I have a serious question.
Did you grow up on Pop-Tarts and toaster strudels — the world of frosting, sprinkles and icing in foil packages? Thank you, 90s.
I did, though I enjoyed them more as a snack than as breakfast. For before-school mornings, I preferred an English muffin smeared with peanut butter and honey. Sometimes with banana.
I’m still hooked on that. How boring.
If necessary, a cinnamon brown sugar Pop-Tart would do in a pinch. I clearly remember when s’mores Pop-Tarts hit the shelves — that was huge. The problem with Pop-Tarts for me was the unfrosted crust; I only wanted the sweet center, so I’d cut the rectangle smaller and eat only the frosted portion.
It never lived up to the memory.
This is a little embarrassing.
While pregnant I didn’t have strong cravings, but one day in the grocery store a Pop-Tart suddenly sounded fantastic. I bought a box. I toasted it. Brown sugar cinnamon, of course. It was… meh. Pretty gross, actually. Nostalgia didn’t save it.
I was never much of a toaster strudel person either — I didn’t like the icing on top — but the flakiness? That was something I loved. Not my own flakiness; the strudel’s.
These little pastry pockets are closer to a toaster strudel than a Pop-Tart, but they look Pop-Tart-ish — a hybrid of both, maybe. Since I’m on a temporary pie-crust break, puff pastry is my go-to (we were on a break!). I went puff pastry-crazy last year with tarts and I still love the buttery flakiness.
I’d love to make puff pastry from scratch, but I don’t have ten hours to roll butter into flour these days, so store-bought it is.
I made two versions of these little pockets. First up: smoked cheddar and tart cherry jam. I used a very sharp white smoked cheddar — use more cheese than you think you need. You’ll never regret extra cheese.
I had leftover tart cherry jam from American Spoon and simply dolloped spoonfuls strategically on the pastry, layered cheese over each dollop, topped with another sheet of pastry, sliced into squares, crimped the edges with a fork, baked and ate.
It is embarrassingly easy and wildly satisfying.
The other version I made is predictably chocolate-forward — perfect for summer, toasty and a little melty. But the smoked cheddar and cherry jam pockets are my favorite: sweet and tart jam meets smoky, savory cheese in a flaky little pocket, finished with a sprinkle of salt and cracked pepper.
They’re ideal as a snack, appetizer, breakfast or side, and dangerously easy to hoard. I won’t judge if you eat the whole batch yourself.
Smoked Cheddar and Cherry Jam Pastry Pop Tarts
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Ingredients
- 2 sheets puff pastry thawed
- 1/2 cup tart cherry jam
- 16 ounces smoked cheddar cheese, sliced
- 1 egg + 1 teaspoon water, lightly beaten
- salt and pepper, for sprinkling
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
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Place a sheet of parchment on your work surface. Lay one puff pastry sheet on top. Spoon 1 to 2 teaspoons of cherry jam in nine evenly spaced spots on the pastry (think tic-tac-toe). Place a cheese slice over each jam dollop. Cover with the remaining sheet of puff pastry. Use a large knife or pizza cutter to cut the pastry into nine squares around the fillings, then press the edges together with a fork.
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Brush the tops with the beaten egg wash and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
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Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool slightly, then serve. These are best enjoyed soon after baking.
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I appreciate you so much!
I totally want to use one of these as a raft in a river of melty cheddar.