Let me start by telling you these raspberry mango pop tarts do not taste like the store-bought ones. The packaged ones are sugary "pastries" topped with an icing that never melts. I'll be honest, the kid in me sometimes wants one but since I'm a grown-up, I'm going to do one better. I'm going to make my own. My version includes a tangy raspberry mango jam for the filling and a perfect raspberry Meyer lemon frosting.  They may not be like the store-bought ones but these pop tarts are utterly delicious.

Recipe

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Raspberry Mango Pop Tarts

9 poptarts

Total Time2 hours hrs

Course: Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: tarts

Servings: 9

Author: Christine Ma

Ingredients

Pie dough

• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoon cold butter cut into small chunks
• ½ cup ice water

Raspberry mango jam

• 6 ounces raspberries
• 2 cups mango chunks
• zest of 1 Meyer lemon
• juice of ½ Meyer lemon
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 egg whisked with 1 tablespoon water

Raspberry Meyer lemon glaze

• 6 ounces raspberries
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 ½ cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoon Meyer lemon juice
• 2 tablespoon raspberry puree

Instructions

• Make the pie dough. Combine 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour with 1 teaspoon salt and 1 cup plus 2 tablespoon cold butter. Incorporate the butter with a pastry knife or with your hands, breaking up the butter and coating each piece with flour. The mixture should resemble coarse sand. Slowly add ½ cup ice water just until the dough comes together. Shape the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the raspberry mango jam. Heat 6 ounces raspberries with 2 cups mango, the zest of 1 Meyer lemon, the juice of ½ Meyer lemon, and ½ cup granulated sugar in a medium saucepot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce to medium-low and continue to simmer until almost all of the liquid has evaporated.
• Combine 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water and add to the jam. Simmer for 1 minute or until the jam is thick. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Lightly dust a clean work counter with flour. Roll out the pie dough to a large rectangle, slightly larger than 12x16 inches. Trim the edges and cut 3 rows of 6 rectangles (about 3x4 inches per rectangle). You should have a total of 18 rectangles.
• Place a heaping tablespoon of the jam on half of the rectangles, leaving a ¼ inch border. Whisk 1 egg with 1 tablespoon water and brush the egg wash on the edges of each rectangle. Place another rectangle on top of the ones with the jam and use a fork to crimp the edges.
• Lay the pop tarts on the prepared baking sheet. Chill the pop tarts for 30 minutes.
• Brush the egg wash on top of each of the pop tarts. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool slightly.
• Meanwhile, make the raspberry lemon glaze. Combine 6 ounces raspberries with 1 tablespoon water in a small saucepot. Cook the berries over medium heat until the raspberries have softened. Remove from heat and strain the puree to discard any seeds.
• Whisk together 1 ½ cup powdered sugar with 2 tablespoon raspberry puree and 2 tablespoon Meyer lemon juice until smooth. Spread the glaze on top of the pop tarts and serve.

**Helpful tips and common mistakes

To make my pop tarts extra special, I wanted to make a filling that you can't find at the market. Hence the raspberry mango jam. If that's not reason enough to make these pastries, I don't know what is.

Simmer raspberries with mango, Meyer lemon juice, and sugar until almost all of the liquid has evaporated. If raspberries and mango aren't in season, use frozen fruit instead. We need to make the filling thick so once the jam is almost done, add the cornstarch slurry mixture.  The jam will almost be like a paste with chunks of mango.

For more details on how to make a great pie crust dough, check out my earl pie recipe.

Roll out the chilled pie dough into a rectangle slightly larger than 12x16 inches. I say slightly larger because you're going to trim the edges to make a perfect rectangle. Cut the rectangle into 18 rectangles, each about 3x4 inches in size. You're going to place the filling on half of those rectangles and use the other half for the top layer.

Brush the edges of each rectangle with egg wash to help seal the raspberry mango pop tarts. Use a fork to crimp edges, giving you that signature pop tart look. Since we've been manhandling the dough for the past 20 minutes or so, give it a rest and let it chill in the fridge before baking.

While the pop tarts are baking, make the raspberry Meyer lemon glaze, the finishing touch. Cook down the raspberries and soften the fruit to extract the juices. You can lightly mash the fruit as it simmers to help it break down. Once the fruit is ready, strain it to remove the pulp and use the juices to make the beautiful frosting. The frosting should be fairly thick so that it doesn't just run off the pastry. Add a little more lemon juice or raspberry puree if the frosting is too thick.

Now it's finally time to bite into these homemade raspberry mango pop tarts. First off, let's start by saying kudos to you for making homemade pop tarts! Unlike the store-bought one, these pop tarts are not overly sweet. The slightly tangy raspberry mango jam compliments the raspberry Meyer lemon icing oh so perfectly, giving the perfect amount of sweetness. These may not be like the packaged ones but I'm betting you'll still them like regardless. I know I can't pull myself away from them...

For more dessert fun check out these peaches and cream hand pies!