Cool off with DavePops

1. Cool off with DavePops

Parked near the water fountain at Cesar Chavez Plaza at the farmers market on a hot Wednesday afternoon sits a humble beacon of cool treats: a white food cart festooned with an army of colorful ice lollies. A bespectacled, longhaired and mustachioed middle-aged man enthusiastically describes the cart’s contents to a first-time customer. “This is new this year, Snack on a Stick. It’s more substantial. … This one tastes just like an apple pie,” he says.

The man is Dave Feldpausch, creator of DavePops. It is a rarity to find someone with such a passion for a seemingly simple ice pop. But his are not the standard frozen fruit juice on a stick. Instead, they are velvety and rich, like ice cream, though they are not made with dairy.

In the late ’80s, Feldpausch began searching for a method to turn any food into the smooth consistency of a blended frozen banana. Years of experiments and ice-cream-making classes at UC Davis culminated in his invention of the Dublé process (patent pending), which resulted in DavePops.

Feldpausch now spends four days a week in a Stockton facility making the dreamy little treats in a bevy of flavors: strawberry, mango mandarin orange, coconut flake, root beer, piña colada, mocha and mint chip to name a few. All of the pops are dairy free—except those containing chocolate chips. He even has a sugar-free version called LukePops.

Most will only set you back 100 calories for a $3 pop. “They’re not empty calories, because the whole fruit is there,” Feldpausch says.

You can pick up a luscious pop from the DavePops cart at its regular appearances at the farmers markets in Cesar Chavez Plaza on Wednesdays and McClatchy Park in Oak Park on Saturdays, and at the Carmichael Concerts in the Park (see http://carmichaelpark.com for dates). Feldpausch will also wheel the treats to private events—perfect for a summer family reunion, company picnic or even a wedding.

http://davepops.com.

S.