Looking for a fun twist on a classic favorite appetizer? These pull-apart pigs in blankets are baked to golden-brown perfection, delivering a satisfying mix of flavors and textures in every bite. Ideal for game day or the holiday season, these wrapped sausages are simple to share and even easier to devour—just pull apart, dip, and enjoy. You’re guaranteed to score the winning touchdown with this recipe for pigs in a blanket!
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Why We Love Making This Pigs in a Blanket Recipe
- You’re guaranteed to have the first appetizer to disappear at every event!
- They’re so easy to make that even the kids can help prepare them.
- Thanks to the wreath shape (perfect as Christmas dinner appetizers), the dipping sauce for pigs in a blanket is right in the middle for easy access!
Ingredients and Substitutions
Pigs in Blankets Recipe Ingredients
- Butter or vegetable oil – or use non-stick cooking spray for your baking dish.
- All-purpose flour – I recommend using unbleached all-purpose flour.
- Refrigerated pizza crust dough – use the Pillsbury kind in the tube or use one of our homemade pizza dough recipes.
- Little smokies (lil smokies) or cocktail sausages – they’re like mini hot dogs and perfect for stacking vertically for the pigs in a blanket wreath.
Dipping Sauce Ingredients
- Butter – it doesn’t matter if you use unsalted or salted butter, as long as it’s real butter. Oil or margerine won’t provide the ideal texture or taste for the sauce.
- All-purpose flour – almost any type of flour works for this roux: bread flour, all purpose flour, even self rising flour will work!
- Whole milk – using whole milk will give you the smoothest, creamiest dipping sauce. In a pinch, you can use 2% milk, but I do not recommend using non-fat milk.
- Cheddar cheese – shred your own cheese for the creamiest, cheesy sauce. See our Pro Tip to find out why!
- Dijon mustard – stone ground mustard is a suitable substitute.
- Spices – these enhance the flavor of the dipping sauce, especially the cayenne pepper. If you can’t tolerate spiciness, use chili powder instead.
Pigs in a Blanket Recipe Variations
How to make pigs in a blanket with crescent rolls – instead of pizza dough, use 2 similar sized containers of crescent roll dough. Unroll the crescent dough and cut into strips without rolling it thinner.
Equipment Used in This Recipe
- cutting board
- knife or pizza cutter
- medium saucepan
- spatula
- 2 – round pie pans (8″ to 10″ in diameter)
- aluminum foil
- small bowl for the serving the dip
🎯 TFN Pro Tip
Store-bought shredded cheese contains anti-caking ingredients to prevent clumping and these additives can keep the cheese from melting smoothly.
If you want a creamier, perfectly melty cheese for sauces or casseroles, take a few extra minutes to shred your own. Trust me—the difference is worth it when dipping the lil smokies in a blanket into the cheese sauce!
How to Make Pigs in a Blanket Without Crescent Rolls
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Spray the pie pans with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
Flour a clean surface like a wooden cutting board and use a rolling pin to roll the pizza dough to ⅛ inch thick. Then, cut the dough into 1” to 1 ½” long strips.
- Roll each mini sausage with the dough, pressing the end to seal. Place the rolled sausages in the pan vertically so they are in the shape of a wreath.
Leave a spot in the middle of the baking dish and use a folded or rolled piece of aluminum foil in a circular shape to hold the space for the bowl of pigs in a blanket dip. Cover the pan of wrapped sausages with aluminum foil.
Repeat the above process for the second baking dish.
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- Bake at 350ºF covered with aluminum foil for 25 minutes, then uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
If the tops aren’t golden brown after baking, turn the oven to broil on high (or 500° F). Broil for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Check every minute so they don’t get too brown. - Remove the pigs in a blanket casserole from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. While they are cooling, make the cheese sauce.
Preparing the Pigs in a Blanket Dip
- In a small saucepan over low heat, add the butter and let it melt. Add the flour, stirring for 2 minutes creating a paste. Slowly add the milk. Stir until smooth, then remove from heat. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until the cheese dip is smooth. Taste to see if more salt and cayenne pepper is needed.
- Add the bowl of mustard cheese sauce dip to the center of the pigs in a blanket wreath and serve.
Serving Suggestions
Garnish the casserole with a sprinkle of fresh parsley or adding rosemary sprigs. Use the pigs in a blanket dip as a tangy cheese topping for broccoli, baked potatoes, or nachos.
Consider serving these pigs in blankets with three dipping sauces like our 3 ingredient BBQ sauce, honey mustard sauce, or easy Velveeta cheese sauce. Kids will love dipping them in ketchup or ranch dressing.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, add 1/8 cup of milk at a time when reheating until your mustard cheese sauce is the right consistency.
Use 2 similar sized rolls of crescent roll dough (13.8 ounces) instead of pizza dough. Unroll the crescent dough and cut into strips without rolling it thinner.
You could, but the sides of the baking dish provide support for the pull-apart pigs in a blanket. To use a baking sheet, lay the wrapped sausages on their side and bake for 15-20 minutes without covering with foil.
Yes, we’ve included a tangy mustard cheese sauce with this pigs in a blanket wreath recipe. But, you can serve them with our favorite dipping sauces like hot cream cheese corn dip, feta red pepper dip, or Asian mango dipping sauce.
These are best served immediately, but they can stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To reheat, cover with aluminum foil and bake at 300° F for 15 minutes.
The sauce may thicken when reheating. So, add up to 1/8 cup of milk at a time when reheating until it’s the right consistency.
Other Snack Recipes to Consider…
If you tried this pigs in blankets recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Pigs in Blankets
Equipment
- knife or pizza cutter
- 2 8-10” pie dishes
Ingredients
Pigs in a Blanket Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter or oil, or use non-stick cooking spray
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 2 cans (13.8 ounces) pizza dough, like Pillsbury or use 2 pounds of homemade pizza dough
- 28 ounces little smokies or cocktail sausages approximately 50-55 sausages
Mustard Cheese Sauce Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup grated cheddar cheese see recipe notes
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- pinch cayenne pepper adjust the amount of cayenne pepper to suit your preference
Instructions
Preparing and baking the wrapped sausages
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Spray the pie pans with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
- Flour a clean surface. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough to ⅛ inch thick. Cut the dough into 1” to 1 ½” long strips.
- Wrap each mini sausage with the dough, pressing the end to seal. Place them in the pan vertically. Leave a spot in the middle (large enough for the small bowl you'll serve the dip from) and use a folded or rolled piece of aluminum foil to hold the space there.
- Cover the pan with aluminum foil.
- Repeat the above process for the second baking dish.
- Bake at 350ºF covered with aluminum foil for 25 minutes, then uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
- If they're not golden brown after the baking stage, turn the oven to broil on high or 500° F. Broil for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Check every minute so they don't get too brown.
- Remove casserole dish from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. While they are cooling, make the cheese sauce.
Preparing the pigs in a blanket dipping sauce
- In a small saucepan over low heat, add the butter and let it melt. Add the flour, stirring for 2 minutes creating a paste. Slowly add the milk. Stir until smooth. Remove from heat.
- Add the remainder of the ingredients. Stir until combined and the cheese sauce is smooth. Taste to see if more salt and cayenne pepper is needed.
- Place the bowl of mustard cheese sauce dip in the center of the pigs in a blanket wreath, then serve.
Notes
Nutrition
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