Test: Astronaut ice creams.
Unusual : NASA « approved » ice creams found at Freezedried & Co
As a European company specializing in freeze-dried food, we couldn't miss the Astronaut ice cream opportunity !
These American-made ice-creams have the « Certified Space Technology » insignia on the packaging and they have been enjoyed by astronauts aboard NASA space missions. Reality or marketing strategy ? Well, one thing that nobody is going to challenge is that they spark the imagination of both young and old who wish they could reach for the stars. And now we'd like to tell you more about how they taste like !
First of all, there are different product lines : ice creams, sweet ice cream sandwiches, and freeze-dried fruits.
Taste test : « neapolitan », « chocolate mint » ice creams and « cookies and cream ice cream sandwich »
Appearance :
After opening the aluminum packaging, we get to an inner paper wrapper with slits.
As you could see on the above images, the ice creams arrive broken into pieces. That doesn't alter the taste, but clearly, they all come broken into smaller chunks (even those seen online or some others we have sampled).
Taste
On the first bite (yes, we can bite into this ice cream !), the texture for the « mint and chocolate chips » ice cream or the « neapolitan » ice cream is reminiscent of crispy meringue cookies.
After a few seconds, the magic happens… The small slice of freeze-dried ice cream melts in your mouth.
In our experience, it tastes just like the real thing… actually taking the rich creamy layer on your tongue and teeth, but unfortunately, there's no more to bite into and it's too bad because you can't just eat one !
The two varieties we tried are reminiscent of store-bought ice creams.
For the cookies & cream ice cream sandwich, we think the ice-cream cookies are reminiscent of « choco » BN sandwich cookies or Prince chocolate flavor cookies. We really enjoyed the taste of this one.
That might be very cool (pun intended !) to enjoy this delicious treat on a rainy afternoon with kids at home, or just for fun to impress your loved ones, or when you are sailing the open sea.
Pros
1 - Even in hot weather, this ice cream won't drip. It is freeze-dried and can be stored at ambient temperatures.
2 - No more worries with sensitive teeth upon biting into your favorite treat : real ice creams taste great. But if because of your love for ice creams, you take a very large bite, it may be difficult to keep the whole thing in your mouth without wincing. Adding that to your sensitive teeth… not funny at all !
3 - Long shelf life : can be stored for up to 3 years !
4 - A space travel at a low price : that's right, these ice creams are used on NASA missions. It's a bit as if you were an astronaut the time of an ice cream at an affordable price (from 4.95 €)