Pigs In Blanket

"February Potluck", theme for this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC). For our potluck week, I've made a simple snack that I'm sure everyone is familiar with, Pigs In Blanket. The name is rather cute! I've made Pigs In Blanket before which I would usually serve with a combination of mayo and chilli or tomato sauce. This time, I've decided to make Nigella Lawson's version, served with mustard sauce.

 

I'm sure everyone knows how straightforward easy it is to make Pigs In Blanket. To save time, use store-bought frozen puff pastry. The mustard sauce is a mixture of Dijon mustard, whole-grain mustard and sour cream.

Roll out the pastry a little to make it a little bit thinner, cut to size, brush each pastry section with egg wash, place a frankfurter one side, and roll it up snugly, pressing the seams to seal. Cut the rolled frank to your desired length, place seam side down, on parchment lined baking sheet,  glaze with egg wash and ready to go into the oven. I've baked them for 22 minutes to get them all golden brown at 200C. 

These are the perfect snack, the adults would enjoy these as much as the kids! A great idea to stock up some frozen puff pastry and frankfurters in the freezer, and these can be made in a jiffy. Just make sure you thaw the frozen pastry and frankfurters first! These little "piggies" can be assembled, cut and keep covered in a tray in the fridge, to be baked later. Brush them with egg wash just before baking. These may be served with your favourite chili or tomato sauce, or my kids' favourite; a mixture of mayo, mustard and tomato/chilli sauce! Serve a plateful of these little Pigs In Blanket with the dipping sauce in the centre, and I'm sure everyone would reach out for them! Who can resist pastry and frankfurters!

You don't really need a recipe to make Pigs In Blanket, (it's just puff pastry and frankfurters!) But then, since I did make the mustard sauce from Nigella's book, so here it is :


Pigs In Blanket
(adapted from "Nigella Kitchen", Nigella Lawson)

1 x approx. 17.3-ounce package ready-rolled puff-pastry sheets
     (gives 2 sheets, each approx. 10x9-1/2 inches), thawed if frozen
1 egg
3 x 12 ounce packages frankfurters or hot dogs (gives 21, but you only need 16)

for the mustard dipping sauce :
scant 1/2 cup wholegrain mustard
scant 1/2 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons sour cream

1. Preheat the oven to 425F. Roll out one of the rectangular puff-pastry sheets to make it just a little bit thinner, stretching the long side rather than the short side as you roll. Cut the rectangle into quarters, then cut each rectangle in half lengthwise, to give 8 small pastry strips in total. You may need to roll each strip of pastry a little more to make sure it wraps snugly around your frankfurter.
2. Beat the egg in a small bowl and paint each pastry section with the egg wash. Sit a frankfurter horizontally on the left-hand side of one of the pieces of pastry and roll it up until it just seals. Then do the same with the remaining 7 small pastry strips.
3. Cut each rolled frank into 4 small pieces, pressing the pastry back around the sausage if it comes loose. Then place on a parchment paper-lined lipped baking sheet with the sealed bit down to prevent it springing open.
4. Paint the franks in blankets with the egg wash, and put them in the oven for 15-20 minutes. The pastry should have puffed up a little and turned golden. You can get on with the other sheet of pastry while the first lot of franks are cooking and repeat the process with the remaining franks.
5. Mix together the mustards and sour cream and put in little bowls.
6. Put the cooked franks in blanks onto a plate and serve warm with the dipping sauce in the little bowls (for ease of eating and passing) on the side.

Make Ahead Note : The frankfurters in their pastry can be assembled 1 day in advance. Put cut-up pigs in blankets on lined lipped baking sheets but do not glaze the outside. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed; store egg wash in a separate, covered container in the refrigerator. Glaze and bake, following instructions in recipe.

I'm linking this post to I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), theme for this week "February Potluck"