These berry pop tarts are a healthy twist on a nostalgic favorite! Filled with fruity chia jam and wrapped in a light, golden crust, they’re just as delicious as the ones you loved as a kid, but made with wholesome ingredients. Perfect for a fun breakfast, snack or dessert!
Key Ingredients
- Berries. I like to use fresh berries because they tend to have more flavour then frozen berries. Use any combination of berries that you like. I use strawberries and blueberries.
- Ground chia seeds. They’re used to thicken the jam and act as an egg replacer in the pastry.
- Almond flour. Keeps the pastry light.
- Tapioca starch. Binds the pastry and creates a light crunch to the outside of the pastry.
- Coconut oil. It needs to be solid. I like to measure it when it’s liquid and then put it into the fridge to harden.
- Maple syrup. Naturally sweetens the jam and the pastry. It also helps to keep the pastry moist and bind it together.
- Almond milk. Lightly brush the top of the pastry before baking to give it a golden colour. Usually an egg wash is used but this is a vegan alternative.
- Icing sugar. Mix it with a bit of almond milk to make a glaze for the pop tarts.
- Sprinkles. I like to use all natural sprinkles by Watkins (not sponsored).
How To Make The Berry Chia Jam
Since I’ve started making chia jam I can’t go back to store bought. It’s wonderfully thick, full of flavour and packed with fiber. I like using ground chia seeds instead of whole seeds because they’re easier to digest and are unnoticeable in the jam. It only takes 20 minutes to make and stays fresh in the fridge for up to a week. This recipe can easily be doubled if you want leftovers. The basic steps are:
- Add the berries to a small pot, cover with a lid and heat on medium, stirring occasionally.
- After about 15 minutes the berries will have released a lot of liquid and should be soft. Add the maple syrup, vanilla extract and ground chia seeds. Stir and set aside to cool.
- Transfer to a container and place into the fridge. The jam will thicken more as it cools.
How To Make The Pop Tarts
The pastry for these pop tarts has 5 ingredients – almond flour, tapioca starch, maple syrup, coconut oil and ground chia seeds. It’s important that the coconut oil is solid. These are the basic steps with more detailed steps in the recipe card.
- Make a chia egg by mixing together ground chia seeds and water.
- Mix the almond flour, tapioca starch and sea salt.
- Use a pastry cutter to cut in the coconut oil into the flour. The flour should look crumbly without any large chunks of coconut oil. See the first photo below.
- Add the maple syrup and chia egg. Combine and form into a ball.
- Cover with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Roll the dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper to 1/8″ thickness.
- Cut into 16 rectangles measuring 3″x 4″. Place 8 of them on the baking sheet.
- Spread the chia jam on top and cover with the remaining pastry.
- Use a fork to press the sides together and poke a few airholes in the top. Brush with almond milk.
- Bake at 350F for 30 minutes until golden brown.
Why You Will Love These Pop Tarts
✓ Simple, whole ingredients
✓ Thick and fresh berry jam
✓ Not too sweet
✓ Nostalgic
✓ Versatile
✓ Great for school lunches, snacks or dessert
✓ Allergy friendly
Looking For More Berry Recipes?
I hope that you enjoy this recipe and if you make it, your feedback is always appreciated! Please leave a comment and star rating below. If you have questions please ask me in the comment section and I will get back to you ASAP. Thank you so much for stopping by and happy eating always!
Homemade Berry Pop Tarts (Vegan, Gluten Free)
Light, flakey pastry filled with a delicious and healthy berry chia jam.
Ingredients
Berry Chia Jam
- 1 cup chopped strawberries
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 tablespoons ground chia seeds
Pop tarts
- 2 tablespoons ground chia seeds
- 6 tablespoons water (to mix with the ground chia)
- 2 1/2 cups almond flour
- 1 cup tapioca flour
- 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 cup solid coconut oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 tablepoons almond milk (to brush on top)
Icing
- 1/2 cup icing sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons almond milk
- sprinkles
Instructions
Berry chia jam
- The jam can be made the day of or 1-2 days before. Place the fruit into a small pot on medium heat and cover with a lid. Stir occasionally. Once it starts to bubble keep the lid ajar and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring periodically. The fruit will release a lot of liquid. It's done when the fruit is soft enough to easily squish with the back of a spoon.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the maple syrup and vanilla extract. Add the ground chia seeds and stir. The chia seeds will absorb most of the liquid.
- Let the jam cool and place it into a container, in the fridge. It will continue to thicken as it cools. This recipe can easily be doubled if you want to have leftover jam. Put it into a glass jar and it will stay good for up to a week in the fridge.
Pop Tarts
- In a small bowl mix the ground chia seeds and water. Let it sit for 10-15 minutes to thicken.
- In a medium sized bowl add the almond flour, tapioca flour and sea salt. Stir until there are no clumps.
- Using a pastry cutter, cut the solid coconut oil into the flour. As the coconut oil softens you can use your hands to mix it with the flour. There should be small chunks of coconut oil mixed with the flour, no larger than a small pea. Add the maple syrup and the chia mixture. Mix gently until the dough comes together and then use your hands to form it into a ball. Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Once the dough has chilled preheat to oven to 350℉. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Roll the dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper to 1/8" thick. Use a pizza cutter or knife to cut out rectangles 3"x 4". Use an offset spatula to carefully place 8 rectangles onto the baking sheet. Gather the leftover dough and roll out again, cutting out the rest of the dough. You should have 16 altogether.
- Scoop 1-2 tablespoons of jam onto the 8 rectangles, leaving a border around the edges. Place the remaining 8 pieces of dough on top. Use a fork to press the edges together and make a few holes on the top of the pop tarts for air to escape. Brush lightly with almond milk.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes until the edges brown and the jam is bubbling. Let them cool on the pan for 15 minutes and then transfer them to a cooling rack. They should be completely cooled before icing.
Icing
- If you're planning on storing the pop tarts for a few days, add the icing on the day they're to be eaten. To make the icing whisk together the icing sugar and almond milk. Add more milk if you want a thin icing and more icing sugar if you would like a thick icing. Top with sprinkles. Keep the uniced pop tarts in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 days. I recommend reheating them in the oven to crisp the outside. Enjoy!
Notes
*Any combination of berries can be used. I’ve made them with strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries and they all turned out great.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 pop tart | Calories: 386kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 26g | Sodium: 42mg | Potassium: 106mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 12IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 104mg | Iron: 2mg
I look forward to trying these. Can they also be frozen?
Thank you for your comment Kate! They can be frozen but I recommend reheating them directly from frozen. The pastry will get very soft when defrosted.
these look very yummy. Is there any chance the fresh fruit could be used instead of making the jam?
thanks.
Thank you Jacquie! I wouldn’t recommend using fresh fruit. I think that it will give off too much liquid and there won’t be much filling left. Store bought jam can be used if you’re looking for a quicker version.