Thursday, July 21, 2011

Tail waggin' treats!

I'm always baking treats for people. It makes sense, right? Well, maybe not from Coopers' point of view.

Cooper sits quietly as I mise en place then mix, he sniffs the air curiously as sweet smells eminate from the oven and truth be told, he even drools from time to time.

But his patience hasnt paid off for him.....until today that is.

Even though things are as hectic as hectic can be; doctors appointments, attorney meetings, scheduling plumbers and electricians, packing in general and did I mention I dont have a place to go nor have I decided where i'm moving ? Well, its all true and I wanted/needed a break today.

Granted, I could have just had a KitKat, but this was so much better :o)

So I decided to bake.....for Cooper. He deserves it just as much as the next dog, so why not? I know your doggy will love these too!
After all the ingredients are in the mixer, leave it on low until a ball forms.


Put it on half a piece of parchment paper. Fold the other half of the paper over the dough and roll it about 1/2" ( 12.7mm) thick.



It certainly doesnt have to be perfect, but please know that each time you re-roll the dough it gets tougher and tougher ( im talking really tough here people!)



You can cut it into any shape that appeals to you. Since this was for Cooper, I picked a dog bone and a fire hydrant cookie cutter.



As you can see Cooper is always keeping an eye on me from his cubby ( ill explain that in a minute)



Yes, im wearing gloves. First, because its a habit and second, theres garlic in the recipe and I didnt want my hands to smell like garlic for the rest of the night.




*My mother used to have a friend. I remember her very well, she was just the sweetest thing ( arent most 3rd grade teachers?) but......she ate soooooo much garlic she always smelled like it. I think it was coming out of her pores.


I guess I always have that in the back of my head when I add garlic to something**



Showing Cooper his treats before I put them in the oven. ( he's peeking out from his 'cubby')




This recipe yields ~2 dozen with these 2 cutters.



Really? Could they get any cuter? A fire hydrant for a dog 'cookie', c'mon now!



I wanted to share Coopers 'cubby' with you.Even though it's only half of my kitchen in this pic, im sure you guessed that that spot is for a dishwasher.


Yeah well, I never got around to it. What can I tell you, it wasnt a priority.


However, when I got Cooper he made it his own.




He used to stay in his crate most of the time and I wanted him to come out and socialize, so I closed his crate during the day.




He didnt mind so much, but when im in the kitchen I walk back and forth a lot and I tripped over him a few times. Im assuming this was the reason he ducked into the spot for the dishwasher more then once.




If he feels comfortable there, so what, let him stay there. Im only interested in building his confidence. Day by day....


Cooper being shown his freshly baked cookies/biscuits. I dont think he quite knows what to make of them.


Until......



I hand him one.


I hope you take the time ( very short amount of time) to make these yumsters for your pooches, they'll LOVE them and love you even more!!


Dog Cookies/Biscuits


Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup powdered milk

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp garlic powder

6 Tbs fat ( margarine, shortening, meat drippings **being a vegetarian and never having this available, I cannot tell you how it affects the final biscuit. **)

1 egg, beaten first

1 tsp light brown sugar

1/2 cup cold water


Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine first 4 ingredients. Add fat and mix until combined ( it will probably look like corn meal). Add egg. Add water and mix until a ball forms.


Put dough on parchment paper and roll to about 1/2" thick. Cut with cutters ( anything dog-themed is adorable;dog bone, fire hydrant, dog house, dog, etc).

Bake for about 25-30 minutes.


Store in the open. DO NOT store biscuits in an air tight container.

Thanks so much for stopping by! I'd love to hear about your dog cookies and see pics too!




Happy baking!!




Jess

1 comment:

Susie said...

Just found your blog and I love it.
I think we have the same Kitchenaid Mixer. :) I scanned through your posts and WOW you are so creative.
I'll be following,
Susie in northern NY