It’s no secret that my older daughter has an interest in pop tarts (since I recently shared on facebook that she’s apparently been “trading” at snack time to get some!) so clearly I had to do something about it. First of all, we took her to the store and let her pick out a box of organic frosted pop tarts. Organic or not…they are still completely junk food with loads of added sugar. I am not the one who is 7-years-old though, and I can understand how “store-bought” and “packaging” may sometimes play an important role at school. So I showed her how much sugar they contain, in order to convey that they are really more of a dessert than a snack, and she decided she’d like to take one as a snack anyway and one as a dessert on another day (they come in packs of 2). I let my younger daughter do the same, and she was beyond thrilled to be an innocent bystander in all of this decision making :).
After all of that was behind us I put the box of remaining pop tarts “away” (up high and not visible in the pantry of course!) and thankfully neither child said much else about it. Hoping their need for “store bought” pop tarts was satisfied I decided we should try making our own as well. I am not the first person to make a homemade knock-off pop tart recipe so just think of these as the super EASY whole-grain version. I honestly can’t believe how easy these are to make and how good they taste…everyone loves them! They are for the “kids” of course, but I find myself rationing out my share as well. I never liked pop tarts as a kid myself because I was a toaster strudel girl, but this recipe somehow unites both of those worlds with one pretty awesome outcome. Just try for yourself, and you’ll see that this recipe does not disappoint.
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cup whole-wheat flour, plus extra for rolling out the dough
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup butter, cold, unsalted (2 sticks)
- ½ cup water, plus ice
- 1 egg, beaten with a splash of water
- 8 tablespoons jam, we prefer either homemade jam or an all-fruit spread that’s sweetened with fruit juice concentrate as opposed to sugar or high-fructose corn syrup
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Put the flour and salt in a food processor with the dough blade and pulse it together briefly.
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Meanwhile fill a glass measuring cup with ½ cup water and add a few ice cubes to it.
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Take the cold butter straight out of the fridge and cut it into ½ inch chunks. Sprinkle the pieces of butter on top of the flour in the food processor. Be careful to spread out the butter as opposed to letting it all clump together in one piece.
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Turn on the food processor and blend until the mixture resembles a crumbly meal. While the food processor is still running add 1/3 cup water through the top. Watch the dough come together and add 2 – 3 more teaspoons of water as needed so a dough ball will form. If some of the dough is in a ball and some is stuck to the sides that is okay…you can fix it with your hands. At this point the dough could be stored in the fridge in plastic wrap for up to 3 days or in the freezer (in a freezer safe container) for up to 6 months.
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Remove the dough from the food processor and put it on a lightly floured counter or large cutting board. With a rolling pin (and another sprinkling of flour) flatten out the dough to one big rectangle or square that’s no more than a quarter inch thick. Trim any uneven ends and use those to patch other edges as necessary.
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Using a knife cut out 14 to 16 rectangles of dough. Actually you could make them any shape or size that you want at this point. Lay half of your dough shapes onto the parchment lined baking sheet. Spoon about a tablespoon of jam down the middle of those bottom dough pieces.
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Top them with matching dough shapes and seal around the edges by pushing down with a fork. Make a few holes in the top with the fork as well. Lastly, brush the tops of the uncooked toaster pastries with the egg wash.
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Bake at 375 degrees F for 18 – 24 minutes or until golden brown. Cool the cooked pastries on a cooling rack (if you have one) then either eat them right away or store them in the fridge for 3 days or the freezer for several months. They can be eaten cold or reheated. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
We recommend organic ingredients when feasible.
Is there a way to make it with brown sugar cinnamon? I have looked around and it sounds like people have done it but I can’t find the recipe.
Thanks so much
Hello. Sorry, we’ve have not tried to make this with brown sugar and cinnamon.
Perfect! I used a bar of Kerrygold butter, and the crust is amazing! I added 1 tbsp of brown sugar to the egg wash to balance the outside vs inside sweetness, and it was a lovely touch. Thank you for this recipe, we enjoyed the tarts very much!
I would say for a brown sugar cinnamon just make like a filling like you would for homemade cinnamon rolls. I know my kids would like fruit filling but the brown sugar cinnamon is my preferred flavor!
I actually have found more variety, here.
https://onceamonthmeals.com/recipes/homemade-poptarts/
We love these! I sometimes spread a little bit of cream cheese in the middle before adding the jam/preserves. Makes it extra decadent. ;)
Do you have a healthier jam recipe?
Hi. Here is one: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/blueberry-jam-honey-sweetened/.
Have you ever tried a healthier frosting version?
Speaking of toaster strudels, have you experimented with those? They are our preferred as well.
Hi there. No, we’ve not experimented with either. Lisa does have frosting recipes but not one for these.
Now I am going away to do my breakfast, after having
my breakfast coming yet again to read further news.