The History of the Most Polarizing Novelty Treat of All Time

There may be no novelty sweet more polarizing than astronaut ice cream. Those who adore it praise its light, crunchy texture, and a flavor that is still unmistakably creamy and sweet. Its detractors will say biting into it is akin to chomping down on a piece of chalk: powdery and unnatural. And for those who have never tried it, the entire concept of eating ice cream stripped of all liquid may seem downright bizarre. But even though so-called astronaut (or to be more precise, freeze-dried) ice cream isn’t the most popular of novelty treats, its longevity proves that it has found a small, but fiercely loyal fan base.

Even its creator has been a little surprised at the product’s staying power.

From One-Off Fad to Gift Shop Best-Seller

Astronaut ice cream’s story begins in the late 1970s with Ron Smith, the founder of American Outdoor Products, a company that specialized in food for backpackers. One day, Smith got a message from the company he contracted to make some of their freeze-dried foods (a category popular with hikers for its shelf stability). “They said, ‘Goddard Air and Space Museum contacted us and said that freeze-dried ice cream was used by the space program. They want to know if we can make it, so they can sell it in their gift shop.’ And we said, ‘Sure, we’ll try it,’” recalls Smith. The initial product was a far cry from the neatly packaged bars you’ll see today: “It was half a gallon of Neapolitan ice cream that you would buy in the store,” he says. “It was frozen solid, and then cut with a bandsaw, if you can believe it.” Then, the ice cream was freeze-dried using a specialized machine, which turned the ice directly into gas. That process—which, if you recall from high school physics, is called sublimation—is what’s responsible for the tiny air pockets in freeze-dried cream; it’s where the ice crystals were in the original, frozen product.Finally, about three-quarters of an ounce was loaded into a pouch. “Quite frankly, when we first started doing this, we thought, ‘Well, this is a fad. It’ll last a couple of years.’ And that was what, 44 years ago?” Smith says.

The product also probably got a boost from the unique economic conditions of the time: “A long recession made small luxuries much more attractive. Ice cream is a good example of a small luxury—you absolutely don’t need it physically, but emotionally it can make you quite happy for very little extra expense,” says food historian Megan Elias, the director of the Boston University gastronomy program. And, with its long shelf life, it could be stashed in the pantry until the craving hit.

Today, the division of American Outdoor Products that markets freeze-dried ice creams and fruits (and Astrodog dog treats!) to consumers is known as Astronaut Foods. The original Neapolitan flavor is still going strong in ice cream sandwich form, along with vanilla and banana split. If you’ve never tasted it, the texture’s closest analogue is probably honeycomb candy: light with a lot of air bubbles. The flavor, however, is pure ice cream, since the ingredients are the same as what’s in a regular scoop. Astronaut Foods remains a popular product in many museums around the country, as well as theme parks like Walt Disney World. “I tell people, ‘Look, every year there’s about three million new kids in the United States. So, there’s three million new customers. My guess is [the company] will go on long after I’m gone,” Smith says.