A 64-year-old from Walkeshwar is churning unusual but delectable ice cream flavours
Doshi delivers her products from Andheri to Cuff Parade. Pic/Ashish Raje
It is often said that 'a mother never retires'. In the case of Bina Doshi, 64, this holds true. Back in the day, Doshi's social circle would rave about her hand churned ice-cream recipes, so much so, that some of her friends would even request her to prepare it for their house parties. In 2007, when Doshi's kids moved abroad, she took her first step towards being an entrepreneur by commercially selling her ice-cream in the market. She recalls, "I would wake up early and add my flyers in the newspapers for people to know about my venture." Sadly, due to family commitments, Doshi had to pull the plug on her venture for a decade. In 2016, she hit the ground running once again with an ice cream-making workshop. Soon after, the team from Juhu's Dakshinayan restaurant got in touch with her. They wanted to add her ice cream on their menu. Since then, there has been no looking back.
Doshi, who runs the business under the name of Bina's Fresh Batch Homemade Ice Cream, says she makes the dessert using only milk and sugar. No setting agent or artificial flavours are added. "In fact, for our saffron flavour, we use the finest quality Spanish produce which lends a unique taste." Doshi swears by her good old ice and salt churner to make her ice creams. Owing to the increase in the orders, she has had to shift to a workshop at Hughes Road, where with the help of three assistants, she works with old school churners in order to keep the textures and flavours intact. Given that there are no preservatives in her products, the shelf life is limited to 15 days. Therefore, she makes the ice creams as per the daily requirements from restaurants, catering clients and online orders.
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A mother, grandmother and now an entrepreneur, Doshi says she makes it to a point to learn new skills. Her love for travelling recently took her to Italy where she learned to make Gelato. To go beyond the mainstream flavours, she has added new varieties such as paan choco chips, jasmine rice, Thai red rubies, chai biskoot, lemongrass, popcorn and chocolate wasabi, among others. "The idea for new flavours usually comes from friends and family. And then I do my own research to figure the recipe and its viability," she says. Each flavour requires at least three to four trials.
This season, she has also introduced the kachhi kairi and spicy guava both of which come with their own spice mix blended in the ice cream. In sorbets, it's the sugarcane flavour that's fast running. Next up, she plans to introduce jamun and lychee. Presently, the biggest challenge for Doshi is sourcing ingredients. "For instance, I don't have a vendor for saffron. Friends who travel bring the ingredients for me in bulk." Considering the rise in demand for sugar-free, Doshi is working with Xylitol to make them. "I also prepare vegan icecreams but those need prior notice."
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