Homemade, strawberry chia jam filled pastries slathered with lemon glaze — the best way to start the day!
If you liked pop tarts growing up, then you’ll LOVE these homemade ones. I’m guilty of pretty much living off of store-bought poptarts when I was younger. It was a perfect grab and go breakfast. But when my family became stricter about consuming non-vegetarian ingredients such as gelatin, we gave them up altogether. There are, however, three flavors of Kellogg’s Poptarts that happen to be vegan friendly: Unfrosted Brown Sugar Cinnamon, Unfrosted Blueberry, and Unfrosted Strawberry. But artificial colors and “natural flavors” are always a gray area for some people.
That’s why I set out to making poptarts at home! Of course these are definitely not the healthiest breakfast option, but doesn’t it just feel better to eat and serve something homemade even if it’s sweet??
The recipe consists of three components: a basic pastry dough, strawberry chia jam, and lemon glaze. I know it may seem intimidating to make your own poptarts, so I’ve included step by step pictures and detailed instructions to guide you through it. And if you’re stuck or have any questions, just comment below or leave me a message!
HOW TO MAKE STRAWBERRY LEMONADE POPTARTS:
- Cook the strawberries in a saucepan over medium heat until soft and tender. Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice, maple syrup, and chia seeds. Mash the jam with a fork until your desired consistency.
- This step is optional. But if you’re like me and prefer a completely smooth filling, you can blend the chia jam in a blender until smooth. If needed, add 1-2 tablespoons of water to make it easier to blend. I also stirred in some lemon zest for extra flavor! And I kid you not, this made it smell EXACTLY like strawberry lemonade!
- Now let’s get to the dough! Whisk together the flour and sugar in a large mixing bowl. If you will be using unsalted butter, whisk in 1/2 teaspoon salt as well.
- Add in the chilled, cubed vegan butter. I use Country Crock Plant Butter sticks. I keep the sticks in the freezer and move them to the refrigerator a few hours before making the dough.
- Cut the butter into the flour mixture using a pastry cutter or two butter knives until the mixture becomes crumbly, and you’re left with pea sized bits.
- *Not pictured: Stir in ICE water, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough JUST comes together to form a ball. This could take between 4-6 tablespoons of ice water, typically 5 for me. Then, gently form dough into a large disc, and divide in half. Wrap each half separately in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
It’s important to use cold butter and ice water because you want to keep the pastry dough as cold as possible. This prevents the butter, which acts as the fat, from melting. If the butter melts before baking, the pastry will turn out hard versus nice and flaky. (source)
7. Once chilled, remove one half of dough from fridge and let sit for 10 minutes at room temperature. This makes it easier to roll the dough out and prevents cracking. On a clean and floured surface, roll the dough into a large rectangle starting from the center.
8. Trim edges to create a clean a rectangle. Scrap pieces of dough can be re-rolled as needed at the end.
9. Cut the clean rectangle into evenly sized smaller rectangles, about 3×4 inches each. This doesn’t have to be perfect, so you can just wing it! Prick centers of half the small rectangles with a fork.
10. Place 1-2 tablespoon of the chia jam in the center of the remaining rectangles. Avoid overfilling!
11. Placed the pricked rectangles over the jam.
12. Use your fingers and a wet fork to crimp and seal the edges. Place poptarts on a parchment lined baking sheet, and place in the fridge while you repeat the process with the second half of the dough. Once all poptarts are prepared, bake at 375F for 25-30 minutes.
13. Meanwhile, whisk together all the ingredients for the lemon glaze: powdered sugar, nondairy milk, vanilla extract, and lemon zest.
14. Spread the glaze over the poptarts once they’re out of the oven.
Did you make this recipe?
If you make this recipe, I would love to see and share your recreations! Tag me on Instagram @plantedpriyanka or tell me in the comments section below! If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask! Happy eating!
Love,
Priyanka
Strawberry Lemonade Poptarts
Ingredients
Strawberry Chia Jam
- 1 1/2 cup strawberries, sliced
- 1 1/2 tbsp chia seeds
- 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1-2 tbsp pure maple syrup, or any sweetener of choice
Dough:
- 2 cup All Purpose Flour, plus more for dusting
- 2 tbsp sugar, I use cane sugar
- 2/3 cup salted vegan butter, chilled & cubed. See note.
- 4-6 tbsp ice water
Lemon Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp nondairy milk or water
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- zest of one large lemon
Instructions
Strawberry Chia Jam:
- In a small saucepan, add the strawberries and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes or until soft and tender.
- Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice, maple syrup, and chia seeds. Mash the jam with a fork until your desired consistency. Taste and adjust the lemon and maple syrup depending on the sweetness and tartness of the strawberries. Don’t sweeten the jam too much because the pop tart glaze will be very sweet! Set aside to thicken.
- Optional: If you like a completely smooth jam, add the chia jam to a blender and puree until nice and smooth, adding a couple tbsp of water if needed. If desired, grate in some lemon zest after blending the chia jam.
Dough:
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour and sugar.
- Add in the chilled, cubed vegan butter. Cut the butter into flour using a pastry cutter or two butter knives until mixture becomes crumbly and resembles a coarse meal.
- Stir in the ice water, one tbsp at a time, until the dough just comes together to form a ball. I usually add about 5 tbsp of ice water. Then, gently form dough into a large disc, divide in half, and wrap each half separately in plastic wrap. Refrigerate dough for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.
- Preheat oven to 375F. Once chilled, remove one half of dough from fridge and let sit for 10 minutes at room temperature. On a clean and floured surface, roll the dough into a large rectangle, about 1/8th inch thick. Trim edges to create a clean rectangle. You can re-roll any scrap pieces of dough as needed at the end.
- Cut the clean rectangle into evenly sized smaller rectangles, about 3x4 inches each.
- Use a fork to prick the centers of half the small rectangles. These will be your tops.
- Place 1-2 tbsp of the chia jam in the center of the remaining rectangles. Place the pricked rectangles over the jam, and use a wet fork to crimp and seal the edges.
- Place poptarts on a parchment lined baking sheet, and place in fridge while you repeat the process with the second half of the dough. If desired, brush or spray the tops of the poptarts with oil or nondairy milk to get golden brown colored poptarts. Once all poptarts are prepared, bake at 375F for 25-30 minutes.
Lemon Glaze:
- Whisk together powdered sugar, nondairy milk, vanilla, and lemon zest until nice and smooth. Spread the glaze over the poptarts. Enjoy!
- Optional: If there is extra strawberry chia jam and lemon glaze left at the end, you can combine both and drizzle it over the poptarts to add a pop of color!
Notes
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