POP TARTS

I heard awhile back that you could make pop tarts from scratch.  It's true.

I had a little wad of flaky pie crust dough sitting in my freezer, left over from when I made Mushroom Cashew Pies in September.  Perfect!  It was not enough to make a whole pie, but it made two pop tarts.

How much can I say?  It's pie crust filled with jam.  Of course it tastes awesome.  I'd make smaller ones next time; they'd be less fragile and more numerous.

Homemade Whole Wheat Cherry Pop Tarts

(inspired by Smitten Kitchen)

Ingredients

3/8 c cherry jam

1/2 TB cornstarch mixed with 1/2 TB water

pie crust dough, about as big as your fist 

(I used flaky vodka pie crust; basic oil crust would also work)

Instructions

1. To make jam filling, mix the jam with the cornstarch/water in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, and simmer, stirring, for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, and set aside to cool.
2. Roll out pastry dough on a lightly floured surface.  Trim into rectangles, and on half of the rectangles, place filling in the middle.  Cover with matching sized pieces of dough; score the edges with a fork to seal, and poke holes in the top.
3. Refrigerate the tarts (they don’t need to be covered) for 30 minutes, while you preheat your oven to 350°F.
4. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until light golden brown.  Makes 2-3 pastries, or more if you make them smaller.