Homemade Birthday Pop Tarts

Homemade birthday pop tarts are a cheery delight, turning frozen pie crust and creamy birthday-cake frosting into crisp-edged, soft-centered, rainbow-sprinkled goodness. Easy enough for a weekend baking activity, festive enough for a birthday brunch, party dessert or edible gift.

This birthday cake Pop-Tarts recipe yields eight tidy rectangles topped with a soft-setting vanilla frosting. The trick is to keep the contents cool, leave a neat border and give each pastry a firm fingertip closure and a fork crimp before it hits the oven.

Why These Homemade Birthday Pop Tarts Work

A cold frozen pie crust gives them a tender-crisp bite and they don’t require a whole from-scratch dough. The frosting filling gives the birthday-cake flavor and the jimmies give it color and don’t make the middle watery. Chilling the formed tarts before baking firm up the butter in the crust, so the rectangles will retain their shape and the seams will have less time to open.

The glazing is intended to be thick. It needs a small bit of milk to be spreadable but you add it in carefully so the icing sits on top instead of sliding down the sides. Use different-colored sprinkles for a creative presentation or a topping that coordinates with the birthday theme. Same filling idea works for puff pastry birthday Pop-Tarts if you want a taller, airier pastry. Keep the crust cold and expect a quicker bake. This pie crust technique guide is a handy resource for dependable sealing and venting tips.

Homemade Birthday Pop Tarts

Golden homemade pop tarts filled with birthday-cake cream cheese frosting, glazed with vanilla icing, and covered in rainbow sprinkles.

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 18 minutes mins

Additional time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 13 minutes mins

Servings: 8 pop tarts

Course: Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Calories: 310

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

Pastry

• 1 package (2 crusts) refrigerated pie crusts kept cold
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour for rolling
• 1 large egg beaten for egg wash
• 1 teaspoon water mixed with egg

Filling

• 3/4 cup birthday-cake flavored cream cheese frosting cold
• 2 tablespoons rainbow jimmies plus more for topping

Glaze

• 1 cup powdered sugar sifted
• 2 tablespoons milk plus more by the teaspoon if needed
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon rainbow sprinkles for topping

Equipment

• large rimmed baking sheet
• parchment paper
• Rolling Pin
• pizza cutter or sharp knife
• Fork
• pastry brush
• cooling rack
• mixing bowls

Method

 

1. Heat the oven to 400 F and line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Roll each cold crust into an 8-by-10-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Cut each into eight rectangles about 2 1/2 by 4 inches.
2. Place eight rectangles on the pan. Spoon a scant tablespoon of cold birthday-cake frosting into the center of each, then scatter a few jimmies over the filling. Leave a clean 1/2-inch border on every side.
3. Beat the egg with water and brush the bare border. Cover each with a second rectangle, press outward to remove air pockets, seal with your fingertips, and crimp all four sides with a fork. Cut three small vents in each top.
4. Brush the tops lightly with egg wash and chill the tray for 15 minutes. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, rotating once, until lightly golden with deeper color around the crimped edges.
5. Cool the pastries on the pan for 5 minutes, then move them to a rack for at least 10 minutes. Whisk powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla into a thick glaze. Spread it over the cool pastries and finish with rainbow sprinkles.

Notes

• Store fully cooled glazed pastries in a covered container at room temperature for up to 2 days, with parchment between layers.
• Freeze baked pastries without glaze for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature, warm gently if desired, cool, then glaze and sprinkle.
• Warm unglazed pastries in a 300 F oven for 5 to 8 minutes. Avoid a slot toaster because the sweet filling and glaze can drip or burn.

Ingredient Notes

• Refrigerated pie crust: Keep the crust cold and work with one round at a time. A short rest in the refrigerator makes scraps easier to handle and reduces shrinkage.
• Birthday-cake frosting: Use a thick, cold cream cheese or buttercream-style frosting. Avoid a loose whipped frosting, which can spread into the seam.
• Rainbow jimmies: Jimmies hold their color and shape inside the filling better than tiny nonpareils. Keep extra sprinkles for the glaze.
• Egg wash: The beaten egg and water help the pastry layers stick and encourage even browning. Brush only on bare dough, never over the filling.
• Allergen note: This recipe contains wheat, egg, and milk. Check frosting and sprinkle labels when baking for someone with an allergy.

How to Make Homemade Birthday Pop Tarts

If frosting touches the edge, wipe it away before adding egg wash. Any filling or flour on the seam can keep the pastry from bonding. Press the top gently from the center toward the edge so trapped air has a way to escape before you crimp.

Do not judge the pastry by the filling alone. The frosting will be very hot when the tarts come out, and it firms as it cools. Letting the pastries rest also protects the glaze from melting into a thin, shiny film. This is especially useful when you want Funfetti homemade Pop-Tarts that can be arranged on a dessert table without the icing sliding off.

For a giant birthday Pop-Tart cake, make one large rectangle instead of eight small ones, but keep the same clean-border, double-seal, vent, and chill technique. Increase baking time as needed and watch the center for a fully set crust. Let the large pastry cool fully before glazing, then cut it into party-sized squares with a sharp knife.

Save This Recipe

Save this recipe for the next birthday breakfast, bake sale, or party dessert so you have a colorful homemade treat ready to make.