I don’t usually know what I am going to make for these posts until a few minutes beforehand. It seems weird but I will be lying in bed and suddenly think “I want to make pie pops!” 

So I’ll hop out of bed like a kid on Christmas morning, run to the store, and buy all the supplies. 

On this recent excursion, I perused two different stores for the lollipop sticks but they were nowhere to be found. In a last ditch effort, I stood in the crafts aisle, staring blankly down at a 1000 count bag of popsicle sticks, wondering if they could work. No. Drat! Okay, I would have to forgo the stick.

Without getting discouraged I moved on to find my cookie cutter. I was hoping to get a cute circular shape with a ruffled edge so I marched down the baking aisle. Nothing. I moved back to the crafting section. Not there either. Standing in the middle of the store near the electronics I decided pie pops are for wimps, I was going to make poptarts!

I scurried home, my ingredients tucked neatly under my arm and got to work. I cut and scooped, swiped and slathered, spread and poked til my kitchen was nice and hot from the oven and summer heat. I plopped those babies onto the rack and set the timer to wait. 

Twenty minutes later, the buzzer sounded, and I proudly yanked open that oven door. My jaw dropped when I saw the perfectly plumped pastries resting on the cookie sheet. I pulled them out and stared at their crispy, golden edges, their rich smell permeating the room. These weren’t poptarts. Darn!

I took off down the hall, found AJ in the bedroom and asked “What are those other breakfast toaster things that aren’t poptarts?” Strudels. 

Toaster Strudels

Serves 8

For the crust

For the filling

For the icing

For the icing, beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract together. Spoon the glaze into a small Ziploc bag and seal. Snip a small hole in one corner of the bag and pipe desired amount onto each pastry.

Preheat oven to 350°

Unfold one sheet of puff pastry onto a well-floured work surface, continuing to flour the work surface as necessary throughout the rolling/trimming process. Roll out the pastry to form a very large, thin rectangle. Trim the edges of the dough to make a 10 x 14 inch rectangle. Using a knife or pizza cutter, cut out 8 (3-1/2 x 5 inch) rectangles.

Transfer 4 of the rectangles to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Spoon a scant 2 tablespoons of either the strawberry, apricot, or chocolate filling into the center of these. Spread the filling evenly across the pastry, leaving a 1/2-inch space clean around the perimeter. Brush the other 4 rectangles with the egg wash. Place an egg washed rectangle directly over a filled rectangle (egg wash touching the filling). Using your fingertips, firmly seal the edges on all sides (dip your fingers in a little flour if the dough is sticky). Continue with the rest of the rectangles. Prick each strudel all over with a fork, including the sealed edges. Repeat this step with the second sheet of puff pastry.

Bake the strudels until puffed and golden brown, about 20 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes on a wire rack before eating. Frost and serve warm.

{adapted from thekitchn}