Pigs in Blankets

A quick and super easy recipe for Pigs in Blankets, the perfect snack for birthday parties, game nights or just an easy dinner! Recipe with step-by-step photos.

Pigs in Blankets

One of my go-to recipes for birthday parties, school bakes, or even a game night at home, is a large batch of Pigs in Blankets. They are super easy to prepare, fun to eat, and irresistibly delicious! They also happen to be great served hot, warm or cold, making them ideal to serve as snacks or appetisers.

What are Pigs in Blankets?

Pigs in Blankets are sausages wrapped in either pastry or bacon.

Oddly enough, I didn’t grow up eating Pigs in Blankets. In Australia, we have instead the iconic Sausage Roll 🙂

I was only introduced to Pigs in Blankets when I saw a bakery here in Zurich selling Wienerli im Teig (see more below), but I have since learnt that there is a version of these tasty morsels in many countries, with each place having their own little twist.

In Switzerland and many other countries, Pigs in Blankets are sausages wrapped in puff pastry.

In other countries, such as in the UK, Pigs in Blankets are sausages wrapped either in a dough or in bacon.

Wienerli im Teig

In the German-speaking part of Switzerland, these pastries are called Wienerli im Teig, which translates literally as “sausage in pastry”. A “Wienerli” is a Viennese-style hot dog sausage, and “im Teig” translates as “in pastry”.

A Wienerli im Teig is traditionally sold as a single hot dog sausage wholly encased in puff pastry, and it is the closest thing you can find here to an Australian-style Sausage Roll.

Pigs in Blanket Recipe

Even though I had been making Pigs in Blankets for some years now, I came up with my recipe recently when I had to make a large batch for a Parent-Teacher Night at school, and I was running short on time.

One of my favourite treats here in Switzerland is a Rugelach, which is made using a round sheet of dough to form little crescent-shaped pastries (they look like mini croissants).

So I thought I would apply the same method to making Pigs in Blanket, and, honestly, they are so quick and easy to make that I sometimes make these for my kids for an easy dinner!

For kids, I generally make the Pigs in Blankets as they are – sausages wrapped in puff pastry. But for the adults, I like to sprinkle them with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, or – my favourite – Everything Bagel Seasoning. The latter adds a nice pinch of savouriness to each pastry.

How to Make Pigs in Blankets

Step 1

For this recipe, you need a round sheet of ready-made and ready-rolled puff pastry of approximately 32 cm/13 inches diameter.

Use a knife, pastry wheel or pizza cutter to cut the pastry into 12 equal wedges or triangles. If you like, you can use a ruler for nice and neat lines .

Step 2

Lightly brush the centre of the pastry, i.e. where all of the tips meet, with egg wash. This is to seal the pastry together.

Step 3

Place a piece of sausage at the edge of the pastry, and wrap it in the pastry, rolling towards the centre of the pastry sheet as you do so. Repeat with the remaining pieces of sausage.

Step 4

Place all of the pastries onto a large baking pan lined with baking paper. Brush with egg wash.

Sprinkle the pastries with Everything Bagel Seasoning, or any other topping of your choice (such as sesame seeds or poppy seeds).

Step 5

Bake at 210°C/410°F (without fan) for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the pastries have puffed up and are golden. Serve warm or hot.

Tips for Making Pigs in Blankets

1. For meal-sized pastries, I would use a whole sausage.
2. For snack-sized pastries, I generally use half a sausage.
3. For bite-sized appetisers, cut the sausage into thirds or quarters.
4. Some supermarkets stock mini hot dog sausages, which are perfect in this recipe.
5. Whatever size sausage you are using, it should be roughly the same length as the pastry at its widest part, i.e. the edge of a round sheet of puff pastry.
6. Use any hot dog sausage you like, but they should be the pre-cooked variety.
7. Look for sausages which are straight in shape. Some hot dog sausages are slightly curved, which makes wrapping them in pastry a little difficult.
8. For Swiss readers, I like to use the chicken hot dog sausages from Migros, primarily because they are very straight in shape, but they are also convenient for large gatherings where you might need to avoid using pork.
9. Sprinkle some pastries with Everything Bagel Seasoning (or other toppings of your choice), but keep some plain as well. There are always some fussy eaters!
10. For the adults, I like to spread a thin layer of Dijon mustard around the edge of the pastry, so that the sausages are wrapped in mustard as they bake. The mustard adds a gentle heat to the pastries, and it means you can also forego any dipping (unless ketchup is your thing).

Make Ahead Tips

Although these Pigs in Blankets only need about 10 minutes to prepare, you can still make them ahead of time if you want to be more organised.

Simply make the Pigs in Blankets as per the recipe, and then place them in the fridge or freezer until you want to bake them. Uncooked Pigs in Blankets can be kept in the fridge for 1-2 days.

Just before baking, apply the egg wash and bake as per the recipe. For frozen Pigs in Blankets, you will need to bake for a few extra minutes.

Freezing Pigs in Blankets

To freeze uncooked Pigs in Blankets, place them spaced apart on a baking tray lined with baking paper, and place the baking tray in the freezer. Once they have frozen, you can transfer them to a zip-lock freezer bag.

Alternatively, if you have a food vacuum sealer, place the uncooked Pigs in Blankets into the plastic bags, spaced apart. I recommend manually vacuuming the bags so that you do not disturb the shape of the pastries too much. Seal the bags and then place them in the freezer.

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