mendelsohn said. “Building a licensed kitchen is rather expensive so that can stop a lot of food entrepreneurs from following their dreams.”

“We saw a hole in the market and decided to fill that niche,” he said.

The Toledo Commercial Kitchen will also allow the Mendelsohns to expand their production capabilities, he said. Jacky’s ice cream development may eventually move there, if a second location opens, he said.

“We fill the walk-in freezer on a Friday, then come back in on Monday and have to do it all over again,” Mr. Mendelsohn said of the Maumee store demand.

Georgette’s Grounds & Gifts is staffed with individuals with developmental disabilities. The proceeds from every product sold are reinvested in Sunshine’s programs.

Sunshine’s 75th anniversary celebration continues with a 6 to 8 p.m. June 14 outdoor concert open to the public at the main campus, 7223 Maumee-Western Rd. The Skittle Bots will perform ’90s music, and there will be birthday cake and food trucks.

For more information, visit sunshine.org or jackysdepot.com.

Contact Debbie Rogers at: drogers@theblade.com