Day 7 of the #365Recipes Project. And can I tell you something?
As soon as I pulled these poptarts from the oven, my shoulders dropped a bit. "Oh, no. They didn't work," I sighed.
They didn't look at all as I'd imagined them.
I'd imagined sparkling little mounds of blueberry pie. Sugar glazed Meyer Lemons, turned shiny from a quick turn in the oven. The right sort of poptarts any proper English woman would be proud to make, living in her French farmhouse in the middle of a blueberry vineyard. (Is this a thing? I'm pretty sure this is a thing.)
Instead, what came out of the oven looked like square shaped baked eggs. That little lemon round up top, the yolk. Do you see it?
It's like, how do you not?
So I nearly tossed the batch, chocked it up to failure. But snapped a few photos in the waning winter light. Pushed the batch to the back of the kitchen countertop. Started cleaning up in a sad little huff. (I am nonemotional. I am nonemotional. Kidding. Even in baking, there be emotion in this heart o' mine).
And it was somewhere between hands high with dish bubbles and elbows deep in elbow grease that my 14-yo cutie walked into the kitchen, snagged a discarded poptart from the pan, sat down at the kitchen, took one bite and exclaimed "MOM! WHAT ARE THESE THINGS? I WANT TO EAT THEM ALL!"
Which was weird, you know, because usually the kids take one look at my bloggy recipes and ask for mac & cheese. It's hard being a food photographers kid. You never get normal stuff.
Plus, adding lavender to poptarts seems a grown-uppy flavor thing. And so, I was certain she'd think them far too floral, the same way I felt when my mom made me try Choward's Violet Scented Gum, one of her favorite childhood treats. (Like, what? It tastes like flowers, not gum, mom.)
But, no, the 14-year-old said. These blueberry poptarts were lovely. She reached for another. So I grabbed one and took a bite.
Golden, flaky crust.
Sugared and glazed.
Wild honeyed blueberries spilling into each bite.
The kiss of Meyer Lemon.
The whisper of lavender.
Yeah, these things weren't poptarts. They were better than poptarts.
They were like a stylish English Sconemaker had a baby with a French Laundry baker, frosted with a haute Hostess frostinger.
I make new words when I run out of the right words.
And while I would not recommend you top your batch with a single Meyer Lemon slice, I would recommend you make these most immediately. Perhaps top them with two slices, or three. Or lemon shavings. Or a sprig of thyme and lavender. Or simply, sparkling sugar.
Because, we all need more wild blueberries in our life. Especially if they don't look like square fried eggs.
Lavender, Meyer Lemon & Wild Blueberry Poptarts
8 poptarts | 40 minutes
- 16 oz frozen wild blueberries (I used frozen, from Trader Joe's)
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1/3 cup raw honey
- 1 meyer lemon, juiced and zested
- 1 Tbsp creme de violette (or vanilla)
- 2 teaspoons dried lavender, divided
- 2 (22 oz) boxes pie refrigerated or frozen pie dough rounds (I used Trader Joe's)
- 1 egg, well beaten
- 1 meyer lemon, very finely sliced
- 3-4 Tbsp sparkling sugar
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp heavy cream or half-and-half
- 1 sprig fresh thyme, leaves pulled from stem (optional)
- Special Equipment: Fluted Square Nested Cutters
Heat oven to 400ºF.
In a large bowl, stir together cornstarch, honey, lemon zest, 1 Tbsp creme de violette and 1/2 tsp lavender.
Unroll 2 pie crusts and cut eight 3 or 4" squares. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Top with heaping mounds of the blueberry mixture (having it frozen-ish will help you pile it high), leaving about 1/2" pie crust around the edges. Brush edges with beaten egg.
Unroll 2 more pie crusts and cut 1/2-1" larger than the initial squares. Gently drape over the blueberry mounds. Press edges together firmly, sealing top and bottom crusts together. Brush with egg, place a lemon slice or 2 atop each tart, brush with egg white again and sprinkle generously with sparkling sugar.
Bake for 20-24 minutes, or until edges of poptarts begin to turn golden brown. Remove and cool slightly.
Whisk together powdered sugar, juice of 1 lemon, 1/2 tsp lavender, heavy cream and just enough water to make a smooth, thin icing. Drizzle icing over warm tarts. Garnish with additional lavendar and/or thyme leaves.
