PopTart vs butter Tart.

[Le Poisson]

Asking for a friend - if someone swapped a strawberry poptart straight up for a raising butter tart, would it be a fair deal?

[pbkmaine]

No. Butter tarts are awesome. Pop tarts are not.

[Le Poisson]

I'm thinking I may make a batch of these tomorrow night while Momma takes J1 to Cubs. The swappability is of question. Poptarts sell for $2.67 per 8-pack. I'm not sure what cost of ingredients and energy is on a dozen butter tarts though.

[Sailor Sam]

The deal is unfair.

Butter tarts are needlessly fussy, and the proportion of filling:crust is intolerable.

Poptarts are delicious.

See the discrepancy?

[Le Poisson]

Sugar cane is a vegetable.

[GuitarStv]

No. Butter tarts are awesome. Pop tarts are not.

+1

Pop tarts are cardboard-y sweetened chemicals in fun colours.  I could blissfully eat butter tarts until diabetic coma removes all problems from the world for me.

[dividendman]

No. Butter tarts are awesome. Pop tarts are not.

+1

Pop tarts are cardboard-y sweetened chemicals in fun colours.  I could blissfully eat butter tarts until diabetic coma removes all problems from the world for me.

Yeah, wtf? Buttertarts >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> poptarts

[Mmm_Donuts]

This is tough. Buttertarts on their own beat out poptarts any day by a factor of a million. However, buttertarts with raisins? No. That is just ruining the whole deal. The deal is always off if it involves raisins.

[pbkmaine]

This is tough. Buttertarts on their own beat out poptarts any day by a factor of a million. However, buttertarts with raisins? No. That is just ruining the whole deal. The deal is always off if it involves raisins.

Agreed. I don't understand raisins at all.

[Penny Lane]

What are these butter tarts of which you speak??

[DeepEllumStache]

This is tough. Buttertarts on their own beat out poptarts any day by a factor of a million. However, buttertarts with raisins? No. That is just ruining the whole deal. The deal is always off if it involves raisins.

Agreed. I don't understand raisins at all.

Put me down as Team No Raisin.

[Laura33]

I had no idea what a butter tart was and pulled up this thread to defend the strawberry frosted pop-tart, which is clearly the single-best commercially-made food product ever.  Especially when lightly toasted.  My mouth is watering just thinking of it.

But that link to the butter tart recipe looks freaking awesome, and I am now totally changing sides without even having tried it, because I literally cannot think of anything more delicious than that collection of ingredients, made into a pie (which, as we all know, is nature's perfect food).

But no raisins.  Blech.

[Le Poisson]

We seem to have a three way divide here but the essence of the argument remains - it is very difficult to judge the fairness of the deal.

It is noted that the American contingent has raised the the weaponization of desserts as a factor - something the rest of the world may not have considered. Although I would argue that while less fatal, getting a butter tart thrown at you would result in a very sticky situation.

I lean toward agreeing that receiving butter tarts the better side of the deal. I may need to rethink this whole barter.

[GuitarStv]

If the pop tart owner attempted to initiate the trade for a butter tart, that's grounds for severing all future ties with the person.

[MustachianKentuckian]

I always keep pop tarts in the house, because they are yummy and a quick/easy breakfast for on the go.  DH hates that I buy them because he thinks they are the spawn of satan because apparently they are unhealthy.  However, I have noticed that when we run out of pop tarts, he never fails to let me know that we are out and we need some next time we go to the store.  Hmmmm....

Off to google butter tarts!

[begood]

Frosted Cherry. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

[NorthernBlitz]

No. Butter tarts are awesome. Pop tarts are not.

This is the correct answer.

[elaine amj]

You mean there's a contest?

Butter tarts are what keeps me in Canada. My world was changed when I moved to Canada and discovered The Butter Tart.

[bortman]

Butter Tarts FTW.

You likely won't find this by googling  (when I googled "butter tarts" I found one link for "Low Carb Gluten-Free Butter Tart Recipe", WTF?) but you must listen to the late great Peter Gzowski's classic Mornginside interview to really appreciate the iconic Canadian pastry.

http://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/canadian-food-what-makes-a-great-butter-tart


In my house we only had butter tarts around the Christmas holidays. For "everyday" junk food, we didn't eat pop tarts .. they couldn't compete with Joe Louis.

Addressing some previous comments:

What are these butter tarts of which you speak??

You must listen to the Gzowski interview.

if someone swapped a strawberry poptart straight up for a raising butter tart, would it be a fair deal?

With or without raisins, the butter tart still wins. The raisin/no-raisin debate still rages, but my mother made them with currants. Whaaaah?!

Butter tarts can not survive long sea voyages unscathed like PopTarts can.

Hardtack can also survive a long sea journey. Personally, I like a durable butter tart, but many do not. Listen to the interview.

and so is high fructose corn syrup which Pop Tarts have in great abundance

To be fair, butter tart filling is made with golden syrup, aka corn syrup. I'm guessing that the filling-to-pastry ratio for a poptart is 30:70, whereas for a butter tart it's more like 70:30. So I wouldn't be surprised if butter tarts have way more HFCS. To throw a wrench into this, I sometimes make mini butter tarts in mini-muffin tins. The mini's filling:pastry is probably 50:50. However, I can easily justify eating a million mini butter tarts, but feel pretty guilty after eating 2 full-size.

I always keep pop tarts in the house, because they are yummy and ...

Not possible to "always keep" butter tarts .. they wouldn't last.

DH hates that I buy [pop tarts] because he thinks they are the spawn of satan because apparently they are unhealthy.

Make no mistake, butter tarts are just as unhealthy as pop tarts. Well, unless you go for the low-carb gluten-free variety.

[MustachianKentuckian]

Canadians! With your unweaponized desserts, polite manners, and Curling. The North Koreans will smite you all and take away all your delicious butter tarts and enslave you all and make you unlearn the metric system.There will be ramifications DIRE RAM-I-FICA-TIONS to your love of soft gooey Butter Tarts.
[/quote]

I'm dying!!! :)

[Carless]

Actually, it looks like North Korea is using metric now too.

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/northkorea/2013/05/05/30/0401000000AEN20130505001000315F.HTML

Also butter tarts are vastly superior to pop tarts.  Of course homade>> store bought but even those are pretty good if you nuke them for a few seconds.

[Mmm_Donuts]

The absolute best dessert ever is a plain butter tart (none of this raisin or nuts nonsense) with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

Butter tarts are what keeps me in Canada.

Agreed.

[Moonwaves]

I'm thinking I may make a batch of these tomorrow night while Momma takes J1 to Cubs. The swappability is of question. Poptarts sell for $2.67 per 8-pack. I'm not sure what cost of ingredients and energy is on a dozen butter tarts though.

For true swappability potential you really need to be comparing homemade poptarts to homemade butter tarts though.

I'd never heard of butter tarts before but now I'm wishing I hadn't thrown out that tin of golden syrup last year when I moved. It was only four years past its best before date and at least half-full still. I really should visit Canada sometime between that chips with gravy and cheese thing I keep hearing about and now butter tarts, I think I'd really like it.

[Sailor Sam]

The absolute best dessert ever is a plain butter tart (none of this raisin or nuts nonsense) with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

There's a fundamental schism here, which is keeping the nationalities* from communicating. Poptarts are delicious breakfast food, not dessert.

This is all Prospector's fault, for not delineating the terms of barter correctly.



*The American's who've leaned Butter Tart shall not be discussed. Traitors.

[elaine amj]

You likely won't find this by googling  (when I googled "butter tarts" I found one link for "Low Carb Gluten-Free Butter Tart Recipe", WTF?)
Make no mistake, butter tarts are just as unhealthy as pop tarts. Well, unless you go for the low-carb gluten-free variety.

No. Just no.

This year, in the spirit of weight loss, my coworker picked up a box of low-fat paczkis for the office for Fat Tuesday. I was actually excited about it. It was so wrong in every way. I don't think she'll be allowed to shop for Paczki Day again.

I'm all for healthier versions of whatever. But some things were just not made to be messed with.

[MandalayVA]

[Le Poisson]

The absolute best dessert ever is a plain butter tart (none of this raisin or nuts nonsense) with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

There's a fundamental schism here, which is keeping the nationalities* from communicating. Poptarts are delicious breakfast food, not dessert.

This is all Prospector's fault, for not delineating the terms of barter correctly.



*The American's who've leaned Butter Tart shall not be discussed. Traitors.

Obviously at least one person in the room has never had a Butter Tart with their morning coffee.

[Mmm_Donuts]

The absolute best dessert ever is a plain butter tart (none of this raisin or nuts nonsense) with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

There's a fundamental schism here, which is keeping the nationalities* from communicating. Poptarts are delicious breakfast food, not dessert.

This is all Prospector's fault, for not delineating the terms of barter correctly.



*The American's who've leaned Butter Tart shall not be discussed. Traitors.

But desserts make perfect breakfast foods and breakfast foods are best eaten for dinner. These are facts that transcend all borders.

Given the choice between pop tarts and butter tarts for breakfast? Silly, silly question.

[LifeHappens]

Just to bring this back into the realm of $$, Pop Tarts are the highest profit item Kellogg makes. You are paying majorly inflated prices for those delightful snacks.

[Shiernian]

Two words people: toaster strudel!
Way better than pop tarts.

I eat all butter tarts before pop tarts, but not those with raisins.
Raisins kill it for me.

[PoutineLover]

Yummy butter tarts I'm hungry now thanks a lot! Pop tarts are ok but butter tarts win every time. Even with raisins. Though they are better without.

[Laura33]

But desserts make perfect breakfast foods and breakfast foods are best eaten for dinner. These are facts that transcend all borders.

True.  My house follows the rule I learned from my mother -- the rule that tops all others:*  if there is pie in the fridge, it must be eaten for breakfast. 


*Except Louisville basketball.  But that's closer to a religion than a rule.

[dividendman]

butter tarts with pecans > butter tarts plain >>>>> butter tarts w raisins >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> pop tarts

I think the above inequation settles it.

[bortman]

This year, in the spirit of weight loss, my coworker picked up a box of low-fat paczkis for the office for Fat Tuesday. I was actually excited about it. It was so wrong in every way. I don't think she'll be allowed to shop for Paczki Day again.

Reppin' for Hamtramck. Get your butter tarts in Windsor, then head to Detroit for packis. Sounds like a new Fat Tuesday tradition in the making.

[elaine amj]

This year, in the spirit of weight loss, my coworker picked up a box of low-fat paczkis for the office for Fat Tuesday. I was actually excited about it. It was so wrong in every way. I don't think she'll be allowed to shop for Paczki Day again.

Reppin' for Hamtramck. Get your butter tarts in Windsor, then head to Detroit for packis. Sounds like a new Fat Tuesday tradition in the making.

LOL!! Are paczkis in Detroit that much better? I have to admit - I've only had them from our local bakeries in Windsor.

My DH is disgusted by them and completely not tempted so I really didn't even know about them until I started this job and a coworker insisted on bringing them in. Truly a guilty indulgence.

Hmm...better bring this back on subject after this wild tangent. Said coworker has never had any reason to bring butter tarts OR pop tarts into the office.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Dicey]

Just to bring this back into the realm of $$, Pop Tarts are the highest profit item Kellogg makes. You are paying majorly inflated prices for those delightful snacks.

Just bought a 12-pack of Pumpkin Pop-Tarts for 99.99 cents at the 99 Cents Only Store this week. Frugal Squee!

My MIL has the unfortunate combination of Alzheimer's, a sweet tooth, an indiscriminate palate, and a cast iron stomach. They were purchased as snacks for her.

The absolute best dessert ever is a plain butter tart (none of this raisin or nuts nonsense) anything with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

FTFY

[andy85]

not sure this is a fair comparison. i mean a butter tart looks more like a muffin/cupcake. it's like comparing pizza and lasagna...not sure it is apples to apples.

regardless, i prefer bacon and eggs...maybe some potatoes. Never been a big pastry/carb heavy breakfast person.

[MandalayVA]

Stroopwafel.

A local place here makes stroopwafel ice cream.  It is everything that you dream it could be.

[Prairie Stash]

Because you shouldn't waste time with a pop tart and get a second butter tart. Then a third.

There is no compromise here.

[LifeHappens]

Just to bring this back into the realm of $$, Pop Tarts are the highest profit item Kellogg makes. You are paying majorly inflated prices for those delightful snacks.

Just bought a 12-pack of Pumpkin Pop-Tarts for 99.99 cents at the 99 Cents Only Store this week. Frugal Squee!

My MIL has the unfortunate combination of Alzheimer's, a sweet tooth, an indiscriminate palate, and a cast iron stomach. They were purchased as snacks for her.

Good on ya' for bringing frugality into this debate.

[Dicey]

Just to bring this back into the realm of $$, Pop Tarts are the highest profit item Kellogg makes. You are paying majorly inflated prices for those delightful snacks.

Just bought a 12-pack of Pumpkin Pop-Tarts for 99.99 cents at the 99 Cents Only Store this week. Frugal Squee!

My MIL has the unfortunate combination of Alzheimer's, a sweet tooth, an indiscriminate palate, and a cast iron stomach. They were purchased as snacks for her.

Good on ya' for bringing frugality into this debate.

Thanks, I never leave home without it.

[MandalayVA]

Because you shouldn't waste time with a pop tart and get a second butter tart. Then a third.

There is no compromise here.

I think Bush the Elder was president the last time I ate a pop tart but I remember liking chocolate fudge. 

[Moustachienne]

I thought my grandmother and MIL put currants in their butter tarts because currants were cheaper than raisins but then learned that both ladies also thought raisins were "showy", too over the top.  So frugality AND humility.  So Canadian.   

If you can't be arsed to make tarts, these bars are super easy.  Raisin warning!  (I like raisins in my butter tarts - sorry granny.)

http://www.chatelaine.com/recipe/snack/gooey-butter-tart-squares/

Pop Tarts are nasty frankenfood but I lusted after them as a kid because we were't allowed to have them.  So disappointed when I finally tried one.

[Goldielocks]

The absolute best dessert ever is a plain butter tart (none of this raisin or nuts nonsense) with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

There's a fundamental schism here, which is keeping the nationalities* from communicating. Poptarts are delicious breakfast food, not dessert.

This is all Prospector's fault, for not delineating the terms of barter correctly.



*The American's who've leaned Butter Tart shall not be discussed. Traitors.

Obviously at least one person in the room has never had a Butter Tart with their morning coffee.

Oh, man.  Buttertarts with tea!   Call grandma -- I'm coming over.

The only place that a pop tart will win is breakfast time for an under 8 year old.  Brightly coloured, can eat in the car with less mess.  I don't actually eat them, so safe to keep in the house, etc.   To a 5 year old, this is somehow a hard decision to choose one over the other....  and some young children have never even seen home cooked food, so a "homely" butter tart must be inferior than a shiny packaged pop tart, right?   For a young scout troupe hand-out, I may just default to the butter tarts.


FYI -- I estimate that recipe for 13 extra large butter tarts to come in around $7  (allowing that the currents may be over $1.50, YMMV).

Also, that most people would think that 2 poptarts approximate 1 large buttertart.

[Le Poisson]

HAH!!! Did you just call my American counterpart a 5 yr old???

Giggles gleefully.

[G-dog]

Stroopwafel.

These are good. You can get them at Trader Joe's, but I don't think they are as good as another brand I used to get (can't remember the name).

[Prairie Stash]

Because you shouldn't waste time with a pop tart and get a second butter tart. Then a third.

There is no compromise here.

I think Bush the Elder was president the last time I ate a pop tart but I remember liking chocolate fudge.

When was the last time you had a butter tart? Was it plain, raisins or pecan? Its far more important to remember the last butter tart. :)

[RetiredAt63]

I know I am late to the discussion, but . . .

Corn syrup and golden syrup are NOT, repeat NOT ingredients in butter tarts.  Brown sugar is standard, some maple syrup is allowed.

Currants (which are a specific tiny dried raisin) > plain > big fat soft bland raisins like sultanas.  No nuts.

Butter tarts freeze well, so you can get one out of the freezer any time, wait 5 minutes so it is slightly thawed, and enjoy.

Butter tarts are to pop tarts as merino/cashmere/silk yarn is to Red Heart yarn. 

[pbkmaine]

I am with you on everything except the raisins or raisin-like substances.

[snacky]

Red Heart yarn is an economical way to restrain my victims. Why would you speak ill of it?

Um, I mean...

Never mind.