Football season is in full swing, or so my husband tells me. In all honesty, I could not care less. I’ve never been a fan of playing or watching sports, live or on TV. I grew up dancing (ballet and jazz) and never took a liking to baseball or soccer despite participating in Little League and AYSO, and sitting through all my older brother’s baseball and basketball games, being too young to stay home alone. These days, I’d much rather go to the mall or read a book than spectate.
But one activity I can get behind is cooking game-day snacks. So when my husband mentioned he’d be watching football all Sunday, I decided to make pigs in a blanket to keep busy. But not just any old pigs in a blanket – pretzel-wrapped pigs in a blanket. And not just any old pretzel-wrapped pigs in a blanket – turkey dog pretzel-wrapped pigs in a blanket. (The turkey was his choice, mind you. I don’t like beef, so wasn’t complaining.)
I’ve made soft pretzels before, so know the process can be tedious. After forming the pretzels, you have to plunge them in a huge pot of boiling water and baking soda for 10 seconds before popping them in the oven. It’s a somewhat messy and potentially problematic step as your carefully shaped twists can fall apart in the bubbling bath, which is perhaps the most frustrating part of all.
While this recipe requires a pre-bake dip, it’s as easy as combining hot water and baking soda in a small bowl and then dunking the pigs in a blanket into the mixture for three short seconds.
This extra step is what helps create a chewy, golden crust and soft center. Don’t skip it. Once your pigs in a blanket emerge from the oven, you’ll see why. Serve them hot or at room temperature with ketchup and mustard. They won’t last long – I guarantee it.
Recipe adapted from Host the Toast.
- ¾ cup water
- 1½ teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 8 turkey dogs
- 1 cup hot water
- 2 tablespoons baking soda
- 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water (for egg wash)
- sesame seeds and sea salt (for topping, optional)
- In a large bowl, heat water until warm - about 30 seconds in the microwave should do. Add the sugar, salt and yeast. Whisk together until thoroughly combined and let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes.
- Add the flour and butter, stirring everything until it comes together to form a shaggy ball. Then knead the dough by hand (or with a dough hook attachment) until it’s smooth and elastic - this will take about 5 minutes (or less if using a stand mixer). Shape dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let it rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
- Cut turkey dogs into thirds to equal 24 pieces.
- Punch down dough and pull off a small piece about the size of a golf ball. Roll it out into a long, thin strip. Push one end of the dough strip against the end of a turkey dog piece and wrap it around until you get to the other end, cutting off any excess dough. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat with remaining turkey dog pieces.
- In a small glass or metal bowl, combine hot water and baking soda and whisk until the baking soda is completely dissolved. Dip each pig in a blanket into the solution for a few seconds, remove and place on a paper towel to absorb excess liquid. Transfer back to the baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Brush top of dough with egg wash. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and salt, if using
- Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
These look delicious – I’m not a football fan, but I child gobble these up either way!
**could**
These look delicious, i am trying them now. I wanted to know at what temperature, do i need to bake these and for how long?
Thanks! Bake them at 450 degrees for about 15 minutes – enjoy!