Beyond Astronaut Ice Cream

World-renowned chef Alain Ducasse is taking his stellar cuisine to the starry heavens. In October, the Russian cargo ship Progress left Kazakhstan's Baikonur cosmo-drome, bound for the International Space Station with 13 Ducasse-created gourmet plates on board.

Any kid who was ever tricked into thinking that astronaut ice cream from the Air and Space museum was a treat should be relieved to hear that the culinary options in orbit are looking up. The new dishes are "sealed in aluminum alloy and manganese boxes" and Ducasse plans to release two new dishes every year. Here's what on the menu this time:

Roasted quail in a Madiran wine sauce, smooth celeriac puree with nutmeg, and semolina cake with dried apricots.

For more on the future comforts of space travel, check out "Space Travel for Fun and Profit" in the January issue.