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Rusty's Ruff House Newsletter!
Hey..check out the article, "Cooking for Dogs" at the end of this page!
Our hero, Rusty, has always wanted to host a newsletter filled with a variety of information for you and your favorite companion to enjoy.
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From the Wuffington Wag!
Cooking For Dogs
by Vicky Rambow
Although I work in a profession very removed from the dog & cat world, one of my passions in life is cooking for my dog and my cats. You can imagine how happy I was when I found out about the “Happy Hounds Dog Food Making Class.”
I have many, many books with recipes but here was the opportunity to take an actual hands-on class. For years I have wanted to go to one of Micki Voisard’s classes in Arizona (www.dogchefs.com, www.dogchefdetective.com); but my schedule didn’t allow for that trip. Here was a class close to my home!
I started cooking for my dog many years ago because she had allergies, which I know now are environmental; but I so enjoyed cooking for her that I have kept it up. She doesn’t care about presentation, etc., so it is so much fun to cook for her! She supervises, getting up from her bed when she thinks the food is finished. She is almost always right!
Also, with the pet food recall, it made sense to make my own pet food. Then I love to foster so having heard that it is calming to dogs who enter a new home when they smell cooking, I make a new batch of food when I get a new foster dog.
My cats are pickier so it gets a bit more difficult and I need the help of cat food prepared by others.
That’s where my good friend Lydia Johnson comes in. A few years ago, she started a business called “The Pet Chef,” www.thepetchef.net. In addition to making food myself, I do buy food from her. My dog especially LOVES the Italian line of foods!
My dog’s coat just sparkles from homemade food!
To those of you who choose raw, my dog just doesn’t do well on raw food. I have tried many, many times! I was told by a holistic vet that this is the case with some dogs and my dog appears to be one of those dogs.
So on February 2, 6:30 p.m., I made my way to the South Bay School of Cooking, with Guest Chef, Annie, Siegmann of Ruff Ruff Bakery, which is in Manhattan Beach. It is located at 920 Highland Avenue, inside the Neptunian Women’s Club.
Now, I couldn’t bring my dog; but, other than that, it was such a fun evening!
We made three dog food recipes and received two treat recipes, one of which I have included below.
I had taken a human cooking class at another cooking school a few years ago.
What I really enjoyed about how this class was set up is that we all participated in all of the recipes instead of one group doing only one recipe.
We got to chat and find out why we each attended the class.
We went home with containers of food we made and some of one of the treats, as well as a bag of Annie’s treats. She makes pet treats and biscuits that she sells at the Torrance and Hollywood Farmers Markets, Whole Foods, and/or The Pet Foods Markets in El Segundo/Manhattan Beach and Palos Verdes Estates.
I have had a lot of fun with these recipes. After seeing Annie’s cooking demonstration this past weekend at the Home Show, my neighbor has now started cooking for her dog. I have been trying for years to get her to do this.
Here is just one of the recipes:
“Doggie Donuts”
2 cups of whole wheat flour
1 egg, beaten
2/3 cup chicken or beef broth
3 tablespoons uncooked oatmeal
1 teaspon garlic powder (optional)
In a large bowl, combine flour, egg, and stock. Mix well and fold in oatmeal and garlic. Form this mixture into a ball and roll out 1/4-inch thick. Cut the mixture into donut shapes. Reroll the scraps and repeat. Arrange on a baking dish lined with parchment. Bake until firm, which is about 15 minutes. Cool and allow to harden.
If you too have a passion such as mine, please check out www.SouthBaySchoolofCooking.com or www.ruffruffbakery.com for the next class, which is on Wednesday, April 2, 6:30 p.m. The cost for the class is $79.00.
You won’t regret it!
Vicky Rambow
