Strawberry-Nutella Pop-tarts

I'm a little bit sad that I don't get to make things like this all the time anymore.  It used to be all I did.  On my days off from work, I would go to the grocery store, grab ingredients and make multiple baked goods that I had been thinking about or eyeing for a while.  My days aren't filled with free days to bake up new things anymore.  Now they are filled with sounds of 2 little boys' feet running wild around the house, screams of happiness when they get excited about something, and demands to eat, be held or be accompanied into their play tent.  But there is an occasional day that I do have to myself while the boys are at daycare, housework is all caught up with, or the boys play happily with themselves in the playroom next to me, where I can actually make these things happen in my kitchen again.  

I love Nutella.  I like it on toast, and I like it by the spoonful.  It's also delicious with strawberry jam inside of a flaky crust.  I wish this recipe would have made a bigger batch, because these treats were gone quickly.  What I really want to do is make a huge batch of all different types of flavors, freeze them, and then I would have them whenever.  Now it's just finding the time to do that is the problem.  Maybe one day!

Strawberry-Nutella Pop-tarts

from The Novice Chef

1 egg yolk

1 tsp water

1 recipe for double pie crust (I used THIS one, and I made it the day before)

6 heaping tsp Nutella

6 tsp strawberry jam/jelly

2 large strawberries, sliced into hearts

coarse sugar

Preheat oven to 350, and prepare a non-stick baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat.  In a small bowl, whisk together the water and egg yolk.  set aside. 

Get out your pie dough, and roll it all out, pretty thin (think pop tart thin!).  Cut out 2.5 in by 3.5 in rectangles (I just eyeballed mine, and used a pizza cutter for straight lines).  You should get about 12 rectangles.

Cut out a heart shape in the middle of 6 of the rectangles (if you have a heart shaped cookie cutter-perfect.  I did not and had to freehand it.).

On each of the remaining rectangles, spread the nutella, leaving about 1/2 in around the edges, and then spread the strawberry jam overtop.

Place a heart-shaped slice of strawberry on top of the jam, in the center of the rectangle, and top with the pie dough that has the cutout.  

Seal the edges together with the prongs of a fork, and brush with the egg/water mixture. Sprinkle with coarse sugar.  Bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown.  Let cool for 5 minutes on a cooling rack.