Astronaut Ice Cream – New Flavors

Kate Agathon

I vividly remember the first time I had Astronaut Ice Cream. It was a treat purchased at the National Air and Space Museum gift shop following a tour of the museum during a visit to Washington, D.C. in the summer of 1985.

Crumbly and sweet, the freeze-dried vanilla ice cream tasted just like it did in its traditional form. I remember being in awe that something this marvelous could exist. Imagine taking unmeltable ice cream anywhere you wanted! It was a treat straight out of a science fiction film!

 

After that momentous day, nearly 40 years would pass until I had the chance to indulge in freeze-dried ice cream again. When I had the opportunity to try the original Astronaut Ice Cream (it has been manufactured since 1974) as part of the Astronaut Foods Collection Bundle, I jumped at the chance to relive some nostalgia!

 

The Astronaut Foods Collection Bundle includes four flavors of ice cream sandwiches (vanilla, cookies and cream, neapolitan, and mint chocolate chip), and four different kinds of freeze-dried fruit (whole strawberries, peaches, bananas, and cinnamon apple wedges).

 

Of course, I sampled the vanilla flavored Astronaut Ice Cream sandwich first. As I opened the first packet of ice cream, I felt the excitement I had as a little kid tasting it for the first time. Would it be the same as I remembered? It certainly looked the same.

The Astronaut Ice Cream packets contain one individually wrapped ice cream sandwich bar. I was pleasantly surprised that all but one had remained intact and weren’t a crumbled mess upon opening.

 

My favorite ice cream flavor was the mint chocolate chip. It tasted exactly as it was supposed to taste; minty and yet somehow creamy. My second favorite flavor was the neapolitan because of the flavorful strawberry.

 

I recommend having some water on hand to sip while enjoying the freeze-dried ice cream sandwiches, as there might be a faint chalky residue left in your mouth. Also, because of the crumbly nature of the ice cream sandwiches, make sure you have a plate underneath them.

The Astronaut Ice Cream would be a nice treat as something different and exciting to have on hand for kids (perhaps a last minute stocking stuffer?).

 

Next up was the freeze-dried fruit.

 

The whole strawberries looked and tasted just as I imagined they would (not unlike the strawberries you find in boxes of Special K Red Berries cereal)- very strawberry. The cinnamon apple wedges were delicious and flavorful- a nice pop of sweetness that tasted surprisingly good. The peaches were good, but not overly flavorful, while the bananas looked and tasted like dried banana chips commonly found in grocery stores. In other words, just as expected.

 

Between the ice cream sandwiches and the fruit, the fruit was the hands down winner because of their natural flavor and tendency to not crumble. In the winter, these would be good to keep on hand in the car to snack on while stuck in ski traffic, or to keep in your pack for a hut trip.

 

Note that the foods included in the Astronaut Foods Collection Bundle are freeze-dried, not dehydrated. Freeze-dried foods typically have a longer shelf life, retain flavor, and have a lower moisture content than that of dehydrated foods. Made of 100 percent real ice cream or 100 percent real fruit, the Astronaut Foods Collection Bundle is ready-to-eat and has a shelf life of 3 years.

 

Whimsically packaged, the freeze-dried Astronaut Foods Collection Bundle can be used for emergency prep, hut trips, camping, or a snack to keep on hand in your pack when you’re out doing winter outdoor recreational activities. Completely portable, the freeze-dried food is lightweight, requires no water, and the pouches can be used to hold trash to pack out.

 

The bottom line? The Astronaut Foods Collection Bundle offers a unique and tasty travel treat.

Kate Agathon

Dr. Of Stoke

Freelance writer, bicyclist, outdoor recreation enthusiast, social justice advocate, and mom to her furbaby, Sansa.

A Colorado native, Kate considers the outdoors her mother ship. She brings her passion for bicycling, the environment, and issues of diversity to her writing. Her primary outdoor recreation activities are mountain biking, road biking, nordic skiing, alpine skiing, hiking, snowshoeing, and peak bagging Colorado’s 14ers.

 

Kate earned a bachelor’s degree in History from Colorado State University and later an MSEd and Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from Purdue University. In addition to her education, Kate’s background serving on the Mayor’s Bicycle Advisory Committee and experience working for non-profits and bicycle sales well position her to bring depth and understanding to the complex changes currently taking place in the outdoor recreation industry.