Chocolate Raspberry Pop Tarts (Vegan, Gluten Free)

Ingredients

Raspberry Filling

2 cups fresh raspberries
3 tablespoons ground chia seeds, see notes
3 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pop Tarts

2 tablespoons ground chia seeds
6 tablespoons water, to mix with the chia seeds
2 1/2 cups almond flour
3/4 cup tapioca flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder, sifted
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup solid coconut oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tablepoons almond milk, to brush on top before baking

Icing

1/2 cup icing sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons cocoa powder, sifted
1-2 tablespoons almond milk
handful sprinkles, optional

Instructions

Raspberry Filling

The filling can be made the day of or 1-2 days before. Place the raspberries in a small pot on medium heat and cover with a lid. Once it starts to bubble use a fork to mash the berries. Add the maple syrup, lemon juice and vanilla extract. Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the ground chia seeds and stir. It will thicken right away. Transfer to a bowl and place into the fridge.

Pop tarts

In a small bowl mix the ground chia seeds and water. Let it sit for 10 minutes to thicken.
In the meantime, in a medium sized bowl add the almond flour, tapioca flour, cocoa powder and sea salt. Stir until there are no clumps.
Using a pastry cutter, cut the solid coconut oil into the flour. You can also use your hands to mix it, as the heat of your hands helps to soften the coconut oil. When mixed, it should have the texture of damp sand with chunks of coconut oil no larger then a small pea. Add the maple syrup and the chia mixture. Mix until the dough comes together. I find using my hands to mix works best. Form it into a ball and wrap the with plastic wrap. Flatten it into a disc 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 until it is no thicker then 1/8". It may seem quite thin but this dough is quite strong and pliable. Use a heart cookie cutter to cut out the dough. Use an offset spatula to transfer 12 of them to the baking sheet. Gather the leftover dough and roll out again, cutting out the rest of the dough. You should have 24 pieces altogether.
Scoop 1-2 tablespoons of raspberry filling onto 12 hearts, leaving a border around the edges. Place the remaining 12 pieces of dough on top. Use a small 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 25 minutes. 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

Whisk together the icing sugar and cocoa powder. Slowly add the almond milk until you reach the desired consistency. Spread on top of the pop tarts. Top with sprinkles. Another icing option is to drizzle melted chocolate on top.
Store the pop tarts in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 days. The day they are baked they will have a crisp outside. The following days they become more soft. If left uniced they can be heated in the oven to crisp up. Enjoy!

Notes

*I use white chia seeds (instead of black) to keep the filling a bright red color.

*The size of the cookie cutter I used was 3" x 3.5" and I was able to make 12 pop tarts.

Nutrition