STRAWBERRY CHEESECAKE LOVE-TARTS
Pastry tarts with a homemade strawberry jam filling, topped with rich cream cheese glaze.
Ingredients:
Pastry
2.5 C all purpose flour
6 tbsp marigold margarine, chilled and cubed
3⁄4 C prize, chilled
1⁄2 C ice cold water
Filling
2 C strawberries, fresh or frozen
1⁄4 C sugar, or little more to taste
1 tbsp fresh basil or rosemary, finely chopped, optional
1 tsp ground nutmeg or cinnamon, or both
2 tsp corn starch, dissolved in 1 tbsp jam mixture
Few drops of fresh lemon juice, optional
Glaze
2 oz full-fat cream cheese*
1⁄4 cup marigold, melted and cool
1 cup powdered sugar
1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract
2-4 tbsp whole milk, as needed
*The glaze doesn’t fully harden because of the cream cheese, but it’s worth it for that delicious
cream cheese flavour. If you want a glaze that will harden, omit the cream cheese.
Directions:
To make the pastry dough
First, mix the flour and salt together in a large bowl. Add cold marigold and prize. Using a pastry
cutter (or two forks), cut the butter and shortening until crumbly. Slowly drizzle the cold water,
stirring with a large spatula after every addition. Stop adding water when the dough begins to
clump.
Roll out the dough on a floured work surface. The dough should come together easily and should
not be super sticky nor dry and crumbly. Form the dough into two even balls. Wrap each tightly in
cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight before using.
Filling:
Combine berries, sugar, lemon juice and herb (if using) in a small sauce pan. Bring to a simmer
over medium-low heat. Use a potato masher to break down the berries a bit, don’t mash it entirely
to a pulp – we want some of those juicy chunks of strawberries in there.
Remove 1 tbsp of your jam mixture and mix with corn-starch in a separate bowl – make sure it
dissolves well and there are no clumps. Add corn-starch mixture back to the pot and stir well. Let
the jam cook for about 10-15mins until the mixture has thickened, stirring occasionally so the jam
does not burn. Adjust sugar to taste.
Remove mixture from heat to a jar and let cool, the jam will thicken further as it cools.
Glaze:
In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the melted marigold and powdered
sugar and beat again. Add the vanilla and milk, continuing to beat until you reach the desired
consistency.
Assembly and Baking:
Remove 1 chilled pastry dough from the refrigerator and allow it to sit at room temperature for
15 minutes.
Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle 9 x 12 inches (about 1/8inches thick)
Trim the sides and then cut each piece of dough into thirds lengthwise and each third into thirds
again crosswise – you should end up with 9 rectangles, each measuring 4×3 inches. Use a ruler to
help make this process easier and more accurate.
Place each of the 9 rectangles onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, refrigerate and
repeat the previous steps for the second pastry dough.
Brush egg wash over the entire surface of each rectangle from the 1st ball. These will be the
bottoms of your pop-tarts and the egg wash will seal the top parts. Place about a tablespoon of
your jam in the centre of each rectangle, spread it around – leave at least 1⁄4 inch space free around
the edges. Place each rectangle from the 2nd batch on top of the filling-topped rectangles and
press the edges firmly to seal the dough. Do a second seal of the edges using a fork.
Using a fork or tooth pick, poke a few holes in the tops of each filled pastry to allow the steam to
escape. Allow the tarts to rest but refrigerating uncovered for at least 25 minutes.
Remove tarts from the refrigerator and brush the tops with the remaining egg wash. Bake for
about 28 minutes at 350F/180C or until they’re golden brown; rotate the pan halfway through
baking. Let the baked pop-tarts cool on the pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack
to cool completely before glazing.
Use a tablespoon utensil to pour glaze, drizzling from the centre only. The glaze may run off to the
sides a bit so it’s always better to add little by little. You can help spread the glaze using the bottom
of the spoon or a mini spatula. Top with your favourite sprinkles and enjoy!