puppy love – Pretty Little Pastimes

Now that the weather is officially in sun-blazing summer-mode, I am spending more and more time outside. Beach days, hikes, and long walks with the pups are topping my list so far. Since I am on a new coast this year, it has been an exciting season of firsts. And while I am trying my hand at some new dishes in the kitchen for the two-legged members of the family, I never want to leave Maggie and Bogart out. This past weekend I decided to finally use the popsicle molds that have been sitting in a drawer to freeze a cold treat for those dog days of summer.

Chicken & Carrot Pupsicles

3 cups chicken broth (I used low-sodium, organic)
2 small carrots, sliced
4 thin rawhide chews (for the pupsicle sticks)

Start by pouring the chicken broth into each of the popsicle molds. Chop the carrots into thin slices. I made two small angular cuts at the top of the carrots to form the heart shape on my carrot coins. Place the carrots into the broth (they will sink to the bottom).

Next, place the rawhide chew in the middle of each mold to act as the popsicle stick. I knew they would not stay in place with out a little help, so I used 4 strips of clear tape to anchor them. Place the molds into the freezer until hardened. Once frozen, remove the tape from the molds and gently pop the pupsicles out. Tempting as it is, avoid prying them out by the stick, so it does not break. If they are being stubborn, run a little warm water over the mold until they loosen.

This was a tough one to snap photos of, since my dogs wanted to carry them off to the grass to eat. But I loved this shot of Maggie’s paws and one of the heart carrots that had fallen (it was gobbled up seconds later). They made them look so good, it might be time for me experiment a little with some fruity popsicles for myself! Stay cool everyone!

This weekend I wanted to do something special for my pups, so I decided to make some homemade peanut butter and oatmeal dog treats! This recipe is great because most, if not all, of the ingredients I usually already have in the pantry. They are quick and easy to make and my dogs just love gobbling them up as soon as they are cool!

Peanut Butter & Oatmeal Dog Treats

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup honey
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup wheat flour
1 cup unbleached flour
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, honey, olive oil and chicken broth. In a separate bowl, combine the flours, oats and cinnamon. Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the peanut butter mixture until combined. If your dough is too dry add more chicken broth one tablespoon at a time.

Transfer the dough to a flour dusted surface and roll the dough to about 3/8″ thick. Use a cookie cutter (I used a bone shaped one) and cut out your treats. Combine the scraps and keep rolling to get as many treats as you can out of the dough; I ended up with 26. Place the unbaked treats onto a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake for 13-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

I took a plate of these outside to get some shots when they were all baked, but a certain puppy of mine, Miss Maggie May, had other ideas!