Now that it’s fall and we’re well into football season, I’ve decided to start a new weekly blog series. I’ll call it Snacktastic Sundays (it’s a working title), and feature one new game day snack recipe per week. On Sundays, obviously, ‘cuz that’s when all the big football action goes down. I guess technically there are football games on Mondays too…and sometimes on Thursday…but my limited knowledge of football tells me that the games mostly happen on Sunday, so it works! So yeah. Goodbye Thirsty Thursdays, hello yummy sports-watching snack food.
If we’re talking snack foods, we gotta start with a classic – pigs in a blanket. Tasty little meat parcels beloved by small children and college kids who’ve moved past microwave meals and mastered the oven. Did you know that they’re not an exclusively American dish? Apparently the UK, Denmark, Australia, Finland, Mexico, Ireland, Germany, Belgium, Russia, Canada and Japan all have their own versions! I guess dough-wrapped sausages are universally appealing.
The first time I had a pig in the blanket was a few weeks after I came to America. My daycare served hot dogs for lunch once or twice a week, and they were my absolute favorite “American” meal (either China didn’t have hot dogs, or my grandparents just didn’t let me eat them). One day, the hot dogs were much smaller than usual and covered in some kind of buttery, flaky bread. At first I was all “what is this nonsense, WHERE ARE MY HOT DOGS”, but then I took a bite and my mouth exploded in deliciousness. All was forgiven. God bless America.
As an adult, my pigs-in-a-blanket experiences have been pretty limited. I saw a documentary on hot dogs on TV in high school, and that made me never want to eat anything with hot dogs in it ever again (lesson learned – never ever watch documentaries on how foods are made). Then I went to law school with a guy who was a fiend for pigs-in-a-blanket and made them for a bunch social gatherings (e.g., Superbowl parties), and rediscovered the magic of salty, indeterminate pork wrapped in crescent dough. Mmm, mystery meat.
The Patriots are playing tonight, but Dan’s going to miss it because he has a hockey game around the same time. So, no beers, football, or tasty treats for him. To make up for it (at least a little bit), I made pigs-in-a-blanket for lunch so that he’d at least get to enjoy game day snacks even if he is missing the actual game. This was my first time making them, but it was so easy! Store-bought crescent dough, pre-packaged hot dogs…barely any work at all. From start to finish it took me maybe 30 minutes to put two dozen of these little treats on the table. And the taste? Delish. I will definitely be making many more of these this football season.
- 1 (8-ounce) tube crescent rolls
- 8 hot dogs, cut into thirds
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- On a flat surface, carefully roll out your crescent roll dough into one big sheet sheet, pinching together seams where necessary. It should look like you have 4 rectangles of dough stuck together at the edges.
- Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, slice each rectangle into 6 equal-sized strips.
- Place one hot dog piece at the end of a strip of dough, centered so that the ends of the hot dog hang outside the edges of dough, then roll downwards until all the dough is fully wrapped around the dog. Transfer the wrapped hot dog onto your prepared baking sheet. Repeat until all hot dogs are wrapped.
- Place into oven and bake until golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
(Recipe courtesy of Damned Delicious)
I don’t care about the football, but can I come over for the snacks?
Any time, girl 😉