Sourdough Pop Tarts Recipe

Embark on a delightful journey of homemade goodness with these sourdough Pop-Tarts. Encased in a golden, flaky sourdough crust, these handcrafted pastries are generously filled with either brown sugar cinnamon or strawberry jam and topped with your favorite frosting.

Course Dessert, Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword Sourdough Discard

Prep Time 45

Cook Time 20

Fermentation Time 1

Servings Pop Tarts

Calories 2801kcal

Ingredients

Sourdough Pop Tart Crust

250 g All Purpose Flour
5 g Salt (or to taste)
10 g Sugar (optional - see notes)
230 g Unsalted Butter must be COLD
200 g Sourdough Starter or Sourdough Discard
10 g White Vinegar or Apple Cider Vinegar
50 g Iced Water just in case
1 Egg (for egg wash)
20 g Milk (for egg wash)

Brown Sugar Cinnamon Filling

100 g Brown Sugar
5 g Ground Cinnamon (2 tsp)
10 g All Purpose Flour

Cinnamon Frosting

100 g Powdered Sugar
15 g Milk
½ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
5 g Vanilla Extract

Strawberry Filling

125 g Strawberry Jam
6 g Corn Starch

Strawberry Frosting

100 g Powdered Sugar
30 g Strawberry Jam
15 g Milk

Instructions

Sourdough Pop Tart Crust

Add all purpose flour, salt and sugar to a large mixing bowl and stir together until well combined. Set aside for now.
Grate the cold butter into a bowl. If the butter starts to melt or is very soft once grated, place the bowl into the freezer. This will help to firm the butter up and make the next step much easier. I cannot stress enough how important it is for the butter to be COLD.
Place the cold, grated butter into the bowl with the flour, salt and sugar and use a spatula, pastry cutter or simply your finger tips to coat the butter in the flour. You want the butter to stay cold, so try to touch it as little as you can.
Now, add the sourdough starter or discard and vinegar and bring the mixture into a dry, shaggy dough. It's best just to use your hands to squeeze the pastry dough together. It will be a rough, dry dough.
If the dough really isn't coming together at all, add a little iced water until you are able to bring it together.
Tip the rough dough out onto the counter, divide the dough into two pieces and bring each piece into a rough ball. Wrap each ball of pastry dough in parchment paper and squash it down into a disc shape. Wrap each disc in cling wrap and place both discs into the fridge.
If you prefer to just refrigerate as one ball, that's fine too. You can just divide the pastry into two pieces when you want to roll it out.
Leave the dough a minimum of one hour to fully hydrate and become cold. You can leave the dough in the fridge for up to 48 hours before you use it.

Making the Sourdough Pop Tarts

Before you start, mix the ingredients for the fillings together:
Brown Sugar Cinnamon - combine the ingredients together and mix until well combined. It will be a sandy texture when ready.
Strawberry - mix the corn starch and strawberry jam until you can't see the corn starch (the jam will be a little cloudy).
Roll out one disc of pastry until it's around 3mm or ⅛" thick. You want to create 12 rectangles from this dough (I've made my rectangles around 8cm x 12cm (3" x 5") - you can make your bigger or smaller if you prefer).
Once you've cut the 12 rectangles out, lay them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (it's ok to use a few trays, this is especially good if you are making 2 different fillings).
Egg wash each of the rectangles (you want egg wash on the whole rectangle, not just the edges.
Add your filling, ensuring you keep it in the middle. You'll want around a tablespoon of filling for each pop tart. You don't want to overfill them as the filling will leak out.
Now roll out the other disc of dough and cut another 12 rectangles, exactly the same size as the bases. Lay a rectangle of dough onto each base, gently sealing them together with your fingers.
Now use a fork to crimp the edges and seal the pastry edges. Pop a few holes in the top of each pop tart using your fork to ensure the topping doesn't burst out.
Egg wash the top of each pop tart.
Bake the sourdough pop tarts at 200C (390F) for around 20 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown.
When the pop tarts are done, remove from the oven and allow to cool on the tray for around 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

Pop Tart Frosting

While the pop tarts are cooling, mix together the ingredients for the frosting. Whether you're making both types of frosting or just one, all you need to do is combine the ingredients listed until the frosting is smooth.
Once the pop tarts have cooled, spread each one with as much frosting as you like. Leave them for around an hour to allow the frosting to set and enjoy!

Notes

SOURDOUGH POP TART PIE CRUST

BUTTER

The butter MUST BE COLD. Frozen, grated butter is best. If you have time, grate the butter and place it into the freezer 30 minutes before you want to make the dough.

SUGAR

You can leave the sugar out if you prefer but I think you'll get a better colored crust if you leave it in.

FERMENTATION TIME

You don't have to ferment this pie crust. You can use it after it has been in the fridge for just one hour, but you will get a flakier, more flavorsome pie crust if you leave the dough in the fridge for at least 4 hours and up to 48 hours.

SOURDOUGH STARTER OR SOURDOUGH DISCARD

You can use either active, bubbly starter or sourdough discard (unfed) in this recipe. Make sure whatever you use is 100% hydration. You'll get the best results using sourdough starter that has been fed within the last 24 hours, but you can use discard that's up to a week old.

SOURDOUGH POP TART FILLING IDEAS

There's really no limit to the flavors you can create with sourdough pop tarts. I can honestly say that brown cinnamon sugar is my absolute favorite! But these ideas might also take your fancy!

Lemon Curd - Use lemon curd inside your pop tarts and then top with a zesty frosting infused with lemon zest. These are absolutely delicious and make a zesty, fruity homemade sourdough pop tart that you'll love!

Spiced Pumpkin Bliss - Embrace the fall vibes with a spiced pumpkin filling. Add cinnamon, nutmeg, and a hint of cloves to the pumpkin puree for a warm and comforting flavor profile that pairs beautifully with the sourdough crust. Use the cinnamon frosting from the brown sugar cinnamon pop tarts for a delicious fall inspired sourdough pop tart treat.

Nutella Pop Tarts - Fill your homemade sourdough pie crust with nutella and top them with chopped hazelnuts or chocolate frosting.

Apple Pie Pop Tarts - use apple sauce mixed with a little brown sugar and cinnamon to fill your sourdough pop tart crust. Top with cinnamon frosting from the brown sugar cinnamon pop tarts.

Blueberry Pop Tarts - fill the pop tart crusts with blueberry jam mixed with corn starch (prepared in the same way as the strawberry jam filling). Prepare the frosting in the same way as the strawberry frosting, but use blueberry jam instead.

Savory Spinach and Feta Surprise - Challenge the sweet norm by experimenting with a savory filling. Sautéed spinach and crumbled feta make for a sophisticated, palate-pleasing option that transforms the concept of a Pop-Tart into a savory delight.

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