Pyramid Pan treat maker

[Piper's mom]

Another option Caro that you could use for treats is buckwheat flour. It's not wheat but actually a seed and is good for the GI tract and for dogs with food sensitivities. You can also get buckwheat groats that you can cook and add to the dogs food.

 

[Caro]

I don't think we have buckweath flour, or at least I've never seen it. I went to the health food shop and brought tapioca - only it's beads, not a flour. I must admit, I've never thought of buying it on Amazon, didn't even know I could get food on Amazon.

What do you do with the tapioca? Do you have to soak it first or do you just mix it in with the meat?

Edit - I looked up buckwheat flour and they actually have it in the supermarket. Just goes to show how long it't been since I've cooked cakes or pastries.

 

[Piper's mom]

I don't think we have buckweath flour, or at least I've never seen it. I went to the health food shop and brought tapioca - only it's beads, not a flour. I must admit, I've never thought of buying it on Amazon, didn't even know I could get food on Amazon.

What do you do with the tapioca? Do you have to soak it first or do you just mix it in with the meat?

Edit - I looked up buckwheat flour and they actually have it in the supermarket. Just goes to show how long it't been since I've cooked cakes or pastries.

I've only ever bought the tapioca balls once and that was a longggg time ago and in error (I was making a blueberry pie and thought I could use them to thicken it...didn't work, ended up with all these hard little blue balls in my pie lol). I think you have to cook them first and then they can be added to dog food or to make treats.
However, while gluten free, tapioca has very little nutritional value and while it would be a good alternative for making treats I think buckwheat would be a better option as it is much better nutrient wise especially for dogs with food sensitivities.

Here's a link to some info about buckwheat and the benefits.
https://topdogtips.com/can-dogs-eat-buckwheat/

 

[Ann]

We start obedience in March, I'd love to get away from store bought treats - they are NOT cheap!

I make training treats for my guys suggested by the gal who teaches my Rally class and all my dogs go nuts for them. They're very simple. I buy a package of turkey bologna in the supermarket, cut the slices into pieces (as small or large as you like) and spread them out on a cookie sheet. Preheat the oven to 350 and put them in; reduce the temp to 175 and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until they're as done as you like. I like them soft enough that I can tear them if I'm using a lot of pieces, but if you leave them longer they dry out nicely.

I make a batch and put them in the freezer in a baggie and take out enough to use for training. They last a long time!

 

[Piper's mom]

I make training treats for my guys suggested by the gal who teaches my Rally class and all my dogs go nuts for them. They're very simple. I buy a package of turkey bologna in the supermarket, cut the slices into pieces (as small or large as you like) and spread them out on a cookie sheet. Preheat the oven to 350 and put them in; reduce the temp to 175 and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until they're as done as you like. I like them soft enough that I can tear them if I'm using a lot of pieces, but if you leave them longer they dry out nicely.

I make a batch and put them in the freezer in a baggie and take out enough to use for training. They last a long time!

Great idea Ann! You want a high value reward with a young pup doing obedience and turkey bologna would be VERY high value to them lol!

 

[Piper's mom]

I would treat recipes if you would be kind enough to share. I don't know if there is a private messaging feature on this site.

Where did the pyramid pan come from? Will go look on Amazon.

We start obedience in March, I'd love to get away from store bought treats - they are NOT cheap!

Edit - found it on the Bed, Bath and Beyond site - wahoo!!!!

Here's the recipe for tuna fudge...you can substitute any raw ground meat (I've used chicken before) you just have to make sure you add a bit more water to take the place of the water in the can of tuna, I'm not sure of how much water offhand but at least 1/2 a cup, and add a wee bit more at a time until soupy but still a little thick. I usually mix the wet ingredients first (meat, water) and then slowly add the tapioca flour as it has the tendency to clump up (think corn starch) and if you add all your flour at once you'll have a big blob of flour.



Tuna fudge
4 cans tuna (liquid from can also)
4 eggs
3 cups tapioca flour (can also use regular or ww flour)

Mix tuna and eggs together in food processor then add to flour in bowl and mix, will be very wet.

Place on greased cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and spread out to fill pan. Bake at 350 degree oven for 40-50 minutes. Let cool a bit and then cut with a pizza cutter to desired size.
Can then be dried a bit more (after cutting) in the oven. The tapioca makes them a bit sticky initially after baking and allowing them to dry a bit helps this.
The benefit of using tapioca flour is it changes the texture of the dog treats, makes them almost gelatinous, and they won't crumble in your pocket (plus wheat free) and make great training treats! I just cut them super small with scissors.

 

[Sandy in CT]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

You are AWESOME!!!!

 

[Caro]

Ok, ordered my pyramid pan, found some Tapioca flour, Tully is going to be very happy!

In the meantime I made some pumpkin and potato patties in the oven and she's now sitting in front of the oven waiting for them to cook - guess the steroids even make veggies smell good (Tully hates veggies).

 

[Piper's mom]

Ok, ordered my pyramid pan, found some Tapioca flour, Tully is going to be very happy!

In the meantime I made some pumpkin and potato patties in the oven and she's now sitting in front of the oven waiting for them to cook - guess the steroids even make veggies smell good (Tully hates veggies).

Yum yum....what dog wouldn't like pumpkin and potato patties? Sounds delish! Fussy girl...yup...I'll bet the steroids will make her far less picky (all my boys will eat ANY raw veggie, even celery!)

Tully will be very happy with the tapioca flour. I've used tapioca flour quite a bit for dog treats and the biggest difference between regular flour and it is the amount of liquid that you need to add when mixing(it's a lot like corn starch, I've even used it in place of corn starch in a pinch). If a recipe calls for say 1/2 cup liquid using flour your going to need more with tapioca flour. Just eyeball it.

After making the one batch of dog treats with mine (and you don't need to use any oil or spray it with anything, the treats just pop out) my mom said it looks like cereal (because they're so small) I think it actually looks like kibble...you could make your own with it (would take awhile though lol).
My next batch I'm going to try just meat. I also have a plastic scraper (use for lifting dough when making bread) and I use that to push the dough (helps if your dough is a little on the wetter side) into the holes but anything with a flat edge would work.

 

[Piper's mom]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

You are AWESOME!!!!

Here's a couple more recipes...my dogs LOVE these!

Pumpkin dog cookies
2 eggs
1/2 c canned pumpkin (not the pie filling, make sure it's purée)
2 1/2 cups flour (any kind, but if using tapioca you'll need more water)
Water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Blend eggs and pumpkin together. Add flour and enough water to make dough somewhat workable (you need to work this dough by hand, too stiff for electric mixer)
The dough should be dry and stiff but not so dry it cracks.

Roll out to 1/2" thickness, cut into shapes and place on cookie sheet (I place them quite close, they don't expand when baking)

Bake for 20 minutes the flip cookies and bake for another 20 minutes until dry (if not dry enough turn oven down to 275 and leave in oven until dry...drier is better as they'll keep longer this way)

Banana biscotti

5 cups rolled oats (grind them up first in food processor, to make it more like flour)
1 egg
1/4 cup oil (use a healthy oil like olive or coconut...avoid canola)
Can be omitted if dog is on a low fat diet...just may have to increase water or add applesauce.
1 1/2 cup puréed banana
2 tsp vanilla (optional)
Water

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Place dry ingredients in a bowl and make a well in center. Blend oil, egg,vanilla and banana together. Add to dry ingredients and then start combining together and add water, a little bit at a time as needed (this recipe was originally made with all purpose flour so using oats or tapioca will take more water to bring everything together)
Once combined divide dough in half and shape each half into a loaf. Place on parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 20 minutes then cut into slices. Place slices back on cookie sheet and bake for another 20 minutes then flip and bake for a further 20 minutes until dry.

My dogs go crazy for these and very easy to make. You could substitute any fruit or even a cooked mashed veggie (pumpkin, sweet potato etc) in place of the banana.