GF, Dairy-Free (Casein-Free), Soy-Free, Nut-Free and Egg-Free Strawberry Pop Tarts

I’m not exactly sure what Kellogg’s had in mind when they invented the Pop Tart, but I imagine that they meant to make a warm turnover that we, America’s Youth, could eat on our way to school.  What I do know for certain is that I fell in love with them with my first bite.

I remember the first time that I sampled a Pop Tart.  I was babysitting, the kids were in bed, and  I was bored so I rooted around for a snack.  Pop Tarts were something never permitted in my house, so when I spied a box of the frosted brown sugar and cinnamon variety, I went for it.  I was not disappointed.  Just like cardboard filled with brown sugar and glazed with a near-crispy frosting, these toaster pastries were better than anything else I had ever tasted in my life.  I spent the rest of that summer making sure that I was free to babysit every time that that family called.

So, here I am twenty years later, unable to eat Pop Tarts but sort of craving them.  The fact that I cannot eat them is not such a bad thing.  However, I do remember the taste, and I remember how much I loved them.  Jay from The Gluten Free Post has been on me for about a year to come up with an allergy-free version of America’s favorite toaster pastry, so here they are. YUM!

GF, Dairy-Free (Casein-Free), Soy-Free, Nut-Free and Egg-Free Strawberry Pop Tarts

1 1/3 cup Chinese Rice Flour

1/2 cup potato starch

1/4 cup sweet sorghum flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon xanthan

3/4 cup organic palm fruit oil shortening

1/4 cup ice cold water

jam of your choice

1 recipe Pop Tart Glaze (recipe follows)

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.  Set it aside.  In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the flours, salt, sugar, xanthan and palm fruit oil shortening until a course meal forms.  Pour in the ice water and pulse again until a dough forms.  Dump the dough out onto a sheet of parchment (if necessary, gather any loose flour into the dough and work it in until the dough is pliable), cover the dough with another sheet of parchment paper and roll it out until it is 1/4 inch thick.  Remove the top sheet of parchment and square off the sheet of dough with a sharp knife.  Cut the dough into 12 4 1/2 inch squares or 6 9 inch by 4 1/2 inch rectangles.  If you cut squares, spoon a dallop of preserves onto one square, cover with another square and use a fork to crimp the edges.  If you made rectangles, place a dallop preserves on the rectangle, fold it in half and crimp the edges with a fork.  Lift the pastries with a metal spatula and place them on the prepared baking sheet (if this step proves tricky because the dough sticks, refrigerate the rectangles for 30 minutes before proceeding).  Lightly prick the tops of the pastries with a fork, so that they resemble the top of a real Pop Tart.  Bake the pastries for 10 minutes, or until the edges just begin to turn golden.

Remove from the pastries from the oven to cool on the baking sheet. If the preserves are bubbling at the edges, gently loosen the pastries by sliding a spatula under them, but do not remove them to wire racks to cool.  While the pastries are cooling, make the following frosting:

Pop Tart Glaze

1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar

1 teaspoon POWDERED, vanilla rice milk

1 1/2 teaspoon water (more if necessary)

In a small bowl, combine the sugar, powdered rice milk and water until a smooth frosting forms.  Frost the warm pastries with the prepared glaze, sprinkle with colored sugar and serve immediately.

Serves 6