Gluten Free Homemade Pop Tarts

Gluten Free Dairy Free Pop Tarts Recipe

It is summer time, which means the g-kids are here. Every year they come for a couple months and we cram in as many adventures, big and small, as we can. And every year we do a little gluten free baking together.

This year, the kids suggested gluten free pop tarts. I thought that was pure genius! What an iconic and forbidden (since going gluten free) treat from my childhood. Little did I know that homemade pop tarts burned up the internet last summer; which just goes to prove I really do live under a rock. Nonetheless, homemade gluten free pop tarts? Definite genius!

The crust for these gluten and dairy free pastries is flaky and pretty easy to work with. I made three different versions. The first was with superfine brown rice flour, tapioca starch and sweet rice flour – this was everyone’s favorite, taste-wise, and I was happy with the addition of whole grain, but it was also the most fragile because the edges tended to crumble a bit, especially when they were warm. Next, I subbed the tapioca starch with potato starch; on these, the edges were sturdier. Finally, I used gluten free flour blend. The taste was great but, again, a tad more fragile than with the potato starch. If we weren’t doing a side by side comparison, we would have never noticed any difference, so use what you like.

As with lots of gluten free dough, I find it easier to “extrude” than roll. I place the dough between two pieces of parchment or waxed paper sprinkled with a little sweet rice flour and roll, lifting the top paper occasionally to keep it from sticking. I divided the dough into two equal portions, rolled each portion out into a rectangle a little bit bigger than 12 inches by 8 inches, and trimmed the edges using a ruler for straight lines. I kept the dough on the parchment, cut it into 8 smaller rectangles (3 by 4 inches each) by cutting the 8 inch width in half and the 12 inch width into fourths.

Making Gluten Free Pop Tarts

After brushing the bottom rectangles with some beaten egg, I added the filling. We made two kinds – strawberry and almond. For the strawberry, I used some Baker Brand Strawberry Dessert Filling and for the almond, I used the almond flavor. The strawberry was the g-kids’ fav and I liked the almond, as it reminded me of an almond croissant.

Common sense would tell you not to over fill the pop tarts but we agreed that we like lots of filling, so we added about 2 heaping tablespoons of filling per pop tart at the risk of the filling leaking out – but it didn’t. Sometimes ignoring common sense is a good thing! After adding the filling to the bottom rectangles, I just lifted the parchment and folded the top rectangles right over the ones with the filling, easy! Pinch the edges together, make a decorative edge with the tines of a fork, then prick the top of the pop tarts all over with a fork. (If at any time the dough gets too soft or sticky because your kitchen is warm and humid, just pop it into the freezer for a few minutes.)

Making Gluten Free Dairy Free Pop Tarts

A little more egg wash on top, a sprinkling of coarse sugar, and sliced almonds for the almond flavor finished them off. From there, refrigerate them for half an hour, then into the oven. I made one batch that I refrigerated overnight and baked first thing in the morning – double genius, as you can have nice hot pop tarts in the time it takes to brew up some coffee, brush your teeth and make the bed!

So there you have it, from the g-kids and me – homemade gluten free, dairy free pop tarts. Enjoy!

Gluten Free Pop Tarts

5 from 1 vote
Gluten Free Homemade Pop Tarts
Print Recipe

Gluten Free Dairy Free Pop Tarts Recipe

Prep Time20 mins
Cook Time35 mins
Refrigeration time30 mins
Total Time55 mins
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 427kcal
Author: Gluten Free & More

Ingredients

  • 1 cup superfine brown rice flour
  • ¾ cup tapioca or potato starch
  • ¼ cup sweet rice flour plus more for rolling
  • ½ teaspoon xanthan gum
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 cup solid vegetable shortening at room temperature and cut into 1 inch pieces
  • 2 large eggs use divided
  • 2 rice milk
  • 10 ounces Baker Dessert Filling any flavor you like
  • 2 teaspoon coarse sugar

Instructions

  • Line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper.
  • In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the brown rice flour, tapioca or potato starch, sweet rice flour, xanthan gum, salt and 1 tablespoon sugar. Add the shortening and work it into the flour mixture with your hands until it is crumbly and the texture of coarse sand with some large pieces about the size of grapes. Add one egg and 2 tablespoons of rice milk. Mix with a spoon until you have a soft dough that is not sticky. You may need to work the dough with your hands to get it to come together. If too dry, add the final tablespoon of rice milk. Divide the dough into 2 equal portions and shape into rectangles. Wrap one portion of dough with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator while rolling the first.
  • Place a piece of waxed or parchment paper on a work surface, sprinkle with some sweet rice flour, place one piece of the dough on the parchment, sprinkle with a little more sweet rice flour and top with another piece of paper. Roll into a rectangle that is a bit larger than 12 inches by 8 inches. Trim the dough with a knife into a 12 by 8 inch rectangle. Cut the 8 inch side in half and the 12 inch side into fourths to form eight 3 by 4 inch rectangles.
  • Beat the remaining egg and brush the bottom 4 rectangles with some of the egg. Place 2 heaping tablespoons of dessert filling on each bottom rectangle and shape it into a rectangle leaving ½ inch border on all sides. Slide your hand under the paper under the top rectangles and flip them so they are directly on top of the filled dough. Press the edges of the dough together and then press with the tines of a fork. Prick the top of each pop tart several times with the tines of a fork. Brush with more egg wash, sprinkle each pop tart with about a ¼ teaspoon of coarse sugar and place on the baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the refrigerator and repeat with the final piece of dough. Refrigerate for at least ½ hour.
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees while the pop tarts are in the refrigerator. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool and serve.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Gluten Free Dairy Free Pop Tarts Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 427 Calories from Fat 243
% Daily Value*
Fat 27g42%
Saturated Fat 6g30%
Cholesterol 40mg13%
Sodium 321mg13%
Potassium 30mg1%
Carbohydrates 42g14%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 10g11%
Protein 2g4%
Vitamin A 60IU1%
Vitamin C 7.5mg9%
Calcium 16mg2%
Iron 0.5mg3%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blog owner’s. This blog accepts free manufacturers’ samples and forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation. Affiliate links may be included in this post.

Disclaimer: All nutrition facts on Gluten Free & More are meant only as a guide and may differ depending on product brands used or ingredient substitutions. Some errors may occur, so you are encouraged to confirm the recipe’s ingredient and nutrition suitability for your own diet.
Have you tried this recipe? Give it a star rating and let us know your thoughts in the Ratings & Reviews section below.
Tags: Dairy Free Gluten-Free Gluten-Free Recipes Pop Tarts Recipe
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  1. Sarah
    July 18, 2012

    Ah-mazing!!! Can you pls package these up and sell them frozen and ready to bake?!??

    1. Gluten Free & More
      July 20, 2012

      Haha – ok, will get right on that!

  2. Melody
    July 18, 2012

    Oh what a wonderfully brilliant woman you are! These look superb! I can’t WAIT to try making these for my husband and I. Do you think they would freeze unbaked (or maybe baked?) well to later pop them in the oven on different days? Wow I am so excited to try this!!! Oh, and totally unrelated but since you are hands down the best GF baker I’ve found…do you know of a good egg roll skin recipe that I could create? I am half Chinese and since going GF with my husband I have sorely missed my mom’s old recipe. Any help on that would be so appreciated. Thanks for all that you do and for sharing your wonderful ideas!

    1. Gluten Free & More
      July 20, 2012

      Thank you so much Melody! Yes, I think they would freeze beautifully. In fact beacuse we just gobble them up, I am going to do the same so that I only bake off a couple at a time – better for my waist line :)

      I have made egg rolls using rice paper before. They are not quite as easy to use but not hard – I just wrapped up my filling in rice paper (like what you use for spring rolls) and fried them up in hot oil. This is what they do at my local Thai place. They come out really crispy and light.

      Thank you for your lovely words!

  3. Emily
    July 19, 2012

    thank you so much for this recipe! my new hero :) my family will love these and even better…i’ll be able to eat them too!!

    1. Gluten Free & More
      July 20, 2012

      My pleasure Emily – enjoy!!!

  4. Lidia
    July 19, 2012

    Thank you and thank those g-kids! Love this.

    1. Gluten Free & More
      July 20, 2012

      You’re welcome Lidia and I will pass your thanks on to the g-kids!

  5. Anita
    July 20, 2012

    My kids are going to love these, thank you!

    1. Gluten Free & More
      July 20, 2012

      My pleasure Anita!

  6. Donna
    July 20, 2012

    Thank you, thank you, thank you! I always look forward to what you will come up with next and these…well, thank you!!!

    1. Gluten Free & More
      July 20, 2012

      Well Donna, you are welcome, welcome, welcome! Enjoy!

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  8. July 21, 2012

    I am going to the store today to buy shortening so I can make these. I’m so excited I haven’t had pop tarts in such a long time. And yes I agree you are the best GF baker!!

    1. Gluten Free & More
      July 22, 2012

      Oh, thank you HEather! Enjoy!

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  10. Kelly
    March 1, 2013

    These look delicious, however, with the egg in there it does not make it vegan (I did a search in google for gluten free vegan pop tarts and you were the first link that said vegan). Do you have any suggestions on how to make it vegan? Thanks!

    1. Gluten Free & More
      March 4, 2013

      I don’t know why this recipe would come up for a vegan recipe as it clearly isn’t and I don’t have it labeled or tagged that way – its a mystery! Anyway without having tried it, I would suggest using egg replacer. Ener G is a vegan egg replacer. Good luck!

  11. Mary W
    May 19, 2013

    Awesome that the g-kids thought of this. My son lived on poptarts for breakfast until he had to go gluten free. These will definatly be on the list to make soon. Also I am glad some one asked about egg replacer, since we are egg free too!

    1. Gluten Free & More
      May 21, 2013

      Great Mary! ENjoy.

  12. Minkey
    May 30, 2013

    Thank you so much.
    I love pop tarts and i take them to work. Two of my friends said they would love to try then but they cant have Gluten.
    I used the recipe and made 3 different flavors (strawberry, blackcurrant and cinnamon apple)
    I cooked them off packed then in packs of 2 like normal pop tarts and gave them to my friends the next day. They loved them and i gave them your recipe. their now going to make their own.
    I have to say I’m now looking at all the other cake recipe’s so i can make them something when we do bake sales.

    1. Gluten Free & More
      June 1, 2013

      Wow aren’t you the nicest friend! I am happy you were able to please your friends! Thank you.

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  15. Liberty
    July 15, 2015

    Hi, Carol!
    These look amazing! But is there any way to substitute for the rice flour? I’m allergic to rice. Do you think superfine sorghum flour would work okay in this recipe instead? Thanks in advance! :)

    1. Gluten Free & More
      July 24, 2015

      Liberty, Yea I think so! xo, Carol

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