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Cool tricks in the culinary world

Homemade Dog Biscuits

Like most Americans, we love our pets. Some people prefer cats, some dogs, some birds or fish or perhaps an exotic pet of some kind. In addition to our pack (all rescues), we frequently support several families of squirrels, hundreds of migratory birds, and a few possums.

Anabel, Maggie and Duke

I unabashedly admit that I am a dog person, and consider our dogs to be part of the family. So they are beneficiaries of our kitchen as well – not from food scraps (something they never get), but from nutritious foods designed for their benefit. One of the menu items they get at every meal is a rice/vegetable dish made with brown rice, carrots, and green vegetables. *

NOTE: It is extremely important when designing a dish for non-human consumption, that you consider the special dietary needs of the creature the dish is intended for. For example, dogs should not be given foods such as onions, grapes and chocolate. Before feeding your dog (or any animal) food from your kitchen I recommend consulting a website such as that of the ASPCA and/or consult with your veterinarian.

After feeding my dogs commercially prepared dog biscuits for years, I came to the conclusion I would rather prepare them something nutritious and fresh in my own kitchen. So I came up with the following recipe for Homemade Dog Biscuits which I think is healthier than most of the options you will find in the store.

HOMEMADE DOG BISCUIT RECIPE

Ingredients
3 c Flour, whole wheat
1/2 c Nonfat dry milk
1/3 c Shortening, vegetable **

1 c Chicken or Beef broth, low sodium
2 Eggs

Instructions
Mix the nonfat dry milk and flour in a bowl.

Cut in the shortening with a fork or pastry blender.

Mix the broth and eggs together in a separate bowl.

Add the broth/egg mixture to the flour mixture and mix with a spoon or spatula or hands to form a sticky dough that moves away from the sides of the bowl.

Adjust liquid and flour as needed.

Roll out on a greased cookie sheet to 1/4″ thick. Score into squares (mine are 2 x 1 ½ inches). I use a wire cooling rack to score the dough as it is the perfect size for the cookie sheet I make these in.

Bake at 325 degrees for 50 minutes until edges are brown and they look dry.

After baking is complete, leave in the warm oven until fully dried. After cooling, break into pieces and store in a cool dry place in an airtight container.

Our dogs love these treats, but we are careful not to feed them too often as they do contain some fat. These biscuits are hard and crunchy which helps keep their teeth clean and they provide good nutrition primarily through the whole wheat flour. Even though they do contain some milk in the form of nonfat dry powder, it is in a small quantity and provides additional nutrition.

* Watch for an upcoming post on cooked rice safety.

** Because of health concerns, I do not recommend using lard to make food for dogs.

Jamaican Festival – the bread that is fun to eat

The third Jamaican dish I tried as part of my experimentation this last weekend with Jamaican Cuisine is called “Festival.” A “Festival” is a slightly sweet, fried bread. It reminds me of a larger, sweeter version of a “hush puppy” probably because of the cornmeal in the recipe and because it is fried. They also resemble cornmeal fritters.

: Two had already disappeared before I could take this picture.

Why is it called a ‘Festival?’ From what I understand it is because in Jamaica it is said eating one is like having a Festival in your mouth. Festivals are served with a variety of Jamaican dishes and provide a marked contrast and complement to the spiciness of Jerk seasoning commonly used in Jamaican meat dishes.

I think you will enjoy making and eating Festivals as much as I and my family have.

Here is the recipe:

JAMAICAN FESTIVAL BREAD

Ingredients
1 1/2 c Flour, all purpose
3 T Cornmeal (I highly recommend Lamb’s Stone Ground)
1/2 t Salt, kosher
3 T Sugar
1 t Baking powder (I used ARGO*)

3/4 c Water
1 t Vanilla

Instructions
Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl. Stir water and vanilla together and add to dry ingredients. Blend together until combined. The dough should be slightly sticky; add more water (up to 1/4 cup) if necessary. Cover in plastic wrap and let stand for one hour on the counter.

Divide the dough into 8 pieces, roll into small sausage shapes, then coat in a half and half mixture of flour and corn meal. Fry in vegetable oil (300 to 375 degrees) until golden brown (internal temp s/b 190 – 200 degrees).

* They expanded significantly when cooked. I attribute this to the ARGO Baking Powder I used which I have found to be superior to other commercially available brands. For more information, see my previous post on Baking Powders and the results of the first Baking Powder Experiment conducted in the Lukewarm Legumes Test Kitchen.

Labor Day Party – revisited

In my previous post about Labor Day I outlined the plans I had made for the party I was planning for our family, friends, and neighbors. I promised to follow up that post with one letting you know the party results.

For this event I prepared as much in advance as possible. The Onion Dip is something that is good to make in ahead of time so all of the ingredients can blend together which results in a much nicer dish. For chips I provided some favorites from the grocery – tortilla and corn. For salsa I ended up using several of Mrs. Renfro’s: Green, Roasted, and a new one (to me anyway) Pomegranate. The Pomegranate Salsa was excellent and I definitely will get that one again. One of our guests suggested it would be great with Shrimp, and I agree.

The dressings for the Potato Salad and Coleslaw I made the day before to save time as well as improve their flavor. The potatoes I cooked in advanced as well. The actual salads were assembled the day of the party to preserve the crispness of the fresh vegetables.

The brisket preparation had to be improvised due to the high winds we were experiencing in Texas over the weekend. My little smoker was not up to the task of performing all night in those conditions, so I ended up smoking the meat for 3 hours then finishing it up in the oven at 170 degrees for the remainder of the time. All told the brisket slow cooked for 20 hours. I had added the rub early in the morning on Sunday so by the time the decision was made to start smoking early it had been on the meat for 10 hours. Per instructions, I gave the meat a light coating of mustard before applying the rub. I used Dijon Mustard.

I ended up not using the mop sauce; it didn’t need it. Instead, before placing the brisket in the oven I wrapped it in foil. I also placed a metal casserole dish in the bottom of the oven filled with water to help keep the meat moist. The brisket actually turned out great, being tender and flavorful with a hint of smoke flavor. Although I would have preferred to smoke it the whole time much of the information I read indicated smoking is generally only effective for the first 5 hours anyway. But that is the subject of some debate.

The Coleslaw I prepared is very fresh and I used my own vinaigrette dressing. The Potato Salad was the result of some creativity, ending up with a reddish color (from the Hungarian Paprika) and flavors that go very well with a cookout. It is not heavy on the mayonnaise, but has a definite taste of dill.

The Onion Dip Recipe, how I prepared the Lemonade, as well as a link to the Brisket Rub I used can be found in my previous post. Here are the recipes for my Potato Salad and Coleslaw:

FRESH COLESLAW

Ingredients
2 c Cabbage, green, shredded
1 c Cabbage, red, shredded
1 c Carrots, shredded
½ c Onion, red, chopped
2 Celery stalks, sliced

Dressing
4 T Vinegar, balsamic
2 T Vinegar, red wine
1 T Mustard, Dijon
2 t Sugar, brown
2 Cloves garlic, minced
1 t Celery seeds
½ c Olive oil
½ t Basil, dry
½ t Black pepper
¼ t Salt

Instructions
Prepare dressing in advance. Chop all fresh ingredients and toss together. Serve with dressing either mixed in with the salad, or on the side.

COOKOUT POTATO SALAD

Ingredients
1 ½ t Salt, kosher
½ t Pepper, ground
2 T Sugar
1 T Mustard powder
3 T Dill, dried
2 T Garlic powder
2 T Paprika

1 ½ c Mayonnaise
2 T Mustard, Dijon

1 c Green pepper, chopped
1 c Red pepper, chopped
½ c Onion, red chopped
½ c Celery, chopped
4 Pickles, dill chopped

12 c Potatoes, cubed and cooked

Instructions
Blend dry ingredients then add mayonnaise and mustard to make dressing. This can be made in advanced and kept cool. When ready to make salad, add chopped vegetables to dressing. Cook cubed potatoes until tender. Gently mix dressing and chopped vegetable mixture with cooked potatoes and chill.

For dessert we had Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla and Moolenium Crunch plus all the toppings.

We at Lukewarm Legumes hope you had a very enjoyable and safe Labor Day event with your family, friends, and neighbors. We would be delighted to hear about your Labor Day preparations, your thoughts about our site, and your kitchen experiences. Be sure to +1 us on Google, Like us on Facebook, and Follow Us on Twitter.

Labor Day Party

Humans are social creatures. Each one of us is an individual with our own particular preferences and peculiarities, but I believe for all our differences, we share far more similarities. One of these similarities is that we enjoy being around other people. So we look forward to the occasions that offer opportunities for us to gather together with our family, friends, and neighbors.

Many of these opportunities come during holidays, such as Labor Day. This is one of those days that many people traditionally have off from work. Just type into your favorite search engine the words ‘labor day events’ and you will likely find lists of activities planned for your part of the country (if you live in the U. S. anyway). For instance, I live in Houston, Texas and I found sites for events in Houston as well as in other parts of Texas.

For Labor Day this year at our home we have invited family and friends over for a cookout. For the food, here are our plans so far:

Since it has been so hot and dry this season in our part of the country, our plans are for cooking outside and to provide plenty of refreshing foods. You need to have something for your guests to munch on until everyone arrives and the meal is ready, so I recommend having them prepared and ready before people start to arrive. The starters for this party will include chips, dips, with cold drinks such as beer for the adults and lemonade.

One of my favorite dips is Onion Dip, and here is my recipe:

ONION DIP

Ingredients
1 T Instant Beef Bouillon
2 T Minced onions
¼ t Garlic powder
½ t Chives, dried
½ t Parsley, dried
¼ t Onion, powdered
1 c Sour cream

Instructions
Combine ingredients and let sit in refrigerator for one hour before serving.

This, along with fresh homemade salsa, will be served with chips.

For lemonade I make it using simple syrup, lemon juice and water. I make simple syrup ahead of time by heating 1 part water and 1 part sugar until the sugar completely dissolves. (2 cups sugar plus 2 cups water heated yields 3 cups simple syrup.) This I keep in the refrigerator until need. Then to make lemonade I add 2 parts simple syrup to 2 parts lemon juice and 12 parts cold water (hint: 2 oz. (1/4 cup) simple syrup + 2 oz. (1/4 cup) lemon juice + 12 oz. (1 1/2 cups) water = 1 pint). Simple syrup is easy to make and use because it mixes so well with the other ingredients (much better than plain sugar). Plus it can be used for making Mint Juleps.

For the meal I am planning on smoking a brisket. This year I will be using a dry rub and mop sauce and cooking the brisket in a smoker I have used for years, primarily for smoking turkey for our family’s Thanksgiving meal. I will be trying a method I recently found at a site called The Smoker King which advertises itself as a site for ‘BBQing Recipes and Techniques, Texas Style!!’ At this site are instructions for preparing the brisket (between the rub and smoking, this will be a 24+ hour commitment) with recipes for the rub and mop sauce. Along with the brisket we will be serving potato salad and BBQ beans.

For dessert we will be enjoying Blue Bell Ice Cream (this is a Texas brand, which we think is the best anywhere, but other regions of the country may think otherwise) sundaes. I am always on the lookout for good discounts on items I can reasonably add to my pantry to have on hand for special occasions. For the sundaes I have M&Ms and Heath Bars (that I either got on sale or had a coupon for) hidden away that will be among the options for toppings. Also will be freshly whipped cream.

The secret to successful whipped cream is to start with everything cold. This helps the stiffening of the milkfat thus enabling the incorporation of air. Before whipping I put everything in the freezer to chill: bowl, beater, and even the cream itself (be careful not to let the cream freeze). Here is my recipe for whipped topping:

WHIPPED CREAM

Ingredients
1 c Heavy cream
2 T Ice, finely crushed or shaved
2 T sugar

Instructions
Place bowl and beaters in freezer for 5 to 10 minutes to chill well. Place the cream in the freezer for 5 minutes to chill. Pour the cream into the chilled bowl. Add the ice to the cream and whip to soft peaks.

Gently fold in the sugar and whip until the cream forms firm peaks.

Do not over whip, or you will have butter.

Keeping everything cold is essential to keep the fat droplets firm around the air bubbles to produce firm whipped topping.

Keep covered in the refrigerator. Fats are great holders and carriers of flavor and will easily pick up tastes and odors from other items in the refrigerator.

Check back with us and I will let you know how everything went for our party. We at Lukewarm Legumes would love to hear about your party plans for Labor Day. Please let us know about it either on our website, Facebook or through Twitter and remember to ‘Like’ us and follow us as well. Links to our Facebook and Twitter accounts can be found on our website at www.lukewarmlegumes.com.

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