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Grain-Free GoodBites

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Greetings, fellow passengers!

I know a lot of you are looking for recipes for dogs with allergies, so I’ve come up with this grain-free duck and potato treat. I did my best to stay away from other food items that some dogs are allergic to, such as eggs. Instead, I used some “no sugar added” applesauce in place of the egg as the binder in the recipe. It’s a sticky and wet dough without flour – but the results are worth it, especially if your little one can’t handle grains.

INGREDIENTS:
1 duck breast
1/4 cup no sugar added applesauce
3/4 cup instant potatoes. Look for the ones with as few additives as possible. Try to use the granulated ones (they look kinda like sugar) as opposed to the flaky ones. I had the Paradise Valley brand from Costco. I believe that the Idahoan Originals are granular too.
Tsp Rosemary
Tsp Parsley (fresh/dry)
1/4 cup to a cup of chicken broth or water.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. If you have a food processor, (I lived a full & happy life without one, but I bought one 6 months ago and man, I wish I had gotten one a long time ago!) roughly chop the duck breast before putting it in. If you’re going manual all the way, chop the duck breast into little bitty bites.

Either in the food processor or in a big mixing bowl, add the chopped duck, the potato, the applesauce, rosemary and parsley. Pulse or mix together. As you go along, slowly add as much water (my preference, to keep them lower in fat/sodium) or broth if that’s what you think your dog would prefer – as you need to get them to a spreadable consistency. You shouldn’t need very much at all. This is a wet dough – it’s without flour after all – so don’t worry if it looks like a big brown blob. It’s supposed to!

Spread onto a parchment lined baking tray. I get right in there with my hands rather than using a spatula. Use a knife to cut squares in the raw dough. I cut big squares for The Boys, you should make them the appropriate size for your dogs.

Bake them at 400 for forty minutes. I like to leave them in the oven for an extra hour or so to dry out even more as the oven cools down. When you take them out, you can flip them over on the parchment to let the bottom dry out even more as they cool on the counter.

Store these GoodBites in your fridge for 3-5 days, and freeze the rest. I have taken to keeping all of my treats in the freezer because this way, my piglets eat them in two bites rather than gulp them right down the hatch without tasting them :)

I’m going to experiment with other meats as I know a lot of you are looking for grain free goodness for your pups! FYI – this recipe didn’t work as well with a chicken breast, I will have to play with the ratios and come up with a lovely grain-free chicken GoodBite.

xo/J
* Please note that I’m neither a vet nor an animal nutritionist, so it’s advisable to consult with your own authority when trying new foods, and also to ensure that your dog’s home cooked diet is balanced & includes all of the nutrients that are necessary for your dog’s health.

Dehydrated Divas

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Now aren’t these some fancy looking bites? Only two ingredients and five minutes to prep them – you must try this at home! I’ve been doing a lot more dehydrating since I posted about the potentially tainted chicken and duck jerky treats on the market. I might be obsessing a wee bit.

My nephew gave me wild duck and goose breasts a couple of months ago, lucky girl that I am. Wild game is super fantastic for dogs, by the way. Lean, mean, and full of good stuff. If you don’t have a supplier nearby that sells it, or a nephew that loves cammo and ammo, you can use beef. Don’t forget that when dehydrating meat, you want lean cuts. Beef top round steak, flank steak and rump roast are the best cuts for this. And be aware that farmed duck and geese are not nearly as lean as wild ones.

INGREDIENTS:
2 large sweet potatoes
1 gamey breast or equivalent portion of beef.

Lightly oil a baking tray and set the oven to 200 degrees.

This is so simple. Grab a sweet potato and a sharp knife. Cut the nubbies off of each end. That’s right, I said nubbies. Now – carefully – cut thin slices lengthwise. Like really long potato chips. Repeat with the other sweet potato.

Now it’s time to slice the meat. Do your best to cut thin and long strips, but don’t lose a finger over it. Place the sweet potato slices on the baking tray. Place a strip of meat or two (depending on the size) on top of the slice of sweet potato. Basically you are adding one layer of meat on top of each one. If you have extra of either sweet potato or meat slices, just place them on the tray and dehydrate them on their own.

The meat will meld right into the sweet potato as they “cook”.

I put these ones in for about 4 hours. I flipped them at about the 3 hour mark to dry out the SP more. You could leave these in longer, mine were chewy – but I have very little patience! Still a great result as you can see. If you want crunchy, you need to dry them longer.

Once they are cool, you can slice them up all pretty-like.

These should last in the fridge for up to a week. The drier they are the longer they would last is my guess, but nothing lasts that long around this place!

Just a heads up re: the latest pet food recalls – in case you haven’t heard there is a recall on a bunch of Diamond Pet food brands including: Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover’s Soul, Country Value, Diamond, Diamond Naturals, Premium Edge, Professional, 4Health, Taste of the Wild, Kirkland Signature – (Costco brand). So please check to see if your food is on the list. There is also a Purina cat food recall that was in the news today. Scary stuff.

Happy Mother’s Day to all you moms out there – I dedicate this recipe to my mom, who would most certainly appreciate my Asian flair in presenting these little Divas.

xo/J

I’m neither a vet nor an animal nutritionist.  This recipe is not meant to replace a proper and balanced diet for your dog.  You should to speak to your own vet before trying new recipes or feeding any home cooked foods to your dog.

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Breakfast of Champions

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My favourite breakfast is the good old fashioned “All Day Breakfast” at a greasy spoon. Home cooked breakfast for dogs coming right up! I thought I’d create a healthier version of this for The Boys. Sorry fellas – that means no sausage, bacon, home fries or toast!  Have no fear – a simple, yet beautiful Fried Egg, sunny side up, with a wee bit of spinach and a side of Doggie Granola Bars did not disappoint my biggest fans.  (watch them chow down here)

The egg on its own is a great little meal for dogs. You could also add grated carrot, small amounts of cooked veggies, shredded meat…whatever you have left in your fridge that’s safe for dogs to eat.  Go dog wild!  Or keep it simple – whatever you like, I’m just happy if you make your dog an egg sometime.  You can make the egg dish for less than 50 cents and takes less than five minutes – so no excuses, get crackin’!

Dogs love eggs and eggs have just what dogs need, protein and fat. Eggs are nutrient rich, and an egg given two to three times a week can be very nutritious for your dog! If your dog is a senior or on a low fat diet, simply discard the yolks and use the egg whites.

FRIED EGG:

Ingredients:
One Egg
5-10 baby spinach leaves
Sprinkle of dried Kelp (*optional)

 

I’m assuming most of you know how to fry an egg…right? Well, fry your egg sunny side up. I got fancy and did a chiffonade with the spinach, but you could simply give them a little chop chop. Turn off the burner, remove the egg from the pan and let it cool in the dog’s bowl. Drop the spinach into the still-hot-but-cooling pan and let it wilt for about 15 seconds. Add the spinach to the egg.  Sprinkle some Kelp on the egg. Looks like black pepper but it’s not!  (don’t recommend feeding pepper to dogs) Kelp is rich in vitamins and minerals.   I’m a big fan – so I add a sprinkle to most of my dogs’ meals on a daily basis.

I saw a recipe on a dog training site that inspired me to create my own version of these go-to treats.  They made a great substitute for a side of toast.

 

 

 

 

DOGGIE GRANOLA BARS:

2 cups of flour (rye or whole wheat)
1 cup of rolled oats (not instant)
1 cup of wheat germ
½ cup of cooked quinoa or other seeds such as pumpkin
2 TBP of dry milk powder (*optional)
¼ tsp salt (*optional)
1 egg
1 cup of no salt or low sodium chicken brother
½ cup of water
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

2 mixing bowls
Rolling pin
Baking tray
Parchment paper (optional)

In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients.

 

 

 

 

 

Break the egg into another mixing bowl. Add the water and the chicken broth and stir together until blended.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir. Let this mixture set for about twenty minutes to half an hour.

Cut a large sheet of parchment paper to the size of your baking sheet. You don’t have to use parchment paper, you can use a large cutting board or your counter surface, but I don’t like to have a sticky mess to clean up afterward, so I do this on the parchment and then just toss it into the garbage afterward.

Sprinkle some flour on the parchment and rub some on your rolling pin. Drop your granola ball onto the surface and start rolling it out. You want them to be about a ½ inch think or so. Cut them into bars or smaller pieces depending on your breed of dog/preference.

Somehow, I ended up with the United States of America. As you can see, there’s no need for silly things like perfection and precision when cooking for dogs!

If you want them to be a bit shinier, you can brush on some egg wash before you bake them.

Place them directly onto your ungreased baking sheet and bake them at 325 degrees for about 45 minutes. A trick with this kind of treat or kibble is to turn off the oven, but leave them inside the oven for about 4 or 5 hours to make them a bit harder if you like.

These treats are so simple and dogs love them. The chicken broth helps to attract even the pickiest customers. Yes, these bars have grains, but they are good grains. The other ingredients, such as toasted wheat germ, rolled oats and quinoa are very nutritious.

The ingredients on the list are items that you probably have in your pantry all the time. (if not, you should keep them stocked!)

SUBSTITUTIONS/ADDITIONS:
I do want to include some substitutions or additions in case you want to adapt this recipe with other ingredients that you have or things that your dog loves.

1. You could try flax seeds or pumpkin seeds instead of quinoa. Speaking of – did you know that quinoa is actually a seed, not a grain. It’s true! Full of protein and amino acids. I learned that while researching it for the show.
2. You could try spelt flour or even use unbleached all purpose flour if you like. A homemade treat made with AP flour  will still be healthier than store bought ones with preservative and Dog knows what else.
3. You could use veggie broth or beef broth instead of chicken – just try to minimize sodium and check the ingredient list for onions – onions are not for dogs.
4. You could add very small amounts of dried fruits/berries that are safe for dogs.

I love these as part of a meal or as a treat. That’s a double whammy!

$$$ Factor: An egg costs less than 30 cents. A couple leaves of spinach – negligible. Doggie Granola bars – I used about 25 cents worth (each) of flour, rolled oats, wheat germ. Plus 30 cents for the egg, 25 cents for the quinoa, 75 cents for the cup of broth…what’s that $2.05 for the batch? A whopping 10 CENTS PER GRANOLA BAR!

The breakfast in the picture rings in at 50 cents.
I rate this some serious CHEAP EATS FOR YOUR DOG.

I’m neither a vet nor an animal nutritionist.  This recipe is not meant to replace a proper and balanced diet for your dog.  You should to speak to your own vet before trying new recipes or feeding any home cooked foods to your dog.

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