What Is Superman Ice Cream?
Photograph from jamelah on Flickr
Superman ice cream is a Michigan thing involving three flavors (in shades of blue, red, and yellow—your standard Superman colors) working together, sort of like Neapolitan. So is it just vanilla ice cream with buckets of food coloring? Apparently no, at least not in the case of the blue flavor. Blue Moon, another Michigan (or maybe more Midwestern in general) thing—and not beer in this context— is a super sweet Smurf-colored flavor that apparently "just tastes like blue." Some guesstimate that the yellow is vanilla (others have said banana, but they have little support) and that red is cherry, raspberry, strawberry, or another generic sweet-ish red fruit.
It sounds like a bubble gum ice cream situation—you start hitting puberty, and it becomes less cool to have blue lips; suddenly pralines 'n cream is the more sophisticated option. But grown-ups eventually come back to it.
Like MGEats, a native Michigander who is headed to New York City and has a craving. Sadly, we haven't located a source yet, but maybe if more of the world knew what Superman ice cream was, it'd be more findable.
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49 Comments:
Ooohhh. Grew up on Superman ice cream in NE Ohio. I laughed at the growing out of it comment. So true.
KB in Toledo at 2:59PM on 06/19/09
Blue Moon's a big deal here in Wisconsin, too. Ours tastes like old school Froot Loops!
BangieB at 3:00PM on 06/19/09
We have it in florida also.
CATERPILLARGIRL at 3:00PM on 06/19/09
I had no idea it was a Michigan thing--I just thought it went out of style --of course it was only in style when I was seven or so.
sally599 at 3:01PM on 06/19/09
Ahhh! Finally! I'm not the only one!
I love Superman ice cream SO much. I was born and raised in Ohio and went to college in Michigan, so I've been spoiled, always having access to my absolute favorite treat in the world. But now live in Los Angeles... and Superman is NOWHERE to be found. I've searched high and low, googled, researched, everything. It's really killing me!
iced_coffee at 3:06PM on 06/19/09
Yeah I am fairly certain I remember this from growing up in California. I could be mistaken, though.
christeenie at 3:07PM on 06/19/09
I grew up in Michigan and no one here in San Francisco seems to know about Superman ice cream!
mldube at 3:32PM on 06/19/09
I grew up eating Superman ice cream in south-central Indiana. I definitely thought it was just vanilla with food coloring, though. The three colors never had distinct flavor to me, although may my ice cream shop was just not as authentic.
July at 3:32PM on 06/19/09
Im 22 and from Michigan and am not ashamed to sport the blue lips from superman and blue moon. Glad I'm not the only one.
freehafe at 3:34PM on 06/19/09
I know I've seen this before! But I've never been to Michigan or Florida...
gingercookiewithlime at 3:41PM on 06/19/09
In Canada, our ice cream chain sells it under the name 'Superkid' - but i'm no kid and i love the blue lips!
jojojo at 3:42PM on 06/19/09
Any other Michiganders remember purple cows? I've lived all over the United States and whenever I tell anyone about the grape juice-vanilla ice cream hybrid, they make their disgusted face.
Ah, childhood...
kimonkey7 at 3:45PM on 06/19/09
I grew up in Florida and saw it there. I'd say the flavor it most resembles is bubblegum. I was not a fan.
meglo91 at 3:45PM on 06/19/09
We actually have this at our local Ice Cream store in my town here in Vermont. My nephew was just wanting some the other night... it's amazing how bright the colors are. I know banana is the yellow color, the others,i'm not sure about.
Alm25 at 3:46PM on 06/19/09
Totally not just a Michigan thing - we have it here in SW Pennsylvania, too. If you go to Crooked Creek Market near Crooked Creek Park, you might still be able to get some - and they still have it at the petting zoo in Brookville.
BrieCS at 3:47PM on 06/19/09
I know specifically the Baskin-Robbins near the University of Kentucky Campus carried Superman in the mid to late 80's, because I remember thinking it was way cool as a kid.
Kings Island near Cincy also has a blue flavored ice cream stand over by the kid's area, to the right of the Eiffel Tower as you're looking toward the back of the park. Or at least they did for a long time, I assume it's still there. Holiday World in Santa Claus, Indiana also has blue ice cream but doesn't taste quite the same as the Kings Island variety.
TastyNewEngland at 3:47PM on 06/19/09
I remember eating this ice cream as a kid, and I loved it, too! Although apparently it is a mid-west thing, I have only had it in Maryland, where I live. There used to be an ice cream parlor next to my karate class, and some times I would go there for a treat. I always got Superman when they had it. I don't quite remember the flavor, though, but if I see it again, I will definitely buy some.
jo_wang at 4:04PM on 06/19/09
I LOVED Superman ice cream! Had it all the time in Cleveland, OH. I had totally forgotten it until now. Shoot, now I really want some...
yumSoup at 4:26PM on 06/19/09
i am from michigan and in high school my friends would always get superman shakes..... ..part of the fun was seeing what disgusting shade of greenish-brown it would turn out!!!
stella343 at 4:34PM on 06/19/09
I'm from Southern Illinois and I remember Superman ice cream from when I was a kid. I loved that flavor. Haven't seen it in years.
calvinhobbes35 at 4:47PM on 06/19/09
I'm from Southern California (Orange County, though coincidentally, I was born in Michigan) and in the '90s we had Superman ice cream there!
miette at 5:01PM on 06/19/09
Blue Moon was always better than Superman (because the blue was the best part!) If anyone knows where in Chicago Blue Moon can be found, I'd be grateful.
Chances are good the reason FL people had it was because... lots of midwest folks vacation in Florida, or live there in the winter. Why else would there be a Skyline chili in Naples?
anysuchname at 6:12PM on 06/19/09
Am I the only person who thinks blue moon is the most disgusting flavor ever? I never thought I could dislike ice cream until I tried it.
Embackus at 6:19PM on 06/19/09
Alm25- what ice cream store in Vermont has superman ice cream? I'm from Michigan but I live in Vermont now & I'd love to introduce my boyfriend to it.
kdroste at 7:34PM on 06/19/09
definitely not a michigan thing. always had it in canada.
lexophile at 7:43PM on 06/19/09
When i was a kid, blue moon was my favorite flavor. in Michigan, the
Baskin-Robbins carried it (in Rochester or Lake Orion, i forget which), and it was DEFINITELY pineapple flavor, i remember the little bits of yellow pineapple mixed into the blue ice cream.
edgertor at 7:46PM on 06/19/09
i grew up and still live in Michigan, and i have fond memories of getting Superman icecream at the local family ice cream place by my house (hop on bike, bike to ice cream place, spend all hard earned babysitting money on ice cream, bike home). all the ice cream places in southern MI have superman icecream, and it's the best! i remember the blue-moony flavor to it, but i have no idea what the other colros were.
edgertor - you got chunks of pineapple? is that baskin robbins still there? i will get some Superman when i'm over in that neck of the woods again!
redhead at 8:24PM on 06/19/09
We got in in KY! I loved it!!
UptownGirl at 10:26PM on 06/19/09
In Canada it's usually sold by Laura Secord as Superkid, though as far as I remember, the colors of Superkid are a LOT more vibrant than those in the picture.
lovepunch at 12:45AM on 06/20/09
I grew up on the Jersey shore-- 2 hours from New York City, you can find Superman Ice cream at Sundae Times in Spring Lake.
bachi1588 at 12:47AM on 06/20/09
kdroste... It's at Scoops in Ludlow.
Alm25 at 1:22AM on 06/20/09
We had something like this when I was a kid called "Mickey Mouse", which had chocolate ice-cream ears and eyes, a vanilla "rest-of-the-face", and a "chocolate" gumball for a nose. I can't say that the "chocolate" tasted like chocolate, or the "vanilla" tasted vanilla.
chefimpostor at 1:57AM on 06/20/09
As a native Michigander I had no idea that this was a Michigan thing! I love Blue Moon and I wish I could find it over here in Australia. I wonder if my mom could ship it over...
meganrenee at 5:26AM on 06/20/09
As a child growing up in Michigan, if I didn't order chocolate, it was ALWAYS either Blue Moon or Purple Cow. Meijer stores (back in the day it was called Meijer Thrifty Acres) used to have HUGE ice cream counters near the entrance, and I always shopped happily with blue or purple lips/clothing. It would be hard to name a flavor for either color. It was simply sweet and cold and creamy and, above all, PRETTY.
latteaday at 11:41AM on 06/20/09
Hey, just thought I'd drop in to say that Superman Ice cream is well represented down here in Georgia--at least at a few establishments here in Savannah. My little brother loves the stuff.
GumdropMenace at 11:49AM on 06/20/09
I am from Alpena Michigan and now live in southern Nevada. I tell everyone about superman ice cream and they all think Im nuts! I can't believe it is so hard to find out here. I haven't had any luck so far...
mesquite at 2:03PM on 06/20/09
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Sigilum at 5:23PM on 06/20/09
Being from the East Coast, I have never heard of Superman Ice Cream but it sounds tempting. Does anyone know if they make Superman Ice Cream Cake? I think that may be a good combination.
Blog Pizza at 6:05PM on 06/20/09
Columbus, OH had the Superman stuff, too. My little brother loved it. It tasted like a berry-flavored bubble gum and was so injected with food coloring, I'm sure it would turn any body part it came in contact with blue for the rest of the day. My Mom was a saint for allowing my brother to get it.
JustNancy at 12:46PM on 06/21/09
@ kimonkey- Im pretty sure they have purple cows still. I have not eaten there, but in the Meijers near my house there is a little ice cream shop called Purple Cow.
I feel sorry for the people who have never had the luxury of eating superman.
lloydchristmas at 1:37PM on 06/21/09
I didn't realize that Superman icecream was just a Michigan thing. I grew up in metro Detroit and I just asked my husband (a native Pennsylvanian) if he had ever heard of it. A resounding "no" (along with a "that sounds really gross!) He sure missed out!
kls2003 at 8:58PM on 06/21/09
mmmmmmmmmm superman ice-cream .... so good.... my mom would cringe when ever I ordered it because she knew she would have to deal with blue stained clothes and blue stained children.....
Boy I just got a craving for some after reading this..... time to go in search of some.....
drewjsph02 at 2:35PM on 06/22/09
Growing up in Michigan, I almost always got superman ice cream when I had ice cream as a kid. There is something about the flavor and the visual appeal.
My tastes may have gravitated more towards chocolate in general now, however whenever I visit Michigan I always get a scoop of superman with a scoop of brownie nut fudge. I call it "The Tammy", named after a friend who was the first to try this daring (yet delicious!) combination.
windattack at 5:31PM on 06/22/09
At summer camp in NY state (dutchess county) we had something that sounds pretty similar, but called it "CRAZY VANILLA". 20 years later, and an ocean away, I dream about it..
Picklejuice at 6:19PM on 06/22/09
You can get Superman Ice Cream at Kilwins in Asheville, NC as well as Gatlinburg, TN. It is awesome. MY neice picked it out for herself - she is 4. When I saw it I knew I had to try it - I am 36. It was fantastic! This is my new favorite.
tsalisarch at 7:20PM on 07/07/09
I'm from southern california and they used to sell it everywhere in the 1990s but I recently tried to find it but no one has it and there also used to be a loony tunes brand knock off of the superman icecream but I still can't find either
raytop at 5:14PM on 07/31/09
All of my friends in NC think I am absolutely CRAZY! There is a sweet shop in Boone/Blowing Rock (the mountains) that sells it and no matter what I have to have it when I visit there! I walked down the street when it was snowing with a waffle cone filled with it! I haven't lived in MI in years and nobody anywhere else I have been seems to know about it. My friends in NC also think it is disgusting- but they didn't like Faygo Redpop either so what do yhry know? Ha, they just don't have the refined taste buds that those of us who were born/lived in MI have :)
jml102 at 8:14PM on 08/07/09
I love Superman Ice Cream and my boyfriend from New York thought it sounded disgusting. He went for a walk one time while in Michigan and stopped at Strohl's for an ice cream and decided to give Super Rainbow (named changed because of copyrights) a try and loved it. BTW Strohl's flavors are SUPER RAINBOW—Blue moon, red pop, and lemon ice creams swirled together. A gallon that I bought stated Blue moon, Banana, and Raspberry. So I think it depends on where you buy it and they do taste slightly different. Though I think the Blue moon is the key flavor and over powers the others a little, so the difference is not that noticable. I will post any other flavors I see posted on the ice creams. And for those who never had it you do not realize what you are missing.
pupcake at 5:38PM on 08/19/09
I spotted this flavor offering at an ice cream store in Annapolis, MD. SUPERtasty, though that was the first time.
tacorific at 11:40AM on 08/20/09