Sourdough Strawberry Pop Tarts
This website uses affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you click on the link and make a purchase.
Indulge in the nostalgic charm of homemade Sourdough Strawberry Pop Tarts, where flaky, buttery pastry meets luscious, fruity filling in every bite. This homemade version of the popular breakfast indulgence is made with organic ingredients, homemade strawberry filling, and sprinkles without artificial colors.
If you’re looking for more nostalgic breakfast recipes, try some of my other favorites like Nostalgic Cinnamon Rolls, Sourdough Discard Bagels, or Sourdough French Toast Sticks.
Table of Contents
These homemade strawberry pop tarts with sourdough are another collaboration with my friend Hannah at Make It Dough! Each month we come up with a recipe idea together that uses sourdough. It’s so fun for me as it makes me use sourdough more often than I might usually, as sometimes it just sits in my fridge forgotten about! Some of my other favorite collaboration recipes include Sourdough Discard Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread, Sourdough Chocolate Shortbread Cookies, Rustic Sourdough Peach Galette.
When Hannah said she wanted to make pop tarts, I specifically asked her, real pop tarts or toaster pastries? Because the internet is full of “pop tarts” that are really just toaster pastries in my opinion because they are made with puff pastry or pie crust. While, those can be good, they are not true pop tarts! So, of course we decided to make real Sourdough Strawberry Pop Tarts.
I am a pop tart snob because they were such a forbidden food growing up. While pop tarts were not allowed in my house, when we moved from Chicago to Michigan, my new friend’s dad worked for Kellogg. Needless to say, her pantry was stocked with every flavor of pop tart you could ask for. I was a regular at her house after school and I probably ate more pop tarts in the fifth grade than I have in my entire life. So, I am very versed in the flavors and textures of pop tarts.
And this delightful recipe is a celebration of the true pop tart. This is not a puff pastry dough and it’s not a pie dough, because true pop tarts are not either of those. These homemade Strawberry Pop Tarts with sourdough are really more like a sugar cookie dough, to be honest. The sourdough discard really lends a beautiful tangy flavor to this pastry that I love! This is a grown up pop tart people, don’t share these with your kids.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
True Pop Tart: These Sourdough Strawberry Pop Tarts are a true pop tart! That perfectly soft, buttery, and just the littlest bit of crumbly is the base for this true pop tart pastry.
Homemade Filling: I make my own strawberry filling for these Sourdough Strawberry Pop Tarts. But, you can also use store bought strawberry preserves or jam as well. Both will work!
Uses Sourdough Discard: I love that this recipes uses sourdough discard because it is taking something that would be food waste and turning it into homemade Strawberry Pop Tarts with sourdough! This is a beautiful thing people.
No Artificial Colors: This recipe for Sourdough Strawberry Pop Tarts is made with no artificial colors. The store bought strawberry pop tarts have all kinds of artificial colors! This is truly not needed in order to enjoy this nostalgic treat.
Ingredients
Strawberries: Use organic fresh or frozen strawberries, totally up to you! Be sure to de-stem if you are using fresh.
Cane Sugar: Nothing fancy here, just traditional cane sugar. I used Wholesome Sweeteners today.
Lemon Juice: You can use fresh lemon juice or even lemon juice from a bottle, up to you!
Salted Butter: Use the best organic salted butter for this recipe! My fave is Organic Valley. If you are using unsalted butter, be sure to add a pinch of salt to the recipe.
Powdered Sugar: I use powdered sugar in the dough and for the glaze. I used Wholesome Sweeteners today.
Vanilla Extract: I always use Simply Organic Vanilla Extract, it is my favorite!
Sourdough Discard: Use your sourdough discard straight from the fridge!
Egg Yolk: We use egg yolk here to keep the pastry tender. Don’t throw out the whites, be sure to put in a Tupperware and add to your eggs in the morning. Or you can also cook it up with coconut oil in a pan and use it as a food topper for your dog, John John loves this! My favorite eggs are Organic Valley.
All Purpose Flour: My favorite all purpose flour is Cairnspring Mills! You must try this fresh milled flour.
Cornstarch: I use organic cornstarch from Frontier Co-Op. Anthony’s also makes a great one that I like as well.
Naturally Colored Decorating Sugars: I used a mix of India Tree's Nature's Colors Decorating Sugars. I picked the colors I used to be the same as strawberry pop tarts! This is a key ingredient as it doesn't just provide decoration, it provides a subtle crunch that is so nostalgic!
Tools Needed
Baking Sheet Half Sheet Pan (use code MIMIBAKES for 10% off my favorite stainless steel sustainable bakeware!)
Parchment Paper (get my favorite nontoxic parchment paper and get 10% off with MIMIBAKES)
Subscribe to Mimi's Organic Eats Channel
Subscribe to my YouTube Channel for all the latest videos. Bake and cook along with John John and me on YouTube!
Subscribing is easy and just by subscribing, you are directly supporting my site!
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1
To make the Strawberry Preserves: Remove stems and finely chop strawberries.
Add strawberries, sugar and lemon juice to a medium pot. Cook over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Turn the heat to high and boil for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Turn the heat back down to medium and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the consistency is thick.
Transfer to a glass jar and let cool to room temperature. Store extra in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Step 2
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step 3
To make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, cane sugar, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Mix on low until combined and there’s no butter chunks.
In a small bowl, add the sourdough discard and egg yolk and stir together. Add the flour to the butter mixture and add the egg yolk mixture on top. Mix on low until combined into a crumbly dough. Add in water as needed just until the dough comes together.
Step 4
On a floured surface, roll out the dough to ⅛-inch to ¼-inch thick, the thinner the better! Cut into 12 rectangles that are about 3×4-inches.
Step 5
Place 6 of the rectangles onto the prepared baking sheet.
Step 6
To make the filling: Add the strawberry preserves and cornstarch to a bowl and mix together.
Step 7
Spoon about 1 tablespoon of filling onto the middle of each rectangle. Using your finger, dip it into the water, and go around the boarder of the rectangle. Then top with another rectangle dough, the water will help them stick together. Continue with all the rectangles.
Step 8
Using a fork, crimp the edges. Then make two slits with a knife in the top of each tart.
Step 9
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown on the bottoms. Allow to cool completely on the baking sheet. (If you’re baking at high altitude, be sure to check the Notes at the bottom of the recipe for high altitude baking instructions).
Step 10
To make the glaze: In a small bowl, add the powdered sugar and milk and whisk together until a smooth glaze forms. If you want a thinner glaze you can add more milk or use less if you want a thicker glaze. Frost each pop tart with glaze and top with the decorating sugars.
Baker's Tips
- Be sure your butter is soft. Just like if you were baking traditional chocolate chip cookies!
- You can use fresh or frozen strawberries. If you’re using frozen, you do not have to thaw them as the water will just evaporate as you cook them.
- If your rectangles are not totally even, you can cut them after you place the second one on top. Check it out, as I did that in the video. You can easily even them out this way.
- The natural decorating sugars I use are completely necessary for the true strawberry pop tart experience because they give the perfect amount of crunch and added texture that taste just like the originals. I linked them in the ingredients above and in the recipe card too.
- I use a mix of the red, pink, yellow, and green natural decorating sugars. I did this because this is truly what the original strawberry pop tarts look like. But, you can use any color or any mix. They even make a rainbow mix you can buy here.
Easy Substitutions
- Use store bought preserves or jam in place of making the filling if you are feeling lazy.
- Feel free to use any flavor of fruit filling too to create different flavors. Try my Apricot Jam, Blueberry Preserves, or Cranberry Orange Jam for different seasonal pop tarts!
- You can use plain pink sprinkles if you prefer or you can leave them off completely. But, the ones I am using have that true texture and crunch that real strawberry pop tarts have! So, they are totally necessary in my opinion.
- If you don’t have sourdough discard, you can still make this recipe by mixing together 28 grams of water and 28 grams of all purpose flour. Use this in ints place!
FAQ’s
Yes, feel free to use store bought strawberry preserves or jam in place of making it. Totally up to you!
You can replace the sourdough discard with equal parts water and flour. So, for this recipe mix together 28 grams of water and 28 grams of all purpose flour and use this in place of sourdough discard. It won’t have the same flavor, but the recipe will still be delicious!
The cornstarch acts as a stabilizer and binds together all the fruit juices from the preserves as the pop tarts bake. This is important for keeping the pastry soft and tender versus soggy. It also helps when you bite into them as the filling won’t spill out.
If you can’t have corn, you can use tapioca starch or Irish moss powder as both of these are similar binders that will also work!
Craving More?
Sourdough Strawberry Pop Tarts
Equipment
Ingredients
Strawberry Preserves
- 226 grams strawberries (fresh or frozen)
- 57 grams cane sugar
- ½ teaspoon lemon juice
Dough
- 57 grams salted butter (softened)
- 57 grams cane sugar
- 35 grams powdered sugar (sifted)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 57 grams sourdough discard
- 1 large egg yolk
- 255 grams all purpose flour
- 2 to 3 tablespoons water
Filling
- 85 grams strawberry preserves
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- Water
Glaze
- 106 grams powdered sugar (sifted)
- 1 to 2 tablespoons milk
- India Tree Nature's Colors Decorating Sugars (for topping)
Instructions
- To make the Strawberry Preserves: Remove stems and finely chop strawberries.
- Add strawberries, sugar and lemon juice to a medium pot. Cook over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Turn the heat to high and boil for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Turn the heat back down to medium and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the consistency is thick.
- Transfer to a glass jar and let cool to room temperature. Store extra in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- To make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, cane sugar, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Mix on low until combined and there’s no butter chunks.
- In a small bowl, add the sourdough discard and egg yolk and stir together. Add the flour to the butter mixture and add the egg yolk mixture on top. Mix on low until combined into a crumbly dough. Add in water as needed just until the dough comes together.
- On a floured surface, roll out the dough to ⅛-inch to ¼-inch thick, the thinner the better! Cut into 12 rectangles that are about 3×4-inches.
- Place 6 of the rectangles onto the prepared baking sheet.
- To make the filling: Add the strawberry preserves and cornstarch to a bowl and mix together.
- Spoon about 1 tablespoon of filling onto the middle of each rectangle. Using your finger, dip it into the water, and go around the boarder of the rectangle. Then top with another rectangle dough, the water will help them stick together. Continue with all the rectangles.
- Using a fork, crimp the edges. Then make two slits with a knife in the top of each tart.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown on the bottoms. Allow to cool completely on the baking sheet.
- To make the glaze: In a small bowl, add the powdered sugar and milk and whisk together until a smooth glaze forms. If you want a thinner glaze you can add more milk or use less if you want a thicker glaze.
- Frost each pop tart with glaze and top with the decorating sugars.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Join Our Organic Community
Leave a Comment