homemade dog biscuits

I don’t have children. I have a dog.

It’s actually amazing that I have a dog. Growing up I was terrified of them. There were two really mean dogs in our neighborhood. Seriously mean. They had a reputation for chasing kids on bikes and I knew more than one kid that had been bitten. Guess what one of the dog’s name was?

Buffy. Buffy the kid-chaser, ankle biting dog.

I was so scared of dogs that when Halloween came along, I would stand in the driveway of houses who had dogs and wait for them to bring me candy. It was to scary to go to the door. This actually worked really well for me because the family would feel so bad, they’d give me extra candy. Score!

Fast forward to when I first moved to Minneapolis. My new home and new roommate included a dog. I was nervous but I was also 22 and ready to face my fears. That dog was one of the best things that ever happened to me. Rowan was a Weimaraner and a big sweetheart. She was also a great watch dog. She would go crazy anytime someone came to the door. This might seem annoying, but as a young and new to Uptown small town girl like myself, it was a great safety feature. We were great buds.

Living with a great dog like Rowan, helped me prepare for getting my own dog. Brette has always lived with dogs so I knew the day would come when we got our own.

We’ve had Lily in our lives for 6 years now and I can’t imagine life without her. She’s been a lazy pile since the ripe age of 8 weeks old. Apparently we were a good match…

She does, however, get excited for a few things; squirrels, rabbits, pheasants, her family (her mom and brother live with Brette’s parents), squeaky toys, and dog treats.

She’ll eat any dog treat but her favorites are homemade.

A couple of years ago, I picked up homemade dog biscuits from Real Bread* at the Midtown Farmer’s Market. I liked that there was nothing funky in them. Lily loved them. I even did a test once to see which she would go for first – milk bone or homemade treat. The homemade version won every time.

Brett  didn’t always have the dog biscuits at the market and I’m pretty sure he got sick of me asking for them so he offered me the recipe. I’m so grateful and to pay it forward, I’m now sharing that recipe with you.

These would make a great gift for your dog lover friends for any occasion.

The original recipe came from The Country Gourmet Cookbook. I don’t own the cookbook, but it looks cute and if it has fun things like homemade dog biscuits, I’m sold!

Dog Biscuits

Note: This make a lot. I halved the recipe when I made them just for Lily. If you’re doing gifts, this would make 4 nice sized bags.

4 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup parmesan (the good old green can unless you are feeling like really spoiling your pooch)

1/4 cup milk

1 1/4 cups water

2 eggs

1/2 cup canola oil

Preheat oven to 350.

Oil or spray two baking sheets.

Mix all ingredients until combined. Roll out until dough is 1/4 to 1/3 inch thick. Either cut into squares or rectangles with a knife or use a cookie cutter (a dog bone shape would be cute) and place on baking sheets. Bake for about 20 minutes or until biscuits are hard. Let cool.

Then make your dog do tricks to earn the treats.

* Real Bread is on a hiatus from the market, but Brett has a great blog. This is a different Brett from the Brette I’m married to. Confusing? Brett from Real Bread also has a dog named Lily.