It's Foodie Friday #2 and I'm PUMPED! Last week, I shared the recipe for the best guac ever, and I can't wait for you to try this week's recipe!! Who used to live for the mornings where you got to eat Pop-Tarts for breakfast?! ME! I loved cereal for breakfast and on special occasions (lol), pop-tarts! I loved the brown sugar flavor and any of the fruit varieties. These days, I stay away from processed sugary foods (usually!) BUT bless the Lord because I have found a homemade pop-tart pastry recipe that is LEGIT! 

I made these pop-tarts two weekends in a row! My boyfriend is a pastry-lover, and these are easy enough to whip up and we both love them! I think they taste better than the originals! I combined a few recipes when I first made these, but now after making them twice I can share my official recipe with YOU! First things first, I have to share the crust. IT'S STORE-BOUGHT. and still delicious. ain't nobody got time to make homemade pie crust. refrigerated pie crust is a life-saver. let's move on.

Sorry not sorry for all of these amazing photos! Foodie Friday started because my friend and talented photographer, Kaylynn Krieg, and I were bored with Instagram and wanted to do something fun and create content around it...Foodie Friday was born! I wanted to include as many photos as possible to show the step-by-step directions to make these pop-tarts. I promise they're easy! I explain this in the instructions below, but my easy-breezy shortcut is to leave the dough in strips, as opposed to cutting the strips in half to make the top and bottom squares of the pop-tart. I just fold the dough over the top when I'm ready to seal the pop-tart! 

You probably already have everything you need on-hand to make these. Get this: the filling is just jelly! Use fruit preserves or jam or whatever you have in your fridge! The key to making these "picture perfect" is to not over-fill them with jelly (I overfilled them both times, but I'm not mad about it because I like filling!). You need a perimeter of crust to be able to seal the pop-tarts so the jelly doesn't leak everywhere!

Making the ridges around the edges with a fork was my favorite part! I used a toothpick to poke a few holes in the center so they didn't explode in the oven.

You can make your own icing like I did or you can top with a sprinkle of sugar or eat them plain! They're still delicious without the icing, so you really can't go wrong.

Look at that golden brown flaky goodness that came out of the oven! You can see that some of my jelly leaked out onto my pan in the oven. Again, not worried about it. If you ARE worried about it, you can add a teaspoon of cornstarch to your filling to thicken it a bit and prevent leaking. Be sure to let the pastries cool before attempting to add the icing. Or else you're in for a runny mess.

I went the traditional route and opted to frost the center rectangle of my pop-tarts, then top with sprinkles! I think they are just the cutest freaking things! If you're looking for a fun activity to do, bake these! If you're looking for an easy weekend brunch addition, bake these! You won't be disappointed! 

INGREDIENTS

• refrigerated pie crust (box of 2 crusts) makes six pop-tarts
• jelly or jam (1/2 cup-ish for filling, 1 tablespoon for icing)
• 1 egg for egg wash
• 1 cup powdered sugar (for icing)
• sprinkles (optional, for icing)
• 1/3 cup milk or cream (for icing)

SUPPLIES

• rolling pin
• pastry brush
• cooling rack (huge help!)
• cute dish towel (just for funsies)

DIRECTIONS

1. Pre-heat your oven to 400°F.
2. Flour your work surface and roll out your dough. The dough comes in a circle and we need a square! Cut about 1 inch off of the edges to make the dough into a square. Cut your pop-tart dough into strips: you should get 3 even dough strips (about 3-4 inches wide each) from one of the pie crusts. Some people cut the strip in half to make the top and bottom squares of the pop-tart, but I prefer to leave it in one long strip and just fold over the top, which is why my dough is hanging over the edges of the pan until I fold it over to seal the pop-tart. Free to measure to get even strips and identical pop-tarts. I don't measure. Place your dough onto your baking sheet with half of the strip hanging over the edge as shown in photo.
3. Next, add your filling to the dough! One generous spoonful per pop-tart should be plenty. Remember to leave a perimeter of about 1/2 inch without filling so that you can seal your pop-tart without the filling leaking!
4. After adding your filling, use your pastry brush to brush the perimeter around the filling with your egg wash. The egg will act as glue to seal the top and bottom dough together.
5. Fold over the top dough to meet the bottom and press together with your fingers to seal the dough. Use a fork to add ridges around the perimeter of the pop-tart.
6. Brush your egg wash on the top and edges of the pop-tart to achieve that glossy golden brown pastry look! (optional, but I like it!) Use a toothpick to poke holes in the top of the pop-tart before baking.
7. Bake in oven for 12-15 minutes at 400°F until golden brown. While they bake, it's time to make your icing! 
8. Mix your powdered sugar, jelly, and milk/cream in a bowl until you achieve the desired consistency. You don't want it to be too runny, but it needs to be pourable.
9. Remove pop-tarts from oven and transfer to a cooling rack. Let cool for about 20 minutes, then top with icing and sprinkles! ENJOY!

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