I’ve heard people talk about making homemade pop tarts forever, but never actually believed they could taste all that much better. I mean, isn’t there something oh so familiar about a box of pop tarts? Why would you want to make your own? Those thoughts vanished, however, once I made these Bananas Foster Pop Tarts.
Homemade is sooooo much better and I can only imagine that this sings true of other flavors; strawberry, blueberry, rhubarb, etc. The Bananas Foster Pop Tarts are flakey and light and the oozing of the butter, brown sugar, bananas and rum will have your heart beating in sheer happiness as the warm treat takes up real estate inside your body.
And if you’re unable to have the rum because you’re pregnant, nursing, or just avoiding alcohol in general you can easily use an imitation rum flavoring in lieu of the alcohol. I’d say no more than 1 tsp though- that stuff is strong.
- 1 refrigerated pie crust (containing 2) or make homemade
- Filling:
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- ½ cup brown sugar ( I used light but would've preferred using dark)
- 2 ripe bananas, cut into ¼-inch rounds
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- ¼ cup dark rum
- Glaze:
- 1 cup confectioners sugar
- brown sugar (for topping)
- Place a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet and set aside.
- Begin by rolling out your pie crust. Cut into rectangles approximately 5 inches long by 3 inches wide. Cut 2 pieces for each pop tart.
- Melt the butter and sugar in a saute pan over medium heat until the butter has melted and the sugar is combined. Add bananas, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and vanilla, and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and add the run. NOTE: If you add the rum to the hot liquid and using a gas range, the vapors will ignite so be careful.
- Add about 1-1½ tbsp of mixture to each of the pop tart bases, careful not to extend to the edges. Place the 2nd layer of pie crust on the top of the bananas mixture and crimp the edges with a fork and pierce the center of the pop tarts to vent.
- Bake at 425 degrees for 8-10 mins or until the pop tarts are golden brown. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before adding the glaze.
- To make the glaze, simply combine 1 cup confectioners sugar and 2-3 tbsp of water to get the consistency desired. Add the water gradually (1 tsp at a time) and whisk vigorously- add more water as needed. Add ½ tsp of imitation rum to the glaze. Pour the glaze over the pop tarts and sprinkle with brown sugar. Serve warm!
I made these with a refrigerated pie crust, but the next time around I’m going to make the crust used in this pie. I am absolutely certain that I will never eat another pop tart out of a box again and I am so excited about all the variations that you can make! I could start a serious Southern collection of pop tarts; King Cake, Pecan Praline, Bananas Foster….I could go on and on and on.
Seriously easily and I don’t know why I waited so long to play around with some unconventional pop tart flavorings. I guess I just needed the inspiration to “pop” into my brain. Get it? Pop. Like a pop tart.
I crack myself up sometimes.
What about you, have you ever tried your hand at pop tarts?
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