Recipe Review: Pigs in a Blanket

Introduction

This recipe is mostly just making brioche and then working with it a bit. Nonetheless it’s a great recipe and a great way to make brioche and apply it in a fun way. Do note that brioche is a fairly complex dough that requires an (ideally) overnight period in the fridge. While the recipe came out great, we thought that Pigs in a Blanket was better with puff pastry. In fact we also made Pigs in a Blanket with Dessert Person’s rough puff pastry recipe and found it even better.

Recipe Outline

Recipe: Pigs in a Blanket	Special Equipment: Stand Mixer
Source: Dessert Person	Time: 1 day
Author: Claire Saffitz	Difficulty: 3/5
Type: Dessert (Baking)	Score: ★★★☆☆

Making The Dough

Tip 1: We’ve found that the dough often sticks to the sides of the bowl late into the initial mixing (before adding butter). Add a tablespoon and a half flour to loosen it if it hasn’t started pulling away by the 8 minute mark. You’ll know the dough is ready for butter once it is no longer very sticky to the touch and stays together as mostly one mass.

Tip 2: You’ll know to add another tablespoon of butter when it stops appearing on the sides of the mixing bowl and the dough starts to slap loudly against the sides. This process will get quicker with each addition of butter.

Tip 3: Don’t walk away from the stand mixer at any point and pay close attention. If your mixer starts to shake hold it by the sides and don’t lean on the top of it. It can cause the mixer to overheat and other such things.

Making The Pigs In A Blanket

Tip 1: It’s not totally clear what the optimal dough roll to hot dog length ratio for full coverage should be so that the hot dog doesn’t stick out. Simply roll out the dough a bit longer (or shorter) to adjust after each one. Note that after you roll it out it will contract over the next minute or so.

Tip 2: Consider pulling slightly on the dough while wrapping. Let the dough hang vertically over the middle of the hot dog as you roll to keep the other side sufficiently stretched due to gravity.

Tip 3: Keep the dough cold otherwise it will be hard to work with. The video and book instructions differ slightly here – the video doesn’t stress keeping the dough cold as you work with it.

Baking The Pigs In A Blanket

Final Product

Key Takeaways

• Be patient with your dough and use the tips and indicators. The video is a great visual reference as well.
• For assembly, use the book notes instead of the video notes.
• Give this a try with puff pastry instead!
• Final Score: 3/5 – This is a fun way to learn brioche and a great party snack. Puff pastry is a great alternative though.