Guava and Cream Cheese Pastries – How to Love Cooking
Here’s my Cuban twist on the American Pop-Tart! Guava and Cream Cheese Pop Tarts with Zesty Lime Icing. Ready to bake pie dough gets filled with sweet cream cheese and fruity guava paste to make an easy and delicious dessert or breakfast treat!
((This post was was updated.))
What I miss about living in South Florida
There is one thing I miss about living in South Florida, and it’s not the weather. It’s not the beach. It’s not the lack of state income tax – wait, actually…(Well, more on that topic another time, perhaps.)
For real though, it’s the food – Cuban food, specifically. I mean, of course I miss my family, but they’re tied into what I miss about the food because we’re Cuban. Yep, I’m Cuban on my mom’s side. She was born in Havana and came over to the states with my grandparents as a baby. They settled in southwest Miami, and even though I grew up one county to the north, I spent a good chunk of my childhood visiting my grandparents every week.
That area of south Florida is a haven of Cuban and Latin American food and culture. Just about everyone speaks Spanish, you can literally smell the cafecito wafting in the air of any shopping center parking lot, and there is probably salsa music playing out of a car somewhere. I’m not kidding, and I miss it.
Don’t get me wrong. I love so much about Chicago. I love that there are four seasons as opposed to one and a half. The architecture and museums are incredible. I love living in a big city that’s not as overwhelming as New York, and Midwesterners are some of the loveliest and friendliest people I’ve ever met.
But I really, really, really miss the strong presence of Hispanic and Latin American culture. I love that at house parties in Miami, the minute some Celia Cruz or Willy Chirino plays through the speakers, everyone couples up and just knows how to salsa or merengue. I miss being able to easily find my favorite comfort food (bistec empanizado) at one of a gazillion Cuban restaurants. And of course, I miss that my coffee order automatically comes sweetened with what seems like half a gallon of sugar.
Mmmm, so good.
My Twist on a Guava and Cheese Pastelito – Guava and Cream Cheese Pop Tarts with Zesty Lime Icing
Clearly I’ve been feeling nostalgic, so I wanted to share this little recipe that I’ve been making for years. These are what I like to call, “Cuban” Pop Tarts. I call them “Cuban” because they are filled with guava and cream cheese, just like one of my favorite Cuban pastries, the guava and cream cheese pastelito.
Pastelitos are typically made using a puff pastry type of dough and are filled with a sweet cheese, guava, guava and cheese, or savory meat filling. Oh, and if you you’re looking for where to find pastelitos in South Florida, I recommend Miramar Bakery. I love that place. So since I grew up eating pastelitos at my house and pop tarts at friends’ houses, I thought this would be a fun way to merge two of my favorite treats.
Guava & Cream Cheese Pop Tarts – How to Love Cooking
This recipe is simplified by using some ready-to-bake pie dough. However, if you are a fan of making your own dough from scratch, by all means do so! You’ll need enough for two standard (9 in) pie dishes.
What is Guava Paste?
If you’re unfamiliar with guava and/or guava paste, this is a great introduction to the ingredient! Guava paste is made from the tropical guava fruit and sugar and is typically sold in either a large round tin or a smaller square packet. It’s basically a very thick, sticky, and sweet concoction that’s typically served with cream cheese (to cut the sweetness).
If you haven’t caught on by now, Cubans love sweet – sweet coffee, sweet plantains and sweet desserts. What can I say, we’re a sweet people. 🙂
How to make the filling for guava and cream cheese pop tarts with zesty lime icing
Anyway, this recipe requires just a little bit of work in terms of cutting your pie dough rectangles, but after that, it’s just simple assembly. First, prep the guava slices and cream cheese. I easily made eight pop tarts from the two pie crusts, so I cut eight, 1/4 inch thick rectangular pieces of guava and set them aside. I decided to flavor and sweeten up the cream cheese mixture ever so slightly with a touch of vanilla, powdered sugar and a pinch of salt to help bring out the flavors of the guava and cheese.
How to prepare the pie dough for these homemade pop tarts
Then, it’s time for the dough! Unroll your first pie crust, and trim the round edges until you have the shape of a square. Make sure to save that excess dough! Using the slices of guava as a guide, cut rectangles of dough around the guava pieces, leaving about a one-inch border around each slice of guava. (See photo below.) I did this with a small paring knife, but if you have a small rectangular cookie cutter, feel free to use that. Repeat this process for the second pie crust.
Then, form any excess dough into a ball, and roll or press it into a flat rectangular shape. Cut out any remaining rectangles. I was able to cut out 16 rectangles to make 8 pop tarts. With the tiny bit I had leftover, I made a turnover (just for myself) using my left over scraps. I hate to waste anything!
Cut the pie dough around the slices of guava for the perfect sized pop tart! – How to Love Cooking
How to assemble homemade pop tarts
Place 8 dough rectangles on the baking sheet. Top with one slice of guava paste and roughly a tablespoon of the sweet cream cheese mixture, and top with another rectangle of pie dough. Do this until you have eight finished pop tarts.
Then, take a fork, and crimp the edges together to seal them shut. Trim any excess dough with a paring knife to make nice clean edges. Finally, make a small incision on the top of the tart to allow the steam to escape during baking.
How to get your homemade pop tarts and hand pies to look golden and beautiful
Here is some dough, a guava slice and cream cheese before getting topped with another rectangle of dough. – How to Love Cooking
Place your pop tarts on a lined baking sheet, and brush them with your egg wash mixture. This will give them that beautiful, golden sheen upon removal from the oven. It is very important to have pop tarts that are both delicious and gorgeous, FYI.
I find when my food comes out of the oven looking amazing, I am encouraged to get back in the kitchen and keep going. Egg wash is definitely the magic trick for your pastries to get them looking fabulous.
I also sprinkled the tops with a bit of coarse sugar for some sparkle factor, however that is totally optional – but strongly encouraged.
Oh, and if you want another recipe that uses ready to bake pie dough, try my Raspberry Pistachio Pie Crust Cookies!
How long should you bake these homemade guava and cream cheese pop tarts?
Crimped, trimmed, egg washed, sugar sprinkled, and ready for the oven! (Guava & Cream Cheese Pop Tarts – How to Love Cooking)
Bake your tarts at 400 F for 12-14 minutes until done and golden brown. After you remove them from the oven, place them on a wire rack to cool for several minutes while you prepare your lime icing.
In a small bowl, mix together your powdered sugar, lime zest, lime juice and pinch of salt until smooth. Once the tarts have cooled completely, drizzle some icing over the tops to your desired liking. It’s quite tart, so a little goes a long way.
Let the icing set for a few minutes and then you’re ready to dig in to this Cuban pastry inspired breakfast treat.
I love the fact that I can enjoy the crisp, buttery pastry, sweet guava, creamy cheese and tart lime flavor here in my kitchen – far away from my hometown.
If you’re looking for inspiration and motivation to get cooking, look to your roots. What flavors do you long for? What ingredients do you miss? Don’t wait until your next trip home to experience it. What if you tried to create one of your favorite dishes in your own kitchen? You might end up putting your own unique spin on it and creating something really incredible! I say, have some fun, and get nostalgic. In the meantime, you can always make these “Cuban” pop tarts, and sample the flavors I loved when I was growing up.
<3 Happy Cooking!
These guava and cream cheese pastries are just heavenly.
Guava and Cream Cheese Pastries with Zesty Lime Icing
These homemade "Cuban" pop-tarts are filled with sweet cream cheese and fruity guava paste and get topped with a zesty lime icing.
Ingredients
For the pop tarts:
- 4 oz. (1/2 block) Cream cheese softened
- 3 TBS Powdered sugar
- ¼ tsp. Vanilla
- pinch Salt
- 2 Ready-to-bake pie crusts
- 1 Tin or packet of guava paste
- 1 egg scrambled and mixed with a splash of milk or water (for an egg wash)
For the icing:
- ¼ C. Powdered sugar
- ½ TBS Lime juice
- ½ tsp. Lime zest
- pinch Salt
Instructions
For the pop-tarts:
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees F° and line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat, parchment paper, or aluminum foil.
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Prepare your cream cheese and guava filling: Add cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt to a small bowl. Mix well and set aside. Slice the guava into 8 slices, about 1/4 inch thick. My guava paste came in a small, square shape which was the perfect size for filling these pastries.
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Roll out the pre-made pie crusts onto a cutting board, and trim the edges to make 2 large squares. (Save the edge pieces to roll out again and make more pop tarts.) With a small paring knife, cut the dough into small rectangles (roughly 2 ½ in. x 3 ½ in.) as close together as possible. (See photo)
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Gather your scraps of excess pie dough, form it into a ball, and roll or press it out into a rectangular shape with a similar thickness to the dough slices you've already cut out. I was able to cut out a few more rectangles to make at least 8 pop tarts. Each tart will need a top and a bottom, so you'll need a total of 16 squares to make 8 pop tarts. Use as much of the dough as you can!
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Place 8 dough rectangles on the baking sheet. Top with one slice of guava paste and roughly a tablespoon of the sweet cream cheese mixture, and top with another rectangle of pie dough.
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Seal the top and bottom dough slices together by crimping the edges together with a fork. With a paring knife, cut a small opening on the top of each pop tart to let steam out while they bake. If you like, use the paring knife to trim the excess dough off the sides to make nice clean edges.
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Brush the top of each pop-tart with the egg wash, and place the tarts in the oven to bake for 12-14 minutes until the dough is cooked through and the tarts are a beautiful golden brown.
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Once they are done, remove the baking pan from the oven. Using a spatula, place the pop tarts on a rack to cool for at least 15-20 minutes. Do not ice them until they are completely cooled or else the icing will completely melt and/or be absorbed into the pop tarts!
For the icing:
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While the tarts cool, make your icing! Mix the powdered sugar, lime juice, lime zest, and salt in a small bowl. The icing should be thick, but be able to drizzle. Add more lime juice or sugar until you get the consistency you want.
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Drizzle the icing over top of the cooled pop tarts. Feel free to put as much or as little as you like. It’s quite tart, so a little goes a long way! Enjoy
These look amaaaaazing! ?
Thanks, Jess! I looove guava! 🙂