Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Homemade "Pop-Tarts"


So, I just discovered Pinterest.  I realize I am probably the last person on Earth to have figured out this social pin board site, and like everyone else, I love it.  There are tons of great decorating, recipe, and design ideas on there, and I can waste a good amount of time browsing them.  (You know -- the free time I have when I have finished reading everyone's Facebook updates.)

Anyway, one of the ideas that I came across was "homemade Pop-Tarts."  This amuses me to no end.  Now, I consider Pop-Tarts to be one of the major food groups (along with macaroni and cheese, Oreos, and Pepsi), but I know perfectly well that a Pop-Tart is just a pre-fab substitute for an actual breakfast pastry.  However, we are so conditioned (even those of us who have had to mostly swear off Pop-Tarts in our effort to avoid HFCS) by marketing that we barely take notice of "homemade breakfast pastry."  "Homemade Pop-Tart," on the other hand, gets our attention.

I looked at a few recipes online, and the commonality was the use of pie crust to wrap a filling of choice, usually jam.  I tried to make brown sugar cinnamon flavor.  Mine did not turn out picture-perfect, as you can see, which caused me some pause about whether I wanted to share these on the blog.  However, they were seriously yummy, and you can decide for yourself whether your result needs to be photogenic before attempting the project.

Homemade Breakfast Pastries
1 Pie Crust
1 stick organic butter, softened
1/4 cup brown sugar
sprinkle of cinnamon and nutmeg

Roll out your pie crust (Mr. FC&G made one of his sweetened versions for this) and cut into long rectangles.  Place these on a cookie sheet.

Cream together the butter, brown sugar, and spices, and place about a tablespoon of the mixture on the dough rectangle about a third of the way from an end and spread, leaving about two-thirds of the length without filling.  Fold the rectangle over and crimp the edges.  (This is where mine failed, so I got a fair amount of seepage.)  You can substitute homemade fruit jam in this step if you want fruit flavor.  I imagine you could also use fresh fruit cut into small pieces or fruit you froze over the summer and thawed for this project.

Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees or until pie crust is baked.  You can dress them with a simple drizzle icing, but the brown sugar cinnamon version really didn't need it.

The Analysis

Fast:  Certainly not faster than opening a cardboard box, which is really part of the reason that Pop-Tarts have crept into our lives.  This is a good weekend project.

Cheap:  Pop-Tarts are pretty cheap, so I don't know if these come in less expensive.  But they certainly aren't expensive overall to make.

Good:  Here's the benefit!  These are flaky and buttery and really good either warm from the oven or cold from the countertop (if you manage to have leftovers to store).  More important, you control the ingredients, so you won't be adding HFCS, and you can use organic butter and other natural ingredients.
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6 comments :

  1. Have you ever visited the Heavenly Homemakers site? I think you may like it. There are scads of junk-fook knockoff recipes, including pop tarts, that are made more nutritious. check it out sometime.

    http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/

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  2. That should be "junk FOOD knockoff recipes." Serves me right for typing while drugged :)

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  3. I must be living under a rock. I have never heard of Pinterest or Pop-Tarts!!

    Not sure whether I have time to check out the website *sneaks off to take a quick peek*

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    1. And here we learn why Fairy can stick to her diet and has plenty of time to get her work done! [grin]

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  4. Mmmmm. I can see this working well for my family as a savory treat, like a Cornish pasty or a vegetarian version. Easy to make a batch ahead, easy to schlepp to work or school. Love the idea! And those look de-lish.

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  5. Fairy from Organised CastleJanuary 29, 2012 at 7:39 AM

    Thanks, Jennifer. I did take a look but decided I don't think Pinterest is for me. As for my diet, I do try my best but my downfall is lack of exercise.

    If you want to check out what I spend my time on please take a peek at my blog. http://organisedcastle.wordpress.com/ Somehow I fit it all in around a full-time job and lots of commuting.

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