Kelly Fudge Pop

"Ellsworth Kelly's enormous sculpture, Stele 1, was the anchor in the Rooftop Garden when we opened our café in 2009. A 1-inch-thick oblong steel plate weighing seven tons and rising eighteen feet into the air perched on one narrow end, the sculpture seemed to defy gravity. The deep rust-colored patina of the Corten steel was an incredible contrast against gray volcanic stone walls of the Rooftop Garden and the stunning art deco Pacific Bell building that towers over the east side of the museum. Of course, I thought the piece looked like an enormous slab of chocolate. Trying to figure out a dessert based on the sculpture, I played with various truffle recipes and cakes baked in oblong pans, but nothing was giving me the rich matte color and texture of the weathered steel. One day I was chatting with the museum's brilliant and witty social media guru, Ian Padgham, about Stele 1, and I asked him what the sculpture reminded him of. "A Fudgsicle, of course!" he said. And, so it was. I found some silicone ice-pop molds in the shape of the sculpture and developed a creamy, rich chocolatey base with a touch of natural cocoa powder to give the frozen fudge pops the reddish matte finish of Corten steel...."