Savory Breakfast Pop Tarts: A Homemade Handheld Breakfast with Eggs and Sausage Gravy

Savory Breakfast Pop Tarts

Some mornings you need a breakfast you can hold in one hand while you wrangle kids, pack lunches, and hunt for your keys. These savory breakfast pop tarts were built for exactly that.

A tender, flaky crust gets folded around soft scrambled eggs and a peppery country sausage gravy, then the whole batch bakes on one sheet pan.

There is nothing quite like them in the freezer aisle, and once you make a batch you may never go back to the boxed kind.

This is hearty scratch cooking that fits a real morning. The filling comes together in one skillet, the dough is the same English Wig dough I use for my savory pot pies, and the finished tarts keep well for a day or two in the refrigerator.

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My crew eats them warm with extra gravy for dipping, and I usually stand at the counter eating one straight off the rack while the second batch goes in the oven.

Here is the thing about pop tarts. The boxed ones are sweet, and by 8 a.m. a frosted pastry with sprinkles does not hold anyone until lunch.

These are the savory answer. They are not sold in stores, which means the only way to get one is to make it, and that is a fine excuse to spend an hour in the kitchen on a Sunday.

Make a batch, and breakfast is handled for days, ready to warm up in a couple of minutes.

The timing works out to about an hour from a cold kitchen, and most of that is hands on time at the counter. If you want a truly relaxed morning, make the gravy and scramble the eggs the night before, then roll and bake the tarts while everyone else is still finding their shoes.

Give the tarts about 5 minutes to cool before anyone takes a bite. That gravy holds a lot of heat, and a mouthful straight from the oven is a guaranteed burn. Once they have rested, the crust is crisp at the edges, tender in the middle, and easy to pick up with your fingers.

Leftovers hold up nicely. From the day before, a couple of minutes in the toaster oven brings the crust right back to life. A quick zap in the microwave, about 15 to 30 seconds, also works, though the crust may turn out a little crumbly. Either way, they beat a drive through run on a Tuesday.

Make a double batch of the gravy. A single batch fills all 10 tarts, so if you want extra for dipping, you will need to cook twice as much.

One more thing worth knowing. These tarts do not puff or spread much in the oven, so you can crowd them fairly close together on the parchment lined sheet. That means one baking sheet handles the whole batch, and cleanup is about thirty seconds of crumpling paper.

The Filling:

Everything you taste in these tarts starts with the gravy. Country sausage gravy is heavy handed on the black pepper, and that is on purpose. The gravy carries the flavor of the whole tart, so the eggs stay simple and plain, seasoned with nothing more than a dash or two of salt.

• 1/4 pound breakfast sausage
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 1/4 teaspoon season salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon minced rosemary, optional
• 1 pinch sage, optional
• 5 eggs, scrambled separately
• 1 cup shredded cheddar or jack cheese, optional
• Everyday Seasoning from Trader Joe’s or another seasoning you like

1. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Cook the sausage, breaking it apart as it browns, until you see small crispy bits, about 5 to 7 minutes.
2. Do not drain the fat. Stir the flour into the sausage and let it simmer for 2 to 3 minutes so the raw flour taste cooks out.
3. Pour in the milk and whisk with a flat bottomed whisk. Drop the heat to medium low and keep whisking as the gravy thickens, about 4 to 5 minutes.
4. Pull the skillet off the heat and stir in the season salt, pepper, and the optional rosemary and sage.
5. Scramble the 5 eggs in a separate skillet to your liking, then set them aside.

Keep the sausage in the skillet when you add the flour, and stir until the flour disappears into the fat. That two minute simmer is what keeps the gravy tasting rich instead of pasty.

Cheese in the filling is optional, and honestly I usually skip it when I am already having biscuits and sausage gravy on the side. If you do add it, keep in mind that a lower fat cheese melts less, so the tarts will taste great either way, just with a different texture.

Scrambled eggs for the filling should be cooked a touch softer than you might serve on a plate. They finish in the oven alongside the gravy, and soft curds keep the inside creamy instead of dry.

One batch of gravy fills exactly 10 tarts. If you want a bowl of gravy on the table for dipping, which I strongly recommend, cook a double batch and keep the extra warm on the stove.

The Dough:

The crust is English Wig dough, the same sturdy, flaky dough I use for chicken pot pie, tangy pulled pork pot pie, and Aussie beef pot pie. Butter brings flavor, vegetable shortening brings flakiness, and a little egg and vinegar make it easy to handle and tender to bite.

• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup vegetable shortening
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 5 tablespoons cold water
• 1 extra egg plus 2 tablespoons water, whisked together for the egg wash

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F.
2. Stir the flour and salt together in a large bowl.
3. Cut in the shortening and butter with a large fork until the mixture is crumbly and the fat pieces are about the size of small peas.
4. Whisk 1 egg, the vinegar, and the water in a separate bowl, then pour it in all at once and stir a few times, just until a dough ball forms.
5. Roll the dough on a floured surface to 1/8 inch thick. Work with half the dough at a time so it is easier to roll and cut.
6. Cut two rectangles for each tart, 3 x 4 inches each.
7. Working with 3 tarts at a time, lay the bottom crusts on a parchment lined baking sheet.
8. Wet the edges with egg wash, then spoon on the scrambled egg and the sausage gravy.
9. Stretch the top crust just a little, lay it over the filling, and press the edges closed with a fork.
10. Brush the tops with egg wash and add seasoning, cheese, or both. Bake for 25 minutes at 375 F.
11. Cool 5 minutes before eating.

Assembly is the part where a little patience pays off. Wet the edges before the filling goes on, because the egg wash is what seals the top crust to the bottom and keeps the gravy from leaking out onto the pan.

Crimp with the tines of a fork all the way around, then check for any gaps before the tarts go into the oven.

Two habits make the dough easier to work with. First, keep the dough cool. If it starts to feel soft or greasy, slide it back into the refrigerator for 10 minutes before you roll it.

Second, roll and cut in batches of three tarts, filling and sealing them as you go, rather than cutting all 20 rectangles at once. The dough stays firm, the egg wash stays where you put it, and the assembly line moves fast.

For the topping, I reach for Everyday Seasoning from Trader Joe’s, or whatever savory blend is closest to my hand. A handful of shredded cheddar or jack cheese scattered over the egg wash works too. Lower fat cheese melts less and stays more distinct, so use what you enjoy and do not fuss over it.

Because these tarts barely expand in the oven, they can sit close together on the sheet, which means the whole batch bakes at once. Set a timer for 25 minutes and look for crusts that are golden at the edges and a filling that is hot all the way through.

One final note on the gravy math. A single batch fills 10 tarts exactly, so if you plan to serve extra gravy on the side, cook a double batch and keep the extra warm in a small saucepan while the tarts bake.

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Savory Breakfast Pop-Tarts

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Savory Breakfast Pop Tarts Some mornings you need a breakfast you can hold in one hand while you wrangle kids, pack lunches, and hunt for your keys. These savory breakfast pop tarts were built for exactly that.

• Total Time: 60 min
• Yield: 10 tarts 1x

Ingredients

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Filling
1/4 pound breakfast sausage
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1–1/4 cups milk
1/4 teaspoon season salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon minced rosemary
1 pinch sage
5 eggs, scrambled (cooked separately from sausage gravy ingredients above)
1 cup shredded cheddar or jack cheese
Everyday Seasoning from Trader Joe’s or other seasoning of choice

Poptart English Wig Dough
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup butter
1 large egg
1 tablespoon white vinegar
5 tablespoons cold water
1 extra egg, plus 2 tablespoons water for egg wash

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Instructions

Country Sausage Gravy and Filling
1-Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat: Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook sausage in skillet, breaking it apart as it cooks. Cook the sausage until it’s browned and small crispy bits appear. (About 5-7 minutes.)
2-Without draining fat off of sausage, stir: Without draining fat off of sausage, stir the flour into the skillet with sausage until fully absorbed and simmer 2 to 3 minutes which eliminates that “raw” flour taste.
3-Using flat bottomed whisk, carefully stir in: Using flat bottomed whisk, carefully stir in the milk. Reduce heat to medium low and stir with whisk as the gravy thickens, about 4 to 5 minutes.
4-Remove from heat and stir in seasoned: Remove from heat and stir in seasoned salt, pepper, and optional rosemary, sage. Set aside.
5-In separate skillet scramble and cook the: In separate skillet scramble and cook the 5 eggs as to your liking. Set aside.

Pop-tart Dough and Assembly
6-Pre-heat oven to 375 F: Pre-heat oven to 375 F.
7-In a large bowl, stir the flour: In a large bowl, stir the flour and salt together.
8-With a large fork, cut in the: With a large fork, cut in the shortening and butter until crumbly and “pea-sized” crumbs.
9-In a separate bowl whisk 1 egg,: In a separate bowl whisk 1 egg, vinegar and water together. Pour all at once into the flour mixture and stir a few times just until it forms a dough ball.
10-Roll out dough on floured surface to: Roll out dough on floured surface to 1/8-inch thick (work with half of dough at one time for easier rolling/cutting).
11-Cut two rectangles for each tart, 3: Cut two rectangles for each tart, 3 x 4-inches.
12-Working with 3 at a time, place: Working with 3 at a time, place the bottom crust onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
13-Wet the edges (before adding filling) with: Wet the edges (before adding filling) with egg wash. Spoon on scrambled egg, sausage gravy. Gently stretch the top crust just a tad and use a fork to crimp and seal edges.
14-The poptarts will not expand so they: The poptarts will not expand so they can be placed fairly close to each other on baking sheet.
15-Brush tops with egg wash, add seasoning: Brush tops with egg wash, add seasoning and/or cheese. Bake for 25 minutes @ 375 F.
16-Cool 5 minutes before eating: Cool 5 minutes before eating.

Last Step:

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• Prep Time: 35 min
• Cook Time: 25 min
• Method: bake