Homemade Pop Tarts

Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Valentine’s Day: Although these are amazing all year round, they make the perfect Valentine’s Day treat.
• Super Easy: With just a small list of simple ingredients, these pop tarts are super easy to make and come together in just about 30 minutes!
• Versatile: Homemade Pop Tarts are super versatile. You can easily tweak the recipe every time for new varieties.
• Great for Gatherings: This portable, easy-to-eat treat is one of our favorite easy desserts to pass around at family gatherings or to gift to friends and neighbors.
• The Crust: The crust in this recipe is the best melt-in-your-mouth, buttery, flaky crust you’ll ever taste!

Key Recipe Ingredients

• Pie Crust—We use the flaky, butter crust from our recipe for The Best Apple Pie for these pop tarts.
• Strawberry Cream Cheese—Strawberry cream cheese not only offers that creamy, cheesecake texture, but also adds extra strawberry flavor.
• Strawberry Preserves—Pure strawberry preserves add a sweet, juicy burst of strawberry goodness.
• Egg Wash—An egg wash makes these pop tarts turn a gorgeous, golden color.

Substitutions and Variations

• Crust: If you’re running short on time, feel free to opt for a shapeable store bought crust. Here’s some of the best store-bought crust options for pies.
• Jam Filling: We use pure strawberry preserves for this recipe, but feel free to swap this with homemade strawberry jam or any other kind of preserves like blackberry, blueberry, raspberry, or peach.
• Cheesecake Filling: This recipe uses Philadelphia strawberry cream cheese. But this brand has tons of fun, sweet flavors like brown sugar/cinnamon, blueberry, and honey pecan. You could also substitute mascarpone for the cream cheese.
• Other Varieties: Looking for a good autumn spin on this recipe? Check out our Pumpkin Hand Pies recipe. For a chocolatey spin, take a look at these Strawberry Nutella Hand Pies.

Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions

1. Roll out half of pie dough and cut out desired shapes. Repeat until dough is used up.
2. Spoon strawberry cream cheese onto the bottom cutouts. Then, spoon preserves onto cream cheese. Sprinkle sugar over the filling.
3. Seal top cutouts onto the bottom cutouts by pressing the edges firmly with a fork.
4. Cut slits in the pop tarts, brush with beaten egg, and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
5. Repeat steps 1-4 with other half of dough.
6. Bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet at 350F for 15-20 minutes or until golden.

Prep Ahead Tips

• The Crust: You can totally make the dough for the crust ahead of time and let it chill in the fridge for a night or two. Just note that it’ll need some time to sit at room temperature until it’s soft enough to work with.
• Freeze Unbaked: These Homemade Pop Tarts can actually be completely assembled and then frozen for months before baking. Just flash freeze them on a baking tray until they’re hard. Then, transfer them to an airtight container. When it’s time to bake, thaw and bake like normal.
• Freeze Baked: Another option is to let the pop tarts cool completely after baking them and then transfer them to an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. We recommend re-warming them in the oven at 300F to prevent them from getting soggy.

Homemade Pop Tarts

• 1 recipe double pie crust, see notes
• 1 tub Philadelphia strawberry cream cheese
• 1 jar pure strawberry preserves
• granulated sugar
• 1 egg, beaten, for egg wash
• coarse sugar for garnish

• Here’s our recipe for the best Flaky Butter Pie Crust. You can use store bought crust, though flavor is always best when homemade.
• Note that the amounts (and nutrition facts) will vary for the filling ingredients depending on how large you make your pop tarts.
• Check out our recipe for Strawberry Nutella Hand Pies for another perfect Valentine’s Day treat.
• If you feel like your pop tarts need some extra help sealing, try brushing some of the egg wash between the edges before pressing them down with a fork.