Cinnamon Brown Sugar Pop-tarts

IMG_6334As I’ve mentioned before, my Mom didn’t let us have junk food in the house. And I mean EVER. I think once we were allowed Cinnamon Toast Crunch to have as dessert but that’s pretty much it. In hindsight,  I’m so thankful for her diligence,  but at the time I was pretty bummed about it. I remember diving for the junk food every time I was at a friend’s house to the point of probably looking underfed. Pop-tarts were one of my most exciting finds. We’d had the health-food store version before, but they couldn’t quite compare. Lucky for me, once I hit 17 I became a bit of a health nut myself and never really missed them.

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All these years later, I still haven’t forgotten how good those Cinnamon Brown Sugar Pop-tarts were. Right out of the toaster, they were pretty much heaven. Kinda like a pocket cinnamon roll with the brown sugar all warm and gooey on the inside and the crust all buttery and crisp. So, when I decided I wanted to try to make homemade pop-tarts again last week, I knew this was the one.

These pop-tarts are widely adaptable, easy, and so satisfying. I opted to go without a glaze since the insides were pretty sugary, but of course a glaze would only make them more delicious. I used my favorite butter pie crust which always puffs and browns so beautifully.  I can’t wait to try them with other fruit fillings, nutella and numerous other things!

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Cinnamon Brown Sugar Pop-tarts

Ingredients

  • 1 recipe pie crust
  • 1/2 cup 3 3/4 ounces brown sugar
  • 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, to taste
  • 4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 large egg, to brush on pastry before filling

Instructions

  1. If the dough has been chilled, remove it from the refrigerator and allow it to soften and become workable, about 15 to 30 minutes. Place one piece on a lightly floured work surface, and roll it
  2. into a rectangle about 1/8? thick, large enough that you can trim it to an even 9? x 12? Repeat with the second piece of dough. Set trimmings aside. Cut each piece of dough into thirds – you’ll form nine 3? x 4? rectangles.
  3. Beat the additional egg and brush it over the entire surface of the first dough. This will be the “inside” of the tart; the egg is to help glue the lid on. Place a heaping tablespoon of filling into the center of each rectangle, keeping a bare 1/2-inch perimeter around it. Place a second rectangle of dough atop the first, using your fingertips to press firmly around the pocket of filling, sealing the dough well on all sides. Press the tines of a fork all around the edge of the rectangle. Repeat with remaining tarts.
  4. Gently place the tarts on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Prick the top of each tart multiple times with a fork; you want to make sure steam can escape, or the tarts will become billowy pillows rather than flat toaster pastries. Brush tops with extra egg wash. Refrigerate the tarts (they don’t need to be covered) for 30 minutes, while you preheat your oven to 350°F.
  5. Remove tarts from the fridge and bake for 20-25 minutes or until they're golden brown. Cool pan on rack.
Nutrition Information:
Serving Size: 1 grams
Amount Per Serving: Unsaturated Fat: 0g

Did you make this recipe?

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Pastry Recipe from Martha Stewart

Filling/Assembly from Smitten Kitchen

32 Comments

  1. It’s funny because as a kid, I was never a cinnamon brown sugar pop tart lover. But these days, I could eat them at every meal! I pinned this recipe, can’t wait to make them :)

  2. The brown sugar cinnamon ones were the only ones I ever eat too…but I don’t think I even tried my first pop tart until I got to college! These look so much better! For eating at a later date would you recommend cooking first (like your mini pot pies), freezing and then reheating in the oven or toaster?

  3. Out of all the different flavored pop tarts, this is my favorite and I get it every time at the grocers. After seeing this and knowing that homemade is much better-I need to get my butt into the kitchen and make these-they look amazing!

  4. Any suggestions for other ways to make them stick together besides eggs? My sons are allergic? Maybe a little brown sugar, flour, water paste??

  5. Sorry, didn’t mean to put the question mark after allergic. My sons are in fact allergic. :)

  6. Congratulations to Paige! These pop-tarts look amazing, Audra. In college, my husband and I both used to rip through boxes of these at an alarming rate. I can only imagine how much better the real thing tastes, though! Thanks for sharing.

  7. Wow…so delish looking! Cinnamon toast crunch was a super special treat in our house growing up….and I also have memories of cherry poptarts as after school snacks. I am loving this recipe!

  8. I have become a little bit of a health nut myself and I try not to eat too much processed foods, but it’s in life.

    I whole-heartedly believe that everything tastes so much better (and is so much better for you) when it’s homemade and these look absolutely wonderful. And if I make these there is a 90% chance my sister will actually eat them because brown-sugar cinnamon poptarts are her favorite!

  9. Amazing! I must make these soon… I think they sound fabulous! Thank you so much for sharing this!

  10. Which “brown sugar” would you advise ?..Light or Dark…Muscavado…or?…My son is a pop-tart freak and will be amazed that I even attempted to make his absolute favorite flavor (I always like the strawberry version and actually worked in the Smucker’s Pop-Tart filling room…where they cook the berries into sheets of jam to be inserted into the tarts!)…Love your ever-vibrant culinary creativity!

  11. I just love all your pop tart recipes! I need to make these for my girls, they would be so excited!! Love your pictures!! xx

  12. Your mother wasn’t the only one who did allow junk food at home. Living miles from you, my mother also didn’t like us to eat junk food. At home we only had fresh fruit and natural fruit juices.

  13. Wow, I’m so impressed you made everything from scratch for these pop tarts – the filling AND the crust! Amazing work… I am featuring this post in today’s Friday Food Fetish roundup (with a link-back and attribution), but please let me know if you have any objections. It’s a pleasure following your creations…

  14. Ooh, yum! I haven’t had a pop tart in years (my god, maybe 20 years?) but your recipe has reignited my interest :) Love the brown sugar ones – those were always my fav.

  15. What gorgeous gorgeous pop tarts – never again will I buy them :D
    Scrumptious!

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru
    Latest: Jaffa Fudge Nutella Cookie + More

  16. Whoaaaa,,, are you aware that those look better than the real thing?! How many calories in each poptart?

  17. Whoaaaa,,, are you aware that those look better than the real thing?! How many calories in each pop-tart?

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