Make your own merienda: Pigs in a Blanket
MANILA, Philippines — Pigs in a Blanket are actually hotdogs or sausages wrapped in bread but with their “heads” and “tails” showing so that they look like "pigs in a blanket."
Using mini sausages, they can be appetizers. If regular sausages are used, then they can serve as hefty merienda treats. They are typically made with puff pastry, which you can buy off in major supermarkets (frozen food section, beside the frozen breads and pizzas), cut into triangles according to the size you need, roll around the sausages, and bake. It is very simple yet very impressive.
Nowadays, they are also made using bread dough. In his cookbook titled "Baking Simpol," Chef Myke "Tatung" Sarthou shares his version of Pigs in a Blanket.
Pigs in a Blanket
Ingredients:
Set A:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. instant yeast
4 tbsps. granulated sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups water
Set B:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
Set C:
12 pcs. sausages
1 egg yolk
1/4 cup evaporated milk
Procedure:
1. In a mixer with a hook attachment, combine all Set A ingredients and mix until well combined.
2. Add unsalted butter and continue mixing until dough becomes smooth and stretchy. Let it rest for 1 hour or until double in size.
3. Roll out dough and divide into 12 pieces. Roll out each piece of dough and stuff with a sausage, wrapping the bread dough around the sausage but showing its ends according to your design. Let rise for 20 minutes.
4. Combine egg yolk and evaporated milk in a bowl. Whisk then brush the bread dough with it.
5. Arrange Pigs in a Blanket on baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 338°F/170°C oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until crust is light golden brown.
*Yield: 12 pieces.
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