Homemade Pop-Tarts
April 29, 2011 | Print | E-mail | Filed under pastry
Ever since I made the happy discovery that I can eat nutella, a whole new world has opened up to me. From nutella on a lightly toasted bagel, to nutella cookies, to my latest obsession, these homemade Pop-Tarts. I grew up eating Pop-Tarts; as a kid, they were the perfect portable breakfast or snack. Even though I haven’t had a Pop-Tart in years, it wasn’t until recently that I actually stopped to read the ingredients list on one of the packages. Right then and there, I decided that I needed to give my beloved childhood pastry a remake. Fortunately, I found a recipe for toaster tarts on the King Arthur Flour website. All that was left to do was to let my imagination run wild with filling ideas, both sweet and savory – although the nutella ones won out as my favorites. My baking buddy Becky suggested that next time I should try a s’mores filling, and I’m thinking that that definitely needs to happen. Make these this weekend for breakfast and experiment with favorite fillings of your own!
Recipe adapted from here.
- 2 cups flour
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into 1″ pieces
- 1 egg
- 2 Tbsp milk
- 1 egg + 1/2 Tbsp water (to brush on pastry)
Fillings (use about a tablepoon of each):
- Nutella
- Nutella with white chocolate chips
- Strawberry jam
- SunButter and jam
- Minced apple with shredded white cheddar cheese
- Minced apple with a sprinkling of brown sugar
To make the dough, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
Using a pastry blender, work the pieces of butter into the flour mixture.
In a small bowl, whisk together the milk and egg. Stir the egg mixture into the dough, and knead lightly to incorporate. Divide the dough in half, and then roll out each half on a lightly floured surface to about 1/8″ thickness. If you don’t want to make the pastries immediately, you can wrap each half of the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Cut the dough into rectangles about 3×4.”
Beat the additional egg with the water and brush it over the surfaces of the bottom pieces of dough. Place a tablespoon of the desired filling on the center of each piece of dough, and then place another piece of dough on top.
Use a fork to seal the edges.
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Prick the top of each pastry multiple times with a fork. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool on a wire rack.
April 29th, 2011 at 10:12 am
Oh, yeah! I *just* bought a pop-tart “mold” a few weeks ago and have big plans for it! I LOVE all of your varieties, Tracy! They are gorgeous!
April 29th, 2011 at 10:15 am
I love the different fillings!
April 29th, 2011 at 10:16 am
I need a s’mores pop tart!
April 29th, 2011 at 10:23 am
The s’mores ones were always my favorite. I’d love to know if you recreate those!
April 29th, 2011 at 10:27 am
Loving this! So many fun flavor combinations to play with!!
April 29th, 2011 at 10:28 am
Yum! I love all the filling choices!
April 29th, 2011 at 10:33 am
These look excellent! Love the different fillings
April 29th, 2011 at 11:04 am
Oh my goodness do these look soooo good. I love all of the different fillings!
April 29th, 2011 at 11:12 am
Mmmm, I’d love to try the apple with cheddar. These would be perfect to bring on a picnic!
April 29th, 2011 at 11:17 am
These are awesome! I really want to make my own pop tarts now. Love the nutella ones.
April 29th, 2011 at 11:36 am
They look amazing!! I think the apple would be my favorite one
April 29th, 2011 at 12:00 pm
Awesome! I always like store-bought pop-tarts for about the first 3 bites, and then they get too sweet and overwhelming, so I think I would really like yours. I’m imagining nutella with minced strawberries stirred in, apples and brown sugar, bananas soaked in rum for an adult version . . . mmmm.
April 29th, 2011 at 2:11 pm
OMG so fun! And awesome you can eat nutella! I love that stuff way too much
April 29th, 2011 at 2:56 pm
Oh my goodness a nutella AND smore filling mixed would be divine!
April 29th, 2011 at 3:23 pm
i cannot WAIT to try to make these!!
April 29th, 2011 at 4:53 pm
Oh my, these look so tasty! Which one ended up being your favorite??
April 29th, 2011 at 6:40 pm
I have been meaning to make the recipe from Flour Bakery (Boston) by Joanne Chang. I know they taste AMAZING, but it will be interesting to see if I can reproduce the same greatness.
April 30th, 2011 at 3:04 am
Becky is a smart woman, a s’mores filling is a great idea! I love all these ideas for fillings, especially the apple and cheese one, I would never have thought that.
April 30th, 2011 at 3:48 pm
I want to try these, maybe s’mores!
April 30th, 2011 at 4:12 pm
I have been watching your site for a while now, and I love it!
Made these this morning with my husband and the kids… so much fun and oh my… so good!
Thanks so much for posting!
April 30th, 2011 at 11:01 pm
I may give these a try… but I think I would love blueberry ones!!
April 30th, 2011 at 11:02 pm
Wow, this looks easier then I thought it would be. I am going to have to make some this week. Do you think they would be good stuffed with savories like shredded meat? From looking at the recipe, it doesnt look like the dough should be too sweet.
May 1st, 2011 at 12:47 am
These look wonderful. I can’t wait to try that flaky crust with all of the filling combos!
May 1st, 2011 at 10:08 am
Your pop tarts look absolutely adorable! I made some a while ago and loved them
May 1st, 2011 at 12:55 pm
wow love these!
May 1st, 2011 at 4:01 pm
Yes, I will take one of each please!!
Thank you
May 1st, 2011 at 7:45 pm
I could eat these morning, noon and night!
May 1st, 2011 at 9:42 pm
Oh, wow! These look incredible…for breakfast or dessert!
May 2nd, 2011 at 8:48 am
These look so delicious! We love making homemade breakfast tarts, too.
May 2nd, 2011 at 10:35 am
Yummy! I love the idea of the PB&J (or SB&J) tart. Of course, Nutella has my heart.
May 3rd, 2011 at 6:43 am
What an awesome idea!! Thanks for sharing
May 4th, 2011 at 10:52 am
What a fun treat, Tracy! The Nutella ones are calling my name.
May 4th, 2011 at 3:03 pm
I still love Pop Tarts, but I’m loving these even better!
May 4th, 2011 at 8:23 pm
Yum! Homemade Pop Tarts are the best
Yours look just divine!
May 23rd, 2011 at 8:57 pm
Oh wow… suddenly cursing the fact that I;m stuck having breakfast at work for the next 3 mornings in a row… can’t wait to make these on Saturday morning!! The Nutella and white choc chips ones look AMAZING!!!
August 14th, 2011 at 11:01 am
How many poptarts does this recipe yield and have you ever tried freezing them?
August 15th, 2011 at 11:11 am
The Food Allergy Mom – The recipe makes about 9 Pop-Tarts. I haven’t tried freezing them, but I don’t see why you couldn’t!