Oven Chili Dogs

Well you learn something new everyday. I've been married to my husband for 4 billion years, (OK maybe just 10 years,) and I did not know that chili dogs were one of his favorite foods.

I asked him how come it was that I was just learning about this now. Do you know what that crazy boy's reply was? "Well I never told you because they aren't very good for you."

Huh? For the better part of our marriage we ate horribly. Garbage and junk from various eating establishments.  Most of which were no better or worse that these baked hot dogs I found over at In the Wabe.

I must say, as bad as these babies are for you, they were so om nom nom good.  I did use whole wheat hot dog buns, so I guess they had some redeeming qualities to them. 

Here's what the chili dogs looked like before they jammed out in the oven for 45 min.

I forgot to take a picture after I baked them.  Just imagine that cheese is all melty and gooey.

Yes you did read that right.  45 minutes in the oven.  And no, they don't burn up to a crisp.  They are perfectly perfect in every way.  And that's even better than Mary Poppins.

Little old me is going to tell you something that is uncharacteristic from this blog.  Do not deviate from the recipe.  Yeah, uber weird coming from me, I know. Even if you hate mayo, use it.  It creates awesomeness on the bun in the oven.  If you leave it out, you will have sadness.  And really, who wants sadness?

Also, please for pitty's sake, use the kind of chili that has beans in it.  Even Blockette didn't complain about the beans, so you know they are part of the magic in the recipe.  I don't know why.  That's why it's magic.

Oven Hot Dogs from In the Wabe
8 hot dogs
8 hot dog buns
1 can of chili, the kind with beans
1/2 an onion, diced
cheddar cheese
mayonnaise (not Miracle Whip)
yellow mustard
relish - sweet or dill.  Dealers choice

Line inside of hot dog buns with mayonnaise (both sides) and sweet relish. Evenly add mustard. Fill with hot dogs and squish into a 13×9″ baking pan.Top hot dogs with chili, cheese, and diced onion. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350F for 45 minutes.

We had a few hot dogs for leftovers, which we reheated in the microwave.  I had originally planned to reheat them in the oven but I was overcome by excessive laziness.  Strangely enough, even though they were mushy, they were damn delicious.  They had to be cut up and eaten with a fork, but no one cared. 90 seconds was the perfect time for our ancient beast of a microwave to sufficiently reheat the dogs without turning the bun into a rock.