After the Fourth of July was over, my refrigerator was still full with festive foods and especially, hot dogs. I hate to see anything go to waste in my fridge so I set out to create a new happytizer recipe that celebrated my "all-American leftovers." I used hot dogs, pickles, shallots, pretzel bread, ketchup and mustard to make my Hot Diggity Dogs.
My boyfriend is a meat-lover, so I'm constantly trying to dream up dishes that he will enjoy and eat. He usually doesn't like real fancy stuff, but I like a lick of refinement when I cook, so this dish takes an average casual snack and classes it up a bit. The really funny moment came when I asked for a measuring tape to measure the hot dog. Super classy, right? He looked at me like, what are you DOING? I had to know exactly how big it was in order to know how many bites I could get from one!
Anyway…my Hot Diggity Dog happytizer is low-fat, tasty and so easy to make! Try whipping these up for Memorial Day weekend and they will be gone before you know it (I would suggest doubling this recipe if you have more than 2 people over). I also used all-beef Hebrew National hot dogs; they were reduced-fat so less guilt. Use can use toothpicks to hold the ingredients together, but these mini silverware forks I found at the grocery store were too great to pass up and they make the plate a little more sophisticated. Enjoy this easy hot dog appetizer and happy eating!
Cook hot dogs and slice each one evenly in to 6 (1 inch) pieces. Place sliced shallot rounds in red wine vinegar for 10 minutes, then drain. Stack ingredients; hot dog first, then onion, pickle and lastly, pretzel bread. Pierce with toothpick or mini silverware and stand upright on plate. Garnish plate with your favorite ketchup and mustard sauces. Enjoy!
