Pop Tarts

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Sending our kids off to school with protein and healthy fat is essential for concentration in school. We can't expect them to focus on a diet of enriched flour found in cereals and pre-packaged breakfasts. Pop Tarts also contain TBHQ (lighter fluid), trans-fat, HFCS (causing leptin resistance and fatty liver disease), caramel coloring (banned in other countries, due to the link to cancer), ...should I go on? So if your kids don't like eggs, here is another option for a protein-packed breakfast.

Ingredients in Kellog's Pop Tarts:
ENRICHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMIN MONONITRATE [VITAMIN B1], RIBOFLAVIN [VITAMIN B2], FOLIC ACID), CORN SYRUP, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, DEXTROSE, SOYBEAN AND PALM OIL (WITH TBHQ FOR FRESHNESS), CRACKER MEAL, CONTAINS TWO PERCENT OR LESS OF WHEAT STARCH, SALT, DRIED BLUEBERRIES, DRIED GRAPES, DRIED APPLES, LEAVENING (BAKING SODA, SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE), CITRIC ACID, CORNSTARCH, MODIFIED WHEAT STARCH, SOY LECITHIN, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL BLUEBERRY FLAVOR, XANTHAN GUM, CARAMEL COLOR, RED #40, VITAMIN A PALMITATE, NIACINAMIDE, REDUCED IRON, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B6), BLUE #1, BLUE #2, RIBOFLAVIN (VITAMIN B2), THIAMIN HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B1), FOLIC ACID.


"Healthified" Poptart Recipe:
1/2 cup vanilla egg white or whey protein
3/4 cup blanched almond flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp Celtic sea salt
1/4 cup butter or coconut oil
3 TBS Just Like Sugar (or a few drops of stevia)
2-3 TBS water(just enough to hold dough together)
1 large egg (to brush on pastry)

FILLING:
Nature's Hollow Jelly

Alternate fillings: 9 TBS of chopped ChocoPerfection bar, 9 TBS Homemade Nutella

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (200 degrees C). In a medium bowl, stir together the whey, almond flour, baking soda and salt. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender or your fingers until the butter lumps are smaller than peas. Stir in the almond milk (or water) and sweetener to form a stiff dough.

On parchment paper, place 10 balls of dough a few inches apart. Shape with hands into rectangle shapes (size of a PopTart).

Beat the egg and brush it over the entire surface of the rectangles. Even the “insides” of the tart; the egg is to help glue the lid on. Place a heaping tablespoon of filling into the center of each rectangle, keeping a bare 1/2-inch perimeter around it. Place a second rectangle of dough atop the first, using your fingertips to press firmly around the pocket of filling, sealing the dough well on all sides. Press the tines of a fork all around the edge of the rectangle. Repeat with remaining tarts.

Gently place the tarts on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Prick the top of each tart multiple times with a fork; you want to make sure steam can escape, or the tarts will become fluffy pillows instead of flat toaster pastries (my mistake number 1). Bake for 10-12 minutes in the preheated oven, until edges are lightly browned. Cool in oven to crisp up. Serves 5.

Pop Tart Minis: These are tough, but SO cute! This recipe will make a batch of 16 2 1/4″ x 3″ rectangles.

NUTRITIONAL COMPARISON (per serving)
Kellog's Pop Tart = 210 calories, 37 carbs, 1 fiber, 2 protein
Healthified Pop Tart = 199 calories, 3.8 carbs, 1.8 fiber