Cinnamon Sugar Pockets

Have you ever wondered what a poptart would taste like if it had just came out of an oven instead of that noisy silver wrapper? I mean warm and fresh, not bordering on stale. Well I had never given a second thought to having poptarts any other way than straight out of the box or from the box to the toaster. That is until my mother passed the idea along. Not even to me mind you… She knows how to get me to try a recipe: She sends it to my fiance and says maybe someone will make these for you. If she sent recipes for Brussels sprouts he might ignore them – poptarts however piqued his interest. So we had to make them. I had a rather productive Saturday and was feeling ambitious Sunday so I dove in and didn’t look back. Also, 4 points may seem a little high but just consider that a regular-sized (probably stale) poptart will run you 5 points – one poptart people, not one package… I think it is well worth the 4 points.

Brown Sugar Cinnamon Poptarts

Pastry

• 2 ½ cups whole wheat flour
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon baking soda

Filling

• ½ cup brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons unsalted butter, diced
• 1 tablespoon water
• 2 tablespoons egg white
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

To make the pastry: Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl. Scrape down the sides and add in egg and vanilla extract. In a separate bowl combine dry ingredients. Slowly add dry ingredients to creamed mixture in thirds, alternating with the milk. The whole wheat may dry out the overall mixture, so you can add in 1 tablespoon of water at a time until dough resembles pastry texture. Divide the dough in half and form in to 2 discs. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, maximum 3 days.

To make the filling: Whisk together dry ingredients and cut in butter. Consistency should be grainy with small bits of butter throughout.

Assemble your poptarts: After the dough has chilled, lightly flour your board and roll out the dough. Dough should be approximately 1/8” in thickness and at least 9” x 13”. Be sure to trim the border for clean edges. You have two options here: cut the rectangles by hand or get a 2 ½ “ x 3” cookie cutter. After cutting by hand, I think I will scout out a cookie cutter for future ventures. You are aiming for 24 total poptarts so you will need 48 equal rectangles, each 2.5” x 3”.
Lay out rectangles on cookie sheet and arrange in a single layer. Use the egg white to brush the top of half of your rectangles. Place 1 teaspoon of filling inside each of the egg white-brushed rectangles. Carefully place a plain rectangle over top and lightly press down with fingertips to seal edges. I then used a plastic fork to ensure a tight seal and also poke holes in the top to allow for adequate ventilation. Place the sheets of finished pockets in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest. Preheat the oven to 350.

Bake your poptarts for 20 minutes rotating halfway through cook time. Let cool on sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.
Yields 24 small poptarts. 4 Points Plus per poptart.