Mini Apple Butter Pop Tarts (Vegan + GF)

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Mini apple butter pop tarts on a baking sheet next to a bowl of apple butter

Subtly sweet, a little toasty, and totally nostalgic are all perfect descriptors for fall and for these mini apple butter pop tarts! Whether you grew up eating pop tarts or not, these vegan and gluten-free treats are sure to steal your heart. 

They’re buttery, flaky, cinnamon-infused, and everything you want in a fall treat. Plus, they’re surprisingly easy to make and require just 9 ingredients. We hope you love them as much as we do! Let’s pop to it!

Vegan butter, almond flour, apple butter, sorghum flour, arrowroot starch, maple syrup, cinnamon, brown rice flour, and sugar

How to Make Gluten-Free Pop Tarts

The flaky gluten-free dough for these pop tarts relies on a combination of gluten-free flours for a balance of structure and tenderness: almond flour, brown rice flour, sorghum flour, and arrowroot starch. Sea salt and cinnamon add flavor to the dough.

Food processor with cubes of vegan butter over blended flours

You can make the dough in a bowl using a pastry cutter or fork, but our preferred method uses a food processor. Not only is it easier, but it quickly breaks up the vegan butter while keeping it cold, which maximizes flakiness!

Apple butter, cinnamon, and maple syrup in a food processor with gluten-free flours and vegan butter

Next we add apple butter and maple syrup to the dough, which provides moisture and natural sweetness.

Gluten-free vegan pop tart dough in a food processor

Then we roll out the dough and cut it into cute little squares. Starting to look like pop tarts, right!?

Using a knife to cut dough into squares

A dollop of apple butter goes between two squares of dough, and then we crimp and seal the edges with a fork.

Squares of dough topped with apple butter next to mini pop tarts

A final “x” on the top allows steam to escape during baking and prevents cracking.

Mini pop tarts on a baking sheet with x's scored in the centers and edges crimped

Pop them in the oven and get ready because gluten-free pop tarts are really happening, friends!

Apples, cinnamon, sugar, and apple butter around a baking sheet of homemade apple pop tarts

We hope you LOVE these apple butter pop tarts! They’re:

Flaky
Buttery
Perfectly sweet
Subtly spiced
Perfect for fall
& SO nostalgic!

Make a batch for a special weekend treat or enjoy all week long by reheating in a toaster oven. They would also make a delicious and decadent dessert topped with Creamy Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream or Coconut Whipped Cream.

More Apple Recipes

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo @minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!

Stack of flaky gluten-free apple butter pop tarts

Mini Apple Butter Pop Tarts (Vegan + GF)

Buttery, flaky, cinnamon-infused mini pop tarts with a sweet apple butter filling! The perfect vegan and gluten-free treat for apple season, with just 9 ingredients required!
Author Minimalist Baker
Print
Stack of gluten-free pop tarts filled with apple butter
5 from 3 votes
Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 12 (mini pop tarts)
Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine Gluten-Free, Vegan
Freezer Friendly 1 month
Does it keep? 1 Week

Ingredients

DOUGH

  • 2/3 cup almond flour (we prefer Wellbee's)
  • 1/2 cup brown rice flour*
  • 1/2 cup sorghum flour* (plus extra for rolling out)
  • 1/2 cup arrowroot starch* (also called arrowroot flour)
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup vegan butter, cold and cubed (we used Miyoko’s)
  • 1/4 cup apple butter (or sub store-bought*)
  • 1-2 Tbsp maple syrup

FILLING

  • 1/2 cup apple butter (or sub store-bought*)
  • 1 Tbsp maple syrup (optional if apple butter is unsweetened)
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional if apple butter has no cinnamon)

TOPPING optional

  • Cane sugar (organic for vegan-friendly)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside. Also prep your “rolling” station by placing a piece of parchment or wax paper on a clean work surface and dusting it generously with sorghum flour.
  • DOUGH: In a food processor (or mixing bowl) combine the almond flour, brown rice flour, sorghum flour, arrowroot starch, salt, and cinnamon. Pulse (or whisk) to thoroughly combine. Add the vegan butter and pulse (or use a pastry cutter or fork) to combine until crumbly.
  • Add 1/4 cup (60 g) apple butter (adjust amount if altering the default number of servings) and maple syrup (starting with the lesser amount) and pulse until the mixture comes together into a moist dough ball and there are no obvious streaks of flour. If it seems too dry and isn’t holding together when pressed between your fingers, add the additional tablespoon of maple syrup.
  • Working quickly, transfer the dough to your floured parchment or wax paper. Dust the top generously with more sorghum flour and press into a thick, even disk. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a rectangle ~1/8-inch thick and about 10×15 inches, adding more flour as needed to prevent sticking.
  • Use a knife, pizza cutter, or small cookie cutter to cut the dough into 24 even squares (or circles).
  • Transfer the dough (still on the parchment/wax paper) to a baking sheet and pop in the freezer for about 5-8 minutes. This will help it firm up and become easier to assemble. If using unsweetened/unspiced apple butter, combine it with the optional maple syrup and cinnamon and set nearby.
  • Once firm, begin assembling! Using a spatula to pick up each piece, carefully place one rectangle of dough onto the prepared baking sheet and add ~1 tsp of apple butter to the center of the dough, leaving half an inch of dough on the outside. Then place another rectangle on top. Repeat this with the rest of the dough, then use your fingers or a fork to crimp and seal all the edges. Use a paring knife to cut a small X into the center of each pop tart (to prevent cracking) and sprinkle cane sugar on each pop tart (optional).
  • Bake the pop tarts for 18-22 minutes until the edges are golden and the tops look soft and pale. Let cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.
  • Let cool fully before storing leftover pop tarts lightly covered at room temperature for 2-3 days, in the refrigerator for 1 week, or in the freezer for 1 month. Reheat in a 350 F (176 C) oven (or toaster oven) for best texture.

Video

Notes

*If you’d prefer to use another gluten-free flour blend, you can use 1 ½ cups of our DIY Gluten-Free Flour Blend in place of the brown rice flour, sorghum flour, and arrowroot starch. We haven’t tested with store-bought brands, but Bob’s Red Mill 1-1 Gluten-Free Baking Flour would be the most similar to our DIY Blend – let us know if you try it!
*The closest sub for sorghum flour would be oat flour, but we haven’t tested it in this recipe.
*We tested these with Tap’n Apple Apple Butter Spread and it worked perfectly! If using a store-bought apple butter that’s pre-sweetened with cane sugar, reduce initial bake time to 15 minutes as the pop tarts will bake more quickly.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated with the lesser amount of maple syrup and without optional ingredients.

Nutrition (1 of 12 servings)

Serving: 1 mini pop tart Calories: 186 Carbohydrates: 22.2 g Protein: 2.2 g Fat: 10.2 g Saturated Fat: 5.6 g Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.9 g Monounsaturated Fat: 2.1 g Trans Fat: 0 g Cholesterol: 0 mg Sodium: 143 mg Potassium: 89 mg Fiber: 2.6 g Sugar: 6.4 g Vitamin A: 5 IU Vitamin C: 0 mg Calcium: 24 mg Iron: 0.5 mg

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  1. Jane River says

    Hi, I was wondering if you can make these into berry pop-tarts? Our family is gluten free so the other pop-tarts on your website are not something we can make. Should I just make the filling for the berry ones and then add it in instead of the apple butter?

    Thanks.

    P.S. I LOVE your website, and its a go-to for basically anything gf, df or vegan so thank you for the GREAT recipes!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Thank you so much for your kind words, Jane! We’re so glad you enjoy our recipes. We think using the berry filling would work well. We’re not sure about using it in the dough as it may discolor it and not have the same texture. Maybe try 2 Tbsp applesauce (which won’t have as strong of a flavor as apple butter and will just be for texture) + a little water only if needed to help the dough come together. We’d love to hear if you try it!

  2. prashanthi atluri says

    I love apple butter and have been wondering what I can make with it. I recently saw this recipe and have been wondering if this can be made oil-fee. This looks sooo good!!!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi, we aren’t sure of a way to make a pie crust that’s crispy yet oil-free, sorry!

  3. Nicole Militello says

    Unfortunately, I have never baked anything vegan and therefore do not have many of these flours. I do not mind buying them but, I would like to first try making this with what I have at home. We are a gluten-free family and we have “Pamela’s pancake mix” that has many of the ingredients listed to make most of your recipes. I was wondering if you have ever used this company. I will list the ingredients to her pancake mix.

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Nicole! We haven’t tried Pamela’s Pancake Mix and aren’t sure how it would work in this recipe!

  4. Meg says

    Hi! Looking to try this recipe and wondered about making ahead and refrigerating or freezing and popping in the oven when we want them? Was just curious if anyone had tried that with success. Love to find new individual desserts that can be prepped and allow us to spend more time with guests. 🙌🏻

  5. Michelle W says

    These little cuties are very good and fairly simple. I made two batches and here’s what worked best for me. Measuring these little squares made my brain hurt, but in the end it was easiest to roll out a 10×10 square and cut it into 25 (fairly) even pieces. Putting the cut dough in the freezer for just a few minutes seemed to dry it out. I think it’s better to work quickly and not freeze if you can. I used Kime’s apple butter at Whole Foods. It’s the cheapest and was totally fine.

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Michelle, we’re so glad you enjoyed them. Thanks so much for the lovely review and for sharing your tips! xo

  6. Erica says

    I baked these in my air fryer and they were delicious! I did 8 minutes at 360 degrees Fahrenheit, and it was delicious 😋 (I preheated it first)

  7. Kirilly says

    Hi, This recipe looks delicious and I am excited to try it! I just wanted to clarify, if the recipe as written makes 12 pop tarts, shouldn’t we cut the dough into 24 squares rather than the 12 stated in the instructions, so that there is a top and bottom piece for each pop tart? Maybe I am missing something or have misunderstood the instructions?
    Thank you!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Kirilly, thank you for catching this! You are correct, the dough should be cut into 24 pieces to make the mini pop tarts! We hope you enjoy them!

  8. Annie Watson says

    Hello! This looks delicious! I was wondering if anyone has made them with AP or whole wheat pastry dough? We don’t have any problem with gluten and if I can use what I have on hand, that would be great.

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Annie, we used a combination of whole wheat + all purpose in this similar recipe. We haven’t tested this apple butter version with all purpose flour, but we think it should work! We’d estimate you’d need ~1 3/4 – 2 cups all purpose flour if replacing all the flours, or 1 1/2 cups if keeping the almond flour and just replacing the other GF flours. Let us know if you try it!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Amanda, we haven’t tested it with all purpose flour, but it might work! We’d estimate you’d need ~1 3/4 – 2 cups if replacing all the flours, or 1 1/2 cups if keeping the almond flour and just replacing the other GF flours. Let us know if you try it!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Erica, we haven’t tested it that way, but it might work. If you try it, we’d suggest adding only 1/3 cup more gluten-free flour blend since it’s more absorbent than almond. Let us know if you try it!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Kat, perhaps a seed flour or you could try adding ~1 1/2 – 2 Tbsp more of each of the other flour. However, we haven’t tested it that way and can’t guarantee it will turn out the same. Let us know if you try it!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Nicole, we haven’t tested it that way, but it might work! We’d suggest keeping the almond flour and using 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour in place of the other 3 GF flours. Let us know if you try it!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Karen, we haven’t tested it with all purpose flour, but you could try it! We’d estimate you’d need ~1 3/4 – 2 cups if replacing all the flours, or 1 1/2 cups if keeping the almond flour and just replacing the other GF flours. Let us know if you try it!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Cathleen, perhaps a seed flour or you could try adding ~1 1/2 – 2 Tbsp more of each flour, but we haven’t tested it that way and can’t guarantee it will turn out the same. Let us know if you try it!

  9. Alex says

    Can one use apple sauce in replace of the apple butter in the pastry? Not easily to come by. Maybe just less because it’s more watery???

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Sara, applesauce is much more watery than apple butter so we think the results would probably be a bit different, and we cannot guarantee results. If you try it, you may want to use a bit less in the dough because of the difference in texture. Hope this helps!