PETS 2011
Cooking for Canines
W
BY SHANNON FINNELL
hen your faithful companion
has completed a hard day’s
work of walking, sitting and
fetching, what could be a better reward than
a scratch behind the ears and a home-cooked
snack? That’s right, when you don’t have the
cash to shell out for fancy-schmancy boutique-
bought treats or are simply in the mood to get
crafty in the kitchen, you can whip up your
own doggy dessert. These are the EW dogs’
faves, culled from the interwebs.
Keep ‘em regular: With fi ber,
vitamins and minerals, pumpkin is great for
dogs and humans — just be careful you’re
picking up pure pumpkin and not pie fi lling.
Mix a 15-oz. can of pumpkin, 3/4 cup rice
cereal and 1/2 cup dry powdered milk, then
drop spoonfuls onto a lightly greased cookie
sheet. Cook at 300 degrees for 15 minutes.
Dog breath veggie bones: Maybe
they won’t cure serious halitosis, but throwing
some parsley into a treat can take some of the
bite out of a pooch’s bark. Preheat the oven
to 350 and re-grease that cookie sheet, then
combine 2 3/4 cups wheat fl our, 2 tbsp. bran
and 2 tsp. baking powder. Separately mix
up 3 tsp. minced parsley, 1/4 cup shredded
carrots, 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese and
2 tbsp. olive oil. Add 1/2 cup water to the wet
ingredients and mix it all together, kneading
until it’s dough. Roll the dough into a sheet
1/4 inch thick, cut out bones (or hearts or
stars) and bake for 20 minutes.
Carrot treats for fatties: Whip up
this healthy, natural treat for your chubby
buddy who loves food rewards. Preheat
the oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease
a cookie sheet, then mash together a ripe
banana and a cup of shredded carrots, and
mix in 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce and
a little water. Finally, knead in 1 1/2 cup
whole-wheat fl our and a cup of rolled oats.
Roll the dough into a sheet half an inch thick,
then cut ‘em out and bake for 25 minutes.
Potato power: Make sure the mashed
potatoes in this recipe don’t contain any
leaves, stems or brown spots, which contain
toxins. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees;
lightly grease the baking sheet. Mix 1 cup
mashed potatoes and one shredded carrot,
then stir in an egg yolk. Mold the mash into
miniature balls and bake for 10 minutes or
“FEED YOUR CRAVINGS!”
until they begin to brown.
Going grain-free: A lot of dogs are
sensitive to a particular grain, and alternative
fl ours can save the day — and a dog’s ability
to eat peanut butter goodies. To make these
grain-free treats, preheat the oven to 350
and lightly grease a cookie sheet. Blend
3 cups garbanzo and fava bean fl our (or
another traditional fl our substitute) with 1/2
cup peanut butter, 1 cup water and 2 tbsp.
vegetable oil. Drop spoonfuls of the dough
onto the cookie sheet, then bake for 20
minutes.
Gnaw-hide: As an alternative to a
rawhide, wash and dry a sweet potato and
preheat the oven to 250. This time, line the
cookie sheet with parchment paper. Cut the
potato into pieces about 1/3 inch thick and
bake them for three hours. They keep in
the fridge for about three weeks and can be
frozen for a few months.
Broth-sicles: If Eugene ever sees the
return of hot weather, freezing a treat might
be more fun than fi ring up the oven. A little
low-sodium chicken or beef broth frozen in
an ice cube tray makes a delightful alternative
to warm or room temperature treats.
Frozen 2.0: Here’s another cool treat
for the dog days of summer. Microwave a
cup of creamy peanut butter until it melts,
then add a 32-ounce container of fat-free
vanilla yogurt. Fill a muffi n tin with the goo
and freeze until it’s hard.
While creating cuisine for canines can
incorporate a lot of nutritious elements,
there are also foods to watch out for. Onions,
garlic, coffee, alcohol, macadamia nuts,
grapes and raisins are harmful to dogs, and
salt is particularly bad for big dogs. Yeast
dough is also a no-go.
Raw salmon infected with a parasite
that is infected with the microorganism
Neorickettsia helminthoeca can kill dogs,
and because it most frequently occurs west
of the Cascades, it’s a good thing to avoid in
these parts.
Edging away from those controversial
or downright dangerous foods, you can
incorporate sub foods like applesauce,
bananas, honey, cornmeal, pumpkin and
sweet potato into recipes, and enjoy treating
man and woman’s best friend. ew
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EUGENE WEEKLY
PHOTOGRAPH BY TRASK BEDORTHA
Get baked with Fido
Eugene Bakes
Too tuckered out to cook treats yourself?
Fetch Fido some fresh goodies from these local bakeries that cater to dogs:
Sweet Life
Bare Bones Dog Wash
sells peanut butter bones that EW
dogs James and Charlie devour with
manic enthusiasm. 755 Monroe St.
Not For Dogs Only
cooks up fresh treats in apple
cinnamon, banana lavender,
banana butter and more. They
focus on healthy treats, but are
still delicious enough to capture
the attention of offi ce dogs Rhoda
and Zella. A complete list of their
distributors is available at www.
thehealthydogstore.com
carries NFDO, and it also sells Kristi’s
All Natural Dog Food, made in Albany
of beef from Coburg’s Knee Deep
Cattle. All of the products that Bare
Bones carries are gluten and grain
free. 1025 River Rd.
Muddy Paws Pet Parlor
is a self-service dog wash and pet
store, complete with a gluten-free
dog bakery. 1025 River Rd.
Taste of India
Buffet Lunch Special
$8.99 all you can eat.
7 days a week.
✪ Voted Best Buffet
-Eugene Weekly Readers
✪ Voted Best
Indian Restaurant
-Eugene Weekly Readers
✪ Best Indian
Restaurant In Town
Campus Location
Now Open!
844 E 13th ave
(old Sakura location)
Student Lunch
Buffet Special
$5.99 (to go only)
-Register Guard Readers 2010
Catering available • Full menu available to go • Delivery through Pony Express
2495 Hilyard St. • Eugene, OR 97405 • ph & fax (541) 485-9698 • ph only (541) 485-9560
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