get it? well probably not yet, bc you have no idea what i am talking about at the moment. todays post is about homemade pop-tarts & homemade... wait for it.... JAM. a little play on words action to get this sunday going.
i love a good pop-tart. blueberry pop-tarts to be exact. they remind me of simple times when i was getting ready for school & i would just grab a pop-tart- open that silver plastic & then magic. if i was feeling really crazy i would break up the pop-tart into pieces, put them into a bowl & then pour milk on top & eat it like cereal. #sugarproblems. i don't really keep things like that in my house anymore. i don't have chips. cookies. chocolate. none of it. i make everything homemade or try to at least.
i love fresh herbs & this week i scored big time at our kroger bc their herbs they put into those plastic containers were like 20 cents. so i take them home & hang them upside down & let them dry out. as i get older my taste buds have been finding their way to new flavors & i am happy about that.
can you believe all this was 40 cents? thank you kroger.
so this dough recipe i found
here
now usually i would use something that my mom has given me but they just moved & everything they own is basically in boxes so she couldn't find it, but HEY that just means i will need to make these again & again right?
dough:
2 cups AP flour
2 TB sugar
1 ts salt
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
1 large egg
1/4 cup milk + 1 TB divided
first step: combine all your dry ingredients.
i used a cheese grater & grated my cold butter right on top of the flour mixture.
then using my hands i mixed it all together until it looked like this picture below.
now in a separate bowl beat the egg & milk together & add to mixture.
i had to add a TB or 2 of milk to get the dough to the right texture.
now flour your surface- i have a stainless steel table in my kitchen that is perfect for all these recipes i have been trying lately. did i mention this was my first time making pop-tarts?
knead your dough on floured surface until it's the shape of a mound.
now divide the dough into 2 equal little balls.
they looked so pretty i took 3 pictures.
now wrap them with plastic & let them hang out in the fridge for an hour or so or even until the next morning which is what i did. this was very hard for me- all i could think about was how this recipe was going to turn out, or how good the smell coming from my kitchen would be. i am probably becoming impatient in my older age. anxious and impatient.
when you are ready to assemble these, i literally rolled out of bed & headed straight to the kitchen, take your little dough balls out & we are going to work with them one at a time.
flour your workspace & roll the ball into about 1/8 inch. now the directions said this but i have no idea about measuring this stuff. i literally just rolled it out until it felt right, whatever that means.
now you have complete control over the shapes you want. the husband is really good about buying me cute little things for the kitchen or just cute things in general. if i say i am interested in something he is the first to invest in those interests. #blessed.
i did normal little rectangles.
see that cute little tool. one of my interests he invested in.
now i swayed from the directions at this point & did my own things.
i just made as many rectangles as i could with matching bottoms & tops. i did some small & some big ones. his & hers is what i am calling them.
so when you have your bottoms you are going to brush them with your egg wash- 1 egg & a splash of milk.
now i spread the jam i made on top & then put the top on.
blueberry on the left. raspberry on the right.
i used a fork for the edges & then poked some holes in the top to let the steam out.
now this is where i made the mistake of not making sure they went all the way through so my pop-tarts were a little fluffy. next time i know.
now put these in the fridge for about 25 minutes & then right before you put them in the oven brush the egg wash on top.
bake at 350 for about 25 minutes.
now for the JAM.
i had fresh local blueberries i got from the littler farmers market on the square her in carrollton & some blackberries i got from trader joes.
for a thing of blueberries you will need.
1/2 cup sugar
your container of blueberries
2 TB cornstarch
4 TB water
1 tsp vanilla (haitian of course)
1 tsp mint- this is something i added at the last minute
a sprinkle of salt
in a medium sauce pan on medium heat put your blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, salt, & water.
the little blueberries will start to bubble & burst & your entire house will smell like you could eat everything. the chairs. lamps. tables. sofa. everything is at risk.
after cooking for about 10 minutes i added my mint. my 40 cent mint from kroger.
when it looks like this picture above i then put it through a strainer to make sure i didn't have any skins. i wanted everything smooth.
i tasted this many times, which is why i had so much anxiety about waiting to make these for the next morning. i made the JAM yesterday & it was just sitting in my fridge begging to be put on something.
i used this same process with the blackberries too.
these are easy to put in a container & cory can grab one on the way to work in the morning. zap it in the microwave for about 10 seconds & you have yourself a warm homemade nostalgic breakfast.
when my mom finds her recipe i will be sure to post it.
hope you guys enjoy making these for your family like i did.
-- mrs. estes
