Homemade Pop Tarts
I’m at a loss for words, I think she’s a genius.
**This post originally appeared on YinMomYangMom.com.**
Hopefully I can atone for the food coloring sins of my recent post by sharing how I spent this Sunday morning with my boys…
Is it just my kids or do those Pop-Tarts commercials possess some kind of magical, hypnotic qualities?
“Mommy, you haven’t bought us Pop-Tarts in a while…”
Uh, ya, I was kinda hoping you were over that partially-hydrogenated trans-fat artificial crap that I only bought you that one time to keep you quiet when I had to bring you grocery shopping with me.
“I want some!”
It’s a lazy Sunday morning, why not just make our own, k?
Homemade Pop Tarts
(and be sure to scroll down for our spanking new feature, a printable recipe card!)
For the Pastry:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup 100% whole wheat flour
6 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 1/2 sticks cold, unsalted butter
ice water as needed
For the Egg Wash:
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk
For the Filling:
jam, curd, marmalade, or nut butter of your choice
For the Glaze:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
3 teaspoons water
“Can I help?”
Put the flours, sugar, and salt into the bowl of your food processor…
…and pulse to combine.
Cut the cold butter into chunks…
“Butter!”
We love butter…
…a lot!
Put the butter in the food processor and pulse until the pieces of butter are pea-sized.
Get a bowl of ice water ready. Pulse the pie dough while trickling ice water in, a tablespoon at a time. Stop processing when it’s the consistency of damp sand and there are still lots of big chunks of butter.
When you squeeze it in your hand it will hold its shape.
Tumble the mixture into two equal piles onto some cling wrap. Oh, did I mention we’re making a double batch? Bonus! You are going to have a nice disc of pie dough waiting in your fridge for a rainy day.
Smoosh the wet sand into a disc shape…
…wrap it up and put it in your fridge for an hour or longer to rest.
nighty-night, pie dough!
While the dough takes its nap, you can go play with your toys…
…or pick out a dvd…
…chill out with your ba-ba…
…or play a game.
After an hour, and once the kiddies are good and distracted, flour your worksurface…
…get out a disc of dough…
…and sprinkle it with flour too. (You may notice that the fridge-nap changed the mixture from damp sand to actual dough. Naps are so important…)
Roll it out with a rolling pin…
…to a thickness of about 1/8″.
Keep it well dusted with flour as you go along.
Once you have it nice and even, use a pizza cutter to divide it into strips…
…and then rectangles.
Stack your little rectangles with a layer of parchment between them and refrigerate.
Now, combine the powdered sugar…
…with the water to make a nice shiny glaze.
Also, crack an egg into a bowl and add a dribble of milk.
Whisk together to make an egg wash.
Get your dough rectangles out of the fridge and place one on a lined baking sheet. Brush a little egg wash around the perimeter.
Spoon about a tablespoon of filling into the center. I’m making a variety pack of Pop-Tarts with seedless raspberry jam, lemon curd, and Nutella.
Lay a little dough-rectangle blanket on top, making sure not to trap any air in there. Crimp the edge with a fork.
By now those rugrats of yours have probably lost focus on whatever was distracting them and they’re onto you. This is actually the perfect time for them to rejoin you in the kitchen.
Give ’em the pastry brush and let ’em go to town egg washing the pastries.
Bake them in a preheated 375 degree oven for 20 minutes or until golden and puffy.
Let them cool on the baking sheet for about 15 minutes, glaze and sprinkle with colored sugar, just so you can tell what’s what flavor-wise.
Partially-hydrogenated trans-fat artificial crap? I think he’s pretty well over it.
