Homemade Strawberry Pop Tarts

Make your own Homemade Strawberry Pop Tarts with buttery, tender pastry and a vibrant strawberry filling, finished with a simple vanilla glaze and sprinkles!

Like most children of the 1990s, I grew up eating pop tarts for breakfast (Strawberry and Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop Tarts were my favorite). I would stick one in the toaster and eat it warm with a glass of milk, and I was good to go for the morning. I have nostalgic memories of them, but upon trying storebought pop tarts as an adult, I realized I could bake something far superior in my own kitchen. There is no comparing this homemade Strawberry Pop Tart recipe to anything you will find in a silver package housed inside a cardboard box.

The star of this pop tart is the buttery, delicate pastry that I developed just for this recipe. It's different than pie crust, which is what a lot of other recipes use for homemade pop tarts (no judgment on that; I just think pop tart dough is different than pie dough). The filling isn't a jam, but instead a homemade strawberry reduction that actually tastes like fresh strawberries. And then finally, it is topped with a perfect layer of vanilla glaze and sprinkled with crunchy sugar. They are such a fun treat to bake up, and they freeze well, so you can have homemade pop-tarts any day of the week!

So, let's get to making it, shall we? The article below is jam packed full of useful information. You can jump around using the menu below, or skip to the end of the article for the full recipe.

Jump to:

• Ingredients Needed
• Preparing the Pop Tart Dough
• Pop-Tart Pastry Tips
• Making the Filling
• How to Assemble Them
• The Bake
• The Finishing Touch
• Freezing and Storing
• Watch the Video
• More Hand Held Desserts
• Full Recipe

Preparing the Pop Tart Dough

The pastry in this recipe is not traditional flaky pie dough. In fact, making a flaky pastry is the opposite of what you would want for a pop tart; otherwise, you’d be making hand pies, right?

The dough is made in a food processor. Instead of leaving large chunks of butter in the dough, the instructions call for running the processor until the dough clumps together around the blade. This ensures the butter is worked into the dough enough, which will prevent the dough from rising too much in the oven.

A touch of sugar is added to the dough, as well as a bit of milk, to make the pastry more flavorful and tender.

Chill the dough before rolling. After removing it from the fridge, let it soften for 5-10 minutes. You'll know it's ready to roll out when it makes an indentation when you gently press your finger into it.

Making the Filling

If I can convince you of one thing, it's that you should make your own strawberry filling for this. Skip the store-bought jam because the homemade version is what sets these pop-tarts apart. It's essentially a slightly reduced strawberry puree that is thickened for the perfect taste and texture.

To make this strawberry filling, simmer strawberries (frozen or fresh) with sugar until the juices release. Then, using either an immersion blender or a regular blender, puree the strawberries. Once smooth, the strawberries are heated again, and a cornstarch slurry is added to thicken the filling. Unlike jam, the moisture is not cooked out of the strawberries, so the cornstarch thickens it to the correct consistency.

It's important to use the best quality strawberries you can find! The juicier and sweeter the strawberry, the better tasting the filling will be.

This strawberry filling recipe yields more than you will need for the pop tarts. You can use the extra strawberry filling in other pastries, breads, ice cream, oatmeal, or even in place of jam on bread. Or, you can use it to make more pop tarts! It also freezes well.

The Bake

The most important step in baking these pop tarts is chilling them beforehand. Chilling the filled pastries ensures that they keep their shape well. Chill the filled pop tarts in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, or ideally 1 hour, before baking.

For best results, these pop tarts should be lightly baked. The aim is to avoid excessive browning on the dough. Bake them in the middle rack until the bottoms and edges are slightly golden, which should take approximately 25 minutes.

The Finishing Touch

Don't forget the frosting on top! It's easy to prepare: powdered sugar, a little milk, and a splash of vanilla extract. The glaze should be thick enough to stay on top of the pop tart. You'll know you have the right consistency when you drizzle the glaze and it holds its shape for a few seconds before sinking into the bowl.

If your glaze is too thin, add a tablespoon more powdered sugar at a time. If it’s too thick, add in more milk.

Once the pop tarts are cool, spoon on about 1 tablespoon of glaze and gently smooth it down along the top of the pop tart.

Freezing and Storing

The pop tarts will keep well for up to 3 days, at room temperature, in a closed container. Just make sure that the glaze is completely set before you place them on top of one another.

Un-frosted pop tarts can even be frozen, baked, or unbaked for up to 1 month in the freezer.

Watch the Video

More Hand Held Desserts

I am so honored when you make a recipe from my site! If you make this Strawberry Pop Tart recipe, please leave a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating with your experience! If you have any questions about this recipe, feel free to comment here, and tag me on Instagram!