With the suggestions here you can experiment and create your pup's favorite flavor of crunchy treat. Even when you make a mistake, they're pretty forgiving. Well, unless you're talking about Feef. Once the new batch comes out, she's turning her nose up at the old batch. I've pretty much stopped bringing them home any crunchy biscuits from PetSmart because they like mom's home cooking, and I like that I know what's in the treats I'm giving them.
Preheat oven to 325.
3 Cups Flour - I mix it up, Oat flour, Rice flour, Whole Wheat flour, Spelt flour, experiment! Adjust all ingredients for known allergens for your own dog.
1/4 cup wheat germ (or flax, barley, oatmeal)
2 Tablespoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon rosemary (or parsley, wheatgrass, greens)
1/2 teaspoon ginger 1/2 teaspoon cardomom
2 tsp Brewers Yeast powder
Combine all dry ingredients. Add:
1 can of dog food (I use Blue Buffalo canned food)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (use a fruit or vegetable puree of your choice)
1/2 cup crumbled bacon & drippings (or 1/2 cup cooked salmon, chicken or liver)
1/4 cup sunflower oil (or salmon oil, or anchovie oil)
1/2 Cup liquid (water, chicken broth, vegetable stock)
1 egg
Stir into dry ingredients until you have a big sticky ball of goo. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Flour up your hands, Press your ball of goo flat on the parchment to 1/4" thickness. You may have to divide your gooball in two if you are using a smaller pan. Use a knife to score lines in the dough where you want to break it into bars or squares. Bake at 325 for 40 minutes. Flip it on the parchment and bake the bottom an additional 20 minutes at 325. Break them up along the score lines.
- These cookies should not be soft or moist in the middle. If they are, allow them to rest in the warm oven until they are dry.
- Store in a tin, use within a reasonable time frame because they don't have all the preservatives store-bought cookies have.
- The food processor is your friend. I have a food processor to make my puree's (meat, fruit or veggie) or to grind whole grains (oatmeal, flax, etc.) and I have a retired coffee grinder to grind herbs, seeds or any vitamin or supplement tablets.
Have fun playing with dog biscuit recipe's. The above guidelines will get you going. My dogs haven't complained yet and I bet yours won't either. The last batch I baked scored 112 on the healthy dog food scale!
