Five-Star Dog Treats

Since we want the best for our happy little friends as we do for our children, the stores do carry a variety of organic treats; but they can be a little pricy. Other types of treats have a lot of additives in them just like “people” food.

This is a great time of year to make these homemade healthy treats for your best friend. I don't think the kids will mind if you borrow a little bit of rolled oats and some Cheddar cheese for their lighthearted pets. They would probably love to help you make these cookies.

If you don’t have a bone cookie cutter and don’t have time to go out and look for one, you can use any shape cutter (I like the heart shape) and it will be appreciated in the same way. I'm not sure if dogs are knowledgeable about shapes.

If you prefer the bone shape, there is a selection of different sized bone cookie cutters on http://www.amazon.com that can be delivered to your door. Here are 2 recipes I came across:

Five Star Dog Treats 

Credit Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

1 cup rolled oats

1/3 cup margarine

1 cup boiling water

3/4 cup cornmeal

2 teaspoons white sugar

2 teaspoons beef bouillon granules

1/2 cup milk

1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

1 egg, beaten

3 cups whole wheat flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, combine rolled oats, margarine, and boiling water. Let stand 10 minutes. Grease cookie sheets.

Thoroughly stir in cornmeal, sugar, bouillon, milk, Cheddar cheese, and egg. Mix in flour, 1 cup at a time, until a stiff dough has formed.

Knead dough on a lightly floured surface, mixing in additional flour as necessary until dough is smooth and no longer sticky. Roll or pat out dough to 1/2" thickness. Cut with a bone or heart shaped cookie cutter, and place 1 inch apart onto the prepared cookie sheets.

Bake 35 to 45 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Cool before serving. Store in a loosely covered container. Makes 48 biscuits

Homemade Dog Biscuits

Credit Martha Stewart

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/4 cup brewer's yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 cup low-sodium canned chicken stock, plus more for brushing

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, wheat germ, yeast, and salt; set aside

Place oil in a large bowl. Add stock and flour mixture in three alternating batches, beginning and ending with stock. Mix well.

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to about 3/8-inch thick. Shape biscuits using a dog-bone-shaped cookie cutter or by cutting around a store-bought dog bone with a butter knife.(Make biscuits that are appropriate for your dog's size.)

If desired, you can spell out your dog's name or a holiday message in the dough with a toothpick (wet the toothpick first so it won't stick).

Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bake biscuits 10 minutes. Brush with stock; rotate baking sheets, and bake 10 minutes more. Turn off oven, leaving door closed. Let dog biscuits stand in oven to dry completely, about 1 1/2 hours. Wrap as a gift, or store in an airtight container at room temperature. Makes about 5 dozen

Buon Appetito to my doggie friends! 

From Amelia's Kitchen 2/22/2013