Heart-Shaped Tart Pops: Retro Meets Romance

Pop Tart Hearts on a stick! (Photo: Kitchen Fun)

Last year I made an incredible pop tart recipe from Bon Appetit. The fact that I could make Pop Tarts -- a childhood favorite breakfast item of mine -- from scratch in my own kitchen from organic ingredients, no less... well, it blew my mind.

This Valentine's Day, I'm combining the pop tart with another darling of the dessert world: the Pie Pop. The result? Heart-shaped Tart Pops. They're part-retro, part-romance and guaranteed to impress your husband, wife, mom, dad, coworker... or whomever is lucky enough to be your Valentine. Don't have a Valentine? Who cares! These little stunners will grab the attention of just about anyone who like Pop Tarts and/or pie. As for those who don't... let's not talk about them.

Here's how you make the Tart Pops. For a simpler version, use store-bought pie dough or puff pastry sheets.


Homemade Heart-Shaped Tart Pops
Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine

• 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour plus additional for shaping and rolling
• 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 cup (2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 4 tablespoons ice water
• 12 tablespoons strawberry, blackberry or apricot preserves

Photo: Dine & Dish

Directions: Whisk 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons flour, coarse salt, and sugar in large bowl. Add butter. Using fingertips or back of fork, blend in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add ice water by tablespoonfuls, tossing until moist clumps form. Gather dough into ball. Divide in half; shape each half into disk. Wrap in plastic. Chill at least 1 hour.

Photo: Our Best Bites

Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment. Working with 1 disk at a time, roll out dough on floured surface to about 13x11 inches. Using a 3-inch heart cookie cutter, cut dough into individual hearts. Arrange hearts on the cooking sheets, spaced at least 2 inches apart.

Spoon 1 - 1 1/2 tablespoons of preserves in row down center of each heart. Gently press one popsicle sticks into the bottom on each heart, so that at least one inch will bake inside the pie pop. Top preserves and popsicle stick with a second dough heart. Using fingertips, gently press all edges of each tart to seal; press all edges with tines of fork to double-seal. Using toothpick, poke a few holes in center of top dough heart.

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Sprinkle clear, red or pink sanding sugar onto each heart for decoration. Cover; freeze tarts on sheets at least 2 hours and up to 1 week.


Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 375°F. Bake frozen tarts uncovered until golden, reversing sheets after 15 minutes, 25 to 30 minutes total (some preserves may leak out). Immediately transfer tarts to rack.

Photo: Our Best Bites

Optional gift idea: For Valentine's Day, pipe a white icing border around the heart and fill in your favorite "sweet heart" saying, like "Be Mine," You're Hot" or any other personal greeting. Cover each pop with cellophane, secure with a cute ribbon around the base of the popsicle stick and give to your Valentine!