Once upon a time ... a co-worker asked me, "Do you know anywhere that makes gourmet, grown up pop tarts? I want to get some for an event."
I was *thrilled* to be asked this question, because of course I had an answer. Only one place came to mind: Flour & Co, one of the best bakeries I've ever known. Sadly, sadly, they have closed, but, really, that place made the best versions of all the classic pies that I have ever had (harvest pie, brown sugar nut pie, banana cream .... oh, and the carrot cake ... Seriously, so good).
But I'll focus on just the "fancy pop tarts", dubbed Toasty Tarts, available in both sweet and savory flavors. And yes, of course I was invited to taste them all, since I recommended it.
Each box came with a card labeling the assortment. I found this fairly adorable.
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| Card Labeling the selections. |
I thought it was absolutely adorable how they were marked - for example, the salami + manchego were marked with diagonal slits on the top, with the "key" on the card. The herb goat cheese + tomato had herbs marking the top.
For savory, we had herb goat cheese + tomato, salami + manchego, and pimento cheese + tomato. Per the handy guide, they were easy to identify.
I started with a savory one. Since I don't like goat cheese, that was easy to rule out. I wasn't really feeling the salami either, so I picked the pimento cheese + tomato, with fond memories of the pimento cheese biscuit I had enjoyed from Flour & Co previously.
Such a cute touch!
Savory Toasty Tarts
To be inclusive of those who don't particularly like sweets, the host selected some savory options too. For me, this meant I could make a meal out of Toasty Tarts, and that did not make me upset. In fact, the savory ones I'd get again in a heartbeat.
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| Savory Toasty Tarts! |
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| Pimento Cheese + Tomato. $4.25. |
The pastry on this was incredible. Herbed, slightly savory, soft, flaky, crust. It was delicious in its own right, it didn't even need a filling to be good. Inside were juicy cherry tomatoes, bursting with flavor, pecans for crunch, and the delicious creamy pimento cheese filling. Oh, and more cheese baked on top.
This was totally tasty as served, but I think it would have been incredible if served warm, so the pimento cheese inside was hot and gooey, just like when I had it with the biscuit. Mmm, I'm drooling thing about that.
Definitely a winner, and I'd get it again. ****.
Update: We had a few left over, and I saved one for the next day, since it was my favorite. I wasn't sure it would hold up well, but it held up like a champ. And this time, I threw it in the toaster oven until it got warm and bubbly. SOOO good. Delicious savory flaky pastry, creamy flavorful comforting filling ... so hard to go wrong! ****+ when warm.
I also saved another and froze it. It reheated pretty well in my toaster oven, although the bottom crust did get soggy, and the filling consistency changed a bit. Not a disaster, but not 100% success.
On another occasion I visited the bakery with my mom, and she wanted something savory. I was a bit thrown off my game ... I always get the sweets! But, I saw that they had a brand new savory toasty tart, and it sounded fantastic.
Update: We had a few left over, and I saved one for the next day, since it was my favorite. I wasn't sure it would hold up well, but it held up like a champ. And this time, I threw it in the toaster oven until it got warm and bubbly. SOOO good. Delicious savory flaky pastry, creamy flavorful comforting filling ... so hard to go wrong! ****+ when warm.
I also saved another and froze it. It reheated pretty well in my toaster oven, although the bottom crust did get soggy, and the filling consistency changed a bit. Not a disaster, but not 100% success.
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| Housemade Bacon Jam, Brie, Spinach. $4.25. |
Since we were eating at the bakery, they warmed it up for us in their magic oven. It came out perfectly toasty and warm.
This thing was a flavor powerhouse! Stuffed with an incredibly flavorful bacon jam. Yes, BACON JAM. Yes, it was delicious, salty, slightly sweet. The cooked spinach inside helped add a lighter feel to the decadent treat. I didn't get much brie in my half, but my mother commented that she had plenty of brie in her piece. I do like the combination of brie and spinach, and I can imagine how well that worked together.
I adored the flavors in this, I think even more than the pimento cheese and tomato. That bacon jam was just incredible. The only thing I didn't care for was the pastry, it was rather oily, probably due to the bacon and the brie, so it seemed a bit greasy, and wasn't quite as flaky as I'd like.
****+ though, a stunner.
For sweet selections, we had blueberry cream cheese, honey nut (almond, walnut, honey, hint of orange), and Nutella hazelnut banana. Really, something for any (sweet) taste.
The same labeling key was used here too: blueberry cream cheese were marked with a swirl, nutella hazelnut banana and honey nut each with a different zig zag.
I wanted them all. So of course I *had* them all.
I started with the fruity option, blueberry cream cheese.
The pastry on this was standard sweet dough, again, soft and flaky. Perfect. Topped with a swirl of sweet icing, that was actually a bit too sweet for me, given the sweet filling. Inside was blueberry flavored cream cheese, and some whole blueberries. I didn't love the cream cheese, as it was a bit separated, more like a ricotta, so it had a sorta strange texture. The blueberries were juicy and flavorful, but I would have preferred more of them.
Overall, it was good, the pastry was remarkable, but this wasn't my favorite filling choice.
Sweet Toasty Tarts
But you know me, my heart is in the sweets. The sweet options were all good, but, amazingly, I preferred the savory.
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| Sweet Toasty Tarts! |
The same labeling key was used here too: blueberry cream cheese were marked with a swirl, nutella hazelnut banana and honey nut each with a different zig zag.
I wanted them all. So of course I *had* them all.
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| Blueberry Cream Cheese. |
The pastry on this was standard sweet dough, again, soft and flaky. Perfect. Topped with a swirl of sweet icing, that was actually a bit too sweet for me, given the sweet filling. Inside was blueberry flavored cream cheese, and some whole blueberries. I didn't love the cream cheese, as it was a bit separated, more like a ricotta, so it had a sorta strange texture. The blueberries were juicy and flavorful, but I would have preferred more of them.
Overall, it was good, the pastry was remarkable, but this wasn't my favorite filling choice.
***.
I couldn't stop at just one! I also tried out the honey nut. This one had nuts in it, so it counts for protein, right? Totally balanced meal I was having.
The pastry on this was actually a bit different. It wasn't as soft and flaky as the others. I wonder if it is because the filling wasn't as moist? It was a drier, crumbly style. Still good, but I preferred the softer versions. It had the same sweet icing on top.
Inside was a mix of chopped up almonds and walnuts, sweetened with honey, a bit sticky inside. Like a nut pie wrapped in a crust. That was all good, but I didn't care for the "hint of orange". I don't tend to like lemon, lime, or orange in my desserts, and this was no exception. The orange was too strong for my taste.
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| Honey Nut (almond, walnut, honey, hint of orange) |
The pastry on this was actually a bit different. It wasn't as soft and flaky as the others. I wonder if it is because the filling wasn't as moist? It was a drier, crumbly style. Still good, but I preferred the softer versions. It had the same sweet icing on top.
Inside was a mix of chopped up almonds and walnuts, sweetened with honey, a bit sticky inside. Like a nut pie wrapped in a crust. That was all good, but I didn't care for the "hint of orange". I don't tend to like lemon, lime, or orange in my desserts, and this was no exception. The orange was too strong for my taste.
***.
And finally, the last sweet selection. I don't actually like nutella very much, so I just tried a bite of someone else's.
Same flaky pastry dough, filled with sliced bananas, whole hazelnuts, and tons of nutella. I think if you like nutella, this would be tasty, but, since I don't, I really didn't care for it. I did like the fact that it had full, crunchy hazelnut inside though!
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| Nutella Hazelnut Banana. |
Same flaky pastry dough, filled with sliced bananas, whole hazelnuts, and tons of nutella. I think if you like nutella, this would be tasty, but, since I don't, I really didn't care for it. I did like the fact that it had full, crunchy hazelnut inside though!
***.
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