With the start of spring training classes in central New York, dog owners will see on their training class orientation an list of things to bring to class. Often, that list includes 'soft, yummy treats which are easy to eat.' Although there are many commercially prepared dog treats available in local stores, the ingredient lists of many packaged treats often includes colors, preservatives or ingredients you'd rather not feed Spot.
Liver 'Brownies' and E-Z Cheese Crisps are two recipes for treats which are easy to prepare at home. Both recipes make plenty of pocket-friendly training treats minus all the additives, colorings and preservatives in commercial treats. If you are helping Spot maintain his or her svelte figure, reduce the amount of daily meals by the amount of treats you plan to offer during training classes and home practices.
Liver 'Brownies'
1 lb. chicken livers
1 cup ground corn meal
1 cup wheat germ
1 egg
1 ¼ teaspoon granulated garlic (not garlic powder or garlic salt)
¼ cup dried parsley
- Puree the chicken livers in a blender or food processor.
- Add in the egg, pulse, and pour into a mixing bowl.
- Mix in the corn meal, wheat germ, granulated garlic and dried parsley. The batter will be thick.
- Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper, draping extra paper over the 9-inch ends of the pan. Evenly spread the batter on the parchment paper so that it's between 1/3 and ½ inch thick.
- Bake at 350 deg. F. for 30-35 minutes, or until top is dry but springs back when touched with a finger. Remove from oven, and cool.
- Use the ends of the parchment paper to lift the 'brownies' out of the pan. Use a pizza cutter to score the brownies into 1-inch squares.
- Store in covered container in the refrigerator. Make approximately 100 liver 'brownie' treats.
E-Z Cheese Crisps (gluten free)
- Slice a piece of string cheese into rounds about 1/4-inch thick.
- Spread the rounds on a microwave-safe plate lined with a piece of parchment paper.
- Microwave on high in 1-minute intervals until crisp, rotating the plate in the oven (600-watt ovens.) For higher-power microwaves (1000w), microwave in 30-second intervals.
- Remove from the parchment paper to another plate to cool. Each 6-inch (1 oz.) piece of string cheese makes 20-25 cheese crisps.
Need more recipes? Find over 50 free recipes for dog treats at Bullwrinkle's free dog treat recipes page.
If you'd like to give Spot treats made with natural ingredients and no added preservatives or colorings, but you don't have the time to prepare them yourself, you can find a store full of natural and preservative-free treats at Dog Daze Bakery, 309 S. Main St., North Syracuse.
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Comments
Two great recipes - definitely have to give the chees crisps a try - string cheese tends to be messy when pulling it apart if you don't get it cut up a head of time!
Karen, the nuked bits of string cheese work really well, and arent sticky in the pocket either. My english cocker spaniels will dance on their ears for anything liver or anything cheese.
I'll share more of my favorite no-fuss homemade treat recipes when I can. Enjoy!
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