RECIPE: Homemade Turkey Treats (for dogs)

A few months ago, the girls and I were at the vet's office with one of the dogs and I happened to see several copies of a dog/cat/horse treat cookbook sitting on the counter with a sign that announced that the proceeds from the sale of the cookbooks would go to the East Central Indiana Therapeutic Riding Center (find them here on Facebook.) I cannot resist a cookbook, unless it is one that promises me 1001 Ways to Cook Brussels Sprouts, so I bought a copy. Before we got back home, I'd already told Meelyn to head over to Marsh -- there were some supplies I needed to get. And that evening, I made two different kinds of dog treats for the pups. The recipes were really easy, contained ingredients that I already had on hand in the fridge or the pantry (except for the little jars of Gerber baby food strained meat) and were much cheaper than the treats we buy at the store.

I made a few modifications to this recipe and changed the name, but I hope that if you have a dog, a cat, a horse or all three, the simplicity of this recipe will motivate you to buy your own copy at Amazon and check out the rest of the goods.

TURKEY TREATS

INGREDIENTS:
2 2/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup powdered milk
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
2 jars baby food turkey
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and knead for three minutes or so, until everything is mixed and clinging together. Using a bit of flour to keep things from sticking, roll the dough out one inch thick (for bigger treats) or 1/2 inch thick for smaller biscuits. You can use a bone-shaped cookie cutter if you're that kind of person -- I am -- or you can just use a pizza cutter to cut the treats however big you'd like to have them. [I used the pizza cutter to cut the biscuits in the picture above.]

Bake on an ungreased baking sheet for 20-25 minutes for thicker biscuits, maybe 18-22 minutes for thinner ones. Allow to cool before serving. Store treats in a plastic bag in the fridge - these aren't rock-hard dry treats, more like a chewy texture, and they'll mold if they're unrefrigerated. They have no preservatives in them to extend their shelf life, which can only be a good thing.

A word to the wise: Be prepared for people to make A LOT of fun of you for doing this, but phooey on them because your dogs will love these treats and they are really, really inexpensive to make.