Health By Al

These are so nostalgic and delicious! The perfect summer treat. The outside is flakey, the center is soft, and it’s the perfect amount of sweetness. Let me know if you try it!

Ingredients: makes 9

Crust

• 2 & 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 3/4 cup cold vegan butter, cut into cubes
• 3/4 cup ice water

Filling

• Strawberry Jam (Storebought or I made it from this recipe)

Topping

• 1 Tablespoon plant milk

Frosting & Sprinkles

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 Tablespoon plant milk (for more of a glaze, add 1/2 or 1 more Tablespoon)
• dye-free rainbow sprinkles

Directions:

1. Make your jam if you are making it homemade.
2. In a food processor, pulse together the flour, salt, sugar a few times. Add the cubed vegan butter and pulse a few times again (you want to break it up but not completely).
3. Pour the mixture into a bowl and add the ice water little by little (you may not need it all). Once the dough is a good consistency (not totally falling apart but still slightly flakey), set it on a floured surface and roll it into a thick rectangle (1 inch thick). Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
5. Take half the dough out of the fridge and set it on a floured surface (I did this step on parchment paper). Roll it VERY thin, basically as thin as you can without it ripping. Cut the dough into 3.5×4.5 inch rectangles.
6. Lay one line of rectangles on the parchment paper, add 1/2 Tablespoon of jam and spread it around, keeping the edges free of jam. Roll out the second half of the dough, cut it, and place those rectangles on top of the jam ones. Use a fork to seal the edges.
7. Brush the tops of the pastries with plant milk (this helps them brown–you probably won’t use the full Tablespoon).
8. Bake for 40-50 minutes. The bottoms should be golden brown when they are done. If the tops have not always browned, broil the pop-tarts for 30 seconds-1 minute (keep a close eye on them or they will quickly burn).
9. When they are done, let them cool while you make the frosting by whisking the powdered sugar and plant milk.
10. When the pop-tarts are cooled, spread the frosting and top with sprinkles! Store in a sealed container in the fridge and eat within a few days or freeze. Enjoy!