It's almost February which means it's time to start celebrating Valentine's Day! This cute spin on a classic breakfast pastry is a must try for this time of year!

These delicious pop tarts are filled with cherry jam, maple syrup, and chocolate chunks. The blend of these flavors are seriously too good to be true. 

Ingredients

Dough:

• 4 cups flour
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 ½ cup vegetable shortening
• 1 egg
• ½ cup cold water

Egg wash:

• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon water

Filling:

• 1 jar of cherry jam
• 4 tablespoons Parker's Real Maple Syrup
• 1 cup milk or dark chocolate chunks

Icing:

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2-4 tablespoons milk
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla
• red food coloring
• valentine's day sprinkles

Directions 

1. In a food processor, pulse the flour, sugar, and salt until blended. Add the shortening and pulse just until the mix is crumbly. Add the egg and cold water and pulse just until blended.

2. Take dough out of processor and mold into flat disc. Wrap the disc in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator until cold (or about 30 minutes).

3. Once your dough is chilled, roll it out on a lightly floured surface until about 1/8 inch thick. Make sure your dough is not too thick, or else it will overtake the filling and make your pastry off balance. Take a large heart shaped cookie cutter and pop out pieces of dough hearts. Place them onto a parchment lined baking sheet.

4. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

5. To make the egg wash, just whisk the egg and water together until foamy. Brush half of the hearts on your sheet with the egg wash.

6. Fill a piping bag with the maple syrup and cherry jam and pipe a small amount of the jam (about 1 tablespoon worth) onto the tops of each egg-wash-brushed heart. Add a few pieces of chocolate chunks on top of the jam. Be sure not to overfill the tarts.

7. Top each filled heart with a dough heart that has not been egg washed. Seal the edges together with your fingers. With a fork, crimp the edges together along the entire heart. Repeat with remaining hearts.

8. Bake the pop tarts in your preheated oven for 15-18 minutes until the tops are golden brown and you can see the fruit jam bubbling out of the sides.

9. Make your icing while the tarts cool. In a small bowl, mix together the powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons milk, and vanilla. Add in more milk if needed. Begin adding food coloring until you reach desired color.

10. Add the icing to the piping bags immediately or cover with plastic wrap. If left out, the air will harden the glaze!

11. Pipe the glaze onto each pop tart and top with sprinkles. Then, enjoy!

Recipe adapted from: https://laurenconrad.com/blog/2017/02/recipe-box-homemade-heart-pop-tarts/