A playful twist on “Pigs in Blankets”: bite-sized sausage slices wrapped in soft corn dough pillows and fried until crisp. A kid-friendly recipe that’s simple enough for children to help prepare.
Cooking with Meredith
Kids love the classic “Pigs in Blankets”—small sausages wrapped in dough—so Meredith and I developed an easy version using slices of smoked sausage covered in pillows of masa dough. These little rounds fry to a satisfyingly crisp exterior while staying soft inside. They’re quick to make and great for getting children involved in the kitchen.
Masa harina (masa corn flour) is easy to work with: mix warm water into the flour to form a pliable dough—similar to playdough in texture—then shape it around sausage slices and shallow-fry the pieces until golden. The result is crunchy on the outside and pillowy inside.
Masa flour is nixtamalized corn flour, meaning the corn has been treated to remove the hull and release nutrients. This process improves the corn’s texture for dough and enhances nutrient availability such as niacin and certain minerals. It also makes the flour supple and sticky, ideal for tortillas, tamales, sopes, gorditas, and these sausage pillows.
We also experimented with dipping sauces. Our favorites were a honey-mustard made by combining yellow and Dijon mustard with honey and mayonnaise, and a mild sweet BBQ made by mixing barbecue sauce with applesauce. Another simple option is a creamy BBQ by stirring barbecue sauce into mayonnaise.
A New Kind of Pigs in Blankets — Cozy in Their Pillows
These pillowy pigs in blankets strike a nice balance between soft comfort and crisp texture—perfect for snacking, parties, or lunchboxes.
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Pigs in Pillows
- 4 to 6 inch (10–15 cm) piece of your favorite smoked sausage (kielbasa, smokies, garlic sausage, etc.), gluten-free if needed
- 2 cups masa corn flour (masa harina or Maseca)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup + 2–3 tablespoons (270–285 ml) warm water
- Oil for frying (grapeseed, rice bran, vegetable, or similar)
1. Cut the sausage into twelve slices about 1/3 inch (8 mm) thick.
2. Combine the masa corn flour and salt in a bowl. Pour in 1 cup warm water and mix until the flour is moistened. If the dough feels dry, add 2–3 additional tablespoons of warm water, one tablespoon at a time, until you have a soft, pliable dough that holds together.
3. Pinch off a ball about the size of a golf ball. Roll it smooth, flatten it slightly, and press a sausage slice into the center.
4. With your fingers, bring the edges of the dough up and over the sausage, pinching to fully enclose the slice. Smooth and pat into a rounded disk, ensuring no sausage peeks out.
5. Repeat until all 12 sausage slices are wrapped.
6. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and pour in oil to a depth of 1/4 to 1/2 inch (6–12 mm), enough to come about halfway up the sides of the pillows. When the oil is hot, gently add up to six pillows and fry until the bottoms are golden. Turn carefully with tongs or forks and brown the other side. Transfer to paper towels to drain excess oil. Repeat with remaining pillows.
Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauce. Makes 12 Pigs in Pillows.
* Dipping Sauces
Curry: 1/4 cup (60 ml) ketchup, 1/4 cup (60 ml) applesauce, 1/2 teaspoon curry powder — stir together.
Honey‑Mustard: 1/4 cup (60 ml) mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon mustard, 1 tablespoon honey — mix to taste.
Creamy BBQ: Mix mayonnaise and your preferred barbecue sauce to taste for a simple creamy dip.
Guten Appetit!
If you’d like more kid-friendly kitchen projects, explore other recipes in the “Cooking With Kids” series for simple, fun meals to make together.