Manitoba's delicious blue licorice ice cream is a scoop of nostalgia

Globe and Mail

a day ago

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Apparently, licorice is a divisive flavour – but to me, it's the best. As a first-generation Dutch-Canadian from Selkirk, Man., I grew up in a household where licorice was always a staple, whether in the form of Allsorts, Twizzlers or salty black candies. But in my opinion, one version reigns supreme: blue licorice ice cream.
Yes, you read that right, blue licorice ice cream. Made from real licorice root, with notes of molasses, vanilla and cream, it's rich, unusual and incredibly refreshing on a hot summer day. But here's the thing: If you haven't heard of it, you're probably not from Manitoba.
This peculiar and beloved flavour is almost impossible to find outside of local ice cream shops in the Prairies, where it quietly thrives as a cult favourite. The flavour has developed a small but loyal following, so much so that there's even a dedicated Facebook group called Gotta love Blue Licorice Ice Cream, whose members document their sightings of the sweet treat across Manitoba.
While blue licorice ice cream might never be a bestselling flavour in big-box stores, for Manitobans, it embodies the essence of our culture, much like wedding socials and honey dill sauce. It evokes nostalgia tied to heritage, migration, fandom and regional identity, whether served in a cup or cone. For those of us who grew up enjoying it, the flavour isn't just sweet; it's home.
Doug Wood is a self-proclaimed blue licorice ice cream superfan. He lives in Texas, but travels back home to Manitoba every single summer, where he 'gains 10 pounds eating it.' He noted that his sisters' freezer in Winnipeg is often filled to the brim with tubs of the eclectic flavour.
'It's the best flavour of ice cream in the world,' he said. 'I first tasted it when I was a teenager, accidentally. I thought I was ordering bubble gum ice cream, but it turned out to be blue licorice. Ever since then, I've been hooked. No other flavour of ice cream comes close.'
Wakefield Foods is the primary supplier of the ice cream and sells it under the brand Legendairy. They supply many small businesses in Manitoba that sell the creamy, cool treat.
The company acquired the recipe from Dairy Chef, which closed in 2021 after years of operation. The flavour was briefly discontinued from 2015 to 2018, but after many e-mails and phone calls from devoted fans, it was reinstated into production – a testament to its ardent supporters and cult following.
Grant Forsyth, farmer and key account manager at Wakefield Foods, was pleasantly surprised by the hullabaloo surrounding the flavour. 'I have been in the ice cream business for over 20 years, and any time you come out with a product, you hope to have this level of fandom.'
The cultural significance of the flavour is well documented, but that can't be said for the flavour's historical origins. University of Winnipeg history professor and food historian Janis Thiessen, co-author of mmm … Manitoba: The Stories Behind the Foods We Eat, isn't certain of the ice cream's provenance, but she believes it probably arrived with the early waves of immigration to the Prairies.
'Regional flavours like blue licorice ice cream likely result from migration patterns and ethnic density,' Dr. Thiessen said. She states that the connection with the flavour can be traced back to many different regions across the world.
Dr. Thiessen believes the flavour's popularity is grounded in something more significant: The way food preserves cultural identity.
'With any aspect of identity, food is one of the last elements to change as people shift identities. When it comes to diasporic identity, languages typically fade first, followed by ways of life, yet connections through food remain strong, partly because it is easier to capitalize on and commercialize food traditions.'
Still, while the flavour's fanbase is loud and proud, it remains small. And according to Sandra Shwetz, owner of the Boardwalk on Clear Lake – an ice cream parlour in western Manitoba – the popularity of blue licorice has declined over the years.
'Out of the 60 flavours we sell, blue licorice is probably in the bottom half of our rankings,' Shwetz said. 'Nevertheless, we get visitors from all over Canada and the U.S. who tell me they've specifically come to visit my ice cream shop just for the flavour. Its popularity is niche but vocal.'