claire-friendly peach muffins.

Okay, so I'm about 3.5 months into this vegan thing, and so far so good. Interestingly enough, I've found that Claire and I now have a similar diet which is excellent for my grocery budget! Winning, all around!

I made some fantastic vegan peach muffins last weekend - for both of us - and they were so delicious that it's worth sharing with you all [and your dogs, of course]. Let me know how you like them!

Claire-Friendly Peach Muffins

1-1/2 cups all-purpose rice flour

(or whole wheat flour if your dog can have gluten)

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup olive oil or canola oil

3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 to 1/3 cup of organic peach jam

Preheat the oven to 400*F.

Coat muffin tin with non-stick spray, or use liners.

Scoop batter into muffin tins.

There should be enough for 12 muffins.

Bake for about 24 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Let cool and enjoy!

Do you have a favorite recipe that both you and your dog love?

Share it in the comments section below!

a worrisome weekend.

It's been an interesting weekend at la casa de Claire. It's been somewhat sad and worrisome but also kind of hopeful at the same time. Off and on for the past week, Claire's stomach has been bothering her with the classic symptoms of GERD. It's the first significant bout since I switched her food to Pinnacle back in December, but this time it's pretty clear that her stomach is torn up from... well... something.

I went back to Dizzy's Dog Wash and Corner Store yesterday to talk to Mrs. Dizzy about the next step [and no, I still don't know her real name]. Mrs. Dizzy said that she doesn't think it's a food issue anymore, seeing that the Pinnacle obviously didn't help in the long run. She gave me the name of a new veterinarian who uses both western and eastern medicine and knows a lot about digestive issues such as this. And then Mrs. Dizzy handed me a piece of paper and said, "I think it's time that you start cooking for her."

Umm, keep in mind that I hardly cook for myself. Thankfully, the paper she handed me was a list of recipes for dogs who are Claire's size. And I mean, I can follow directions at least. So we're good there. To be honest, at first I had a minor freak-out moment where I was thinking, "WHENDOIHAVETIMETODOTHIS?!?!?!" But I quickly came to my senses. This is Claire, we're talking about here. She's my girl. So if I have to carve out some time in my day to prepare good quality food for her to feel better, I will absolutely do it.

So, I spent the afternoon yesterday cooking for Claire with what I had in my freezer and cupboards: tilapia filets, frozen peas, and oatmeal [1.5 cups of tilapia, 1.5 cups of oatmeal, and 1/4 cup of peas, if you want to make it for your dog too - it is Claire-approved]. Appetizing, right? Well... she liked it, and that's all that matters. So far, she's had four homemade meals and she hasn't thrown up yet! Her stomach still hurts, as evidenced by the fact that she ate some grass this morning on our walk, but the food stayed down. And I do realize that it will take some time for her stomach to heal. As much as I'd like it to be an overnight fix, it won't be. That's just reality.

I'm really really worried about Claire, and I'm looking forward to taking her to this new vet. As much as I love my girls at Banfield, I need a second opinion. This GERD-issue has been going on for a couple years now, and I don't want to keep treating Claire with the same medications, which are proving to be band-aids for what is a major problem. Say some prayers for us, and I'll keep you all posted...

sweets for our sweethearts.

Claire Baby and Ollie Girl

Erin and I were on a roll after last week's post, so we spent last night making some sweet treats for the girls! Are you ready for this? Your dog will love them. I promise - so do Claire and Ollie. Here are the recipes for what Erin and I have entitled Everyone's Favorite and Pumpkin Drops.

Everyone's Favorite

Ingredients:

2 cups of brown rice flour

2 cups of peanut butter

3 mashed bananas

1 tablespoon of baking powder

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350*F.

Lightly grease a cookie sheet.

In a large bowl, combine the ingredients.

Try not to eat the mixture, despite how delicious it looks and smells.

Drop by rounded tablespoon onto the cookie sheet.

Bake for 15 minutes.

Let your pup enjoy!

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Pumpkin Drops

Ingredients:

2 cups of brown rice flour

2 eggs

1 tablespoon of baking powder

1 apple, coarsely chopped

1 cup of canned pumpkin

1 cup of shredded carrots

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350*F.

Combine the eggs and pumpkin in a bowl and mix well.

Combine the brown rice flour and baking powder in a bowl and mix well.

Fold the dry ingredients into the mixture of eggs and pumpkin.

Fold in the apple and carrots.

Drop by rounded tablespoon onto the cookie sheet.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Let your pup enjoy!

Claire and Ollie, helping Erin clean up!

   

from ollie's kitchen: homemade buffaloaf.

This adorable girl is Ollie - one of Claire's best friends. We met Ollie and her parents (Erin and Jake) at the dog park almost a year ago when she was just a little munchkin. Now they go to school together at Bark-O-Lounge and have play dates on the weekends. They're becoming more and more like sisters! I wish I knew what kind of dog Ollie is, because I would get one. She is just SO cute! And she has these long eyelashes that Maybelline models would just die for.

Claire's been a bit bored with her food lately, so I asked Erin for help. She is a fantastic cook and with all of her amazing kitchen gadgets (including a blender that cleans itself and an automatic trash can - how cool!), I figured she'd have some tricks up her sleeve. Sure enough, she did, and it came in the form of homemade buffaloaf. I made this baby last night, cut it into slices, and then froze some of it so that I can heat it up and add it to Claire's food over the next few weeks. I'm telling you, she can't wait to eat now that she's got this deliciousness mixed in with her kibble! What's that saying? Variety is the spice of life? Claire would agree.

*Photo courtesy of Blue Kitchen*

Ollie's Buffaloaf

Ingredients:

1 lb ground hamburger meat - or ground turkey meat

2 eggs

1.5 cups of oats (Ollie prefers rice oats)

3/4 cup of mixed vegetables (Claire prefers 1 cup)

1/2 cup of cottage cheese

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350*F.

Lightly grease loaf pan.

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients.

Hand mix and press into a loaf pan.

Bake for 40-45 minutes at 350*F.

May be refrigerated or frozen in slices.

Let your pup enjoy!

  

* Confession: I may have tasted some of this myself because it smelled so amazing while it was cooking. It's delicious. It took every ounce of my will-power to save it for Claire.

    

    

homemade peanut butter and carrot biscuits.

Tonight I tried my hand at making some homemade biscuits for Claire. It's an understatement to say that she loved them - she's already had two and keeps walking back and forth from the kitchen whining for more! They're peanut butter and carrot biscuits and they turn out looking exactly like this:

I did not get the recipe from the Cafe Nilson site,

but this is the closest picture I could find to what the biscuits look like!

(Thanks Cafe Nilson for letting me borrow the photo!)

I have to confess, I did try one of them (go ahead, you can judge me!), but I figured I just had to, considering that it's such a simple recipe that did sound pretty appetizing! The verdict: they're a little bland for human taste buds, but that works out well for Claire! I think these biscuits would also taste great with bananas or apples, and if I had either of those ingredients in my house right now, I would have made those as well!

The recipe is below, and please share if you have any recipes of your own that your dog loves!

Peanut Butter and Carrot Biscuits

Ingredients:

2 cups of whole wheat flour

1 tablespoon of baking powder

1 cup of water

1 cup of crunchy peanut butter

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 carrot, shredded

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 375*F.

Grease baking sheets.

In a large bowl, combine the flour and baking powder.

Use another bowl and combine the peanut butter, oil, and water.

Add the wet and dry ingredients and mix well.

Stir in the shredded carrots.

On a floured surface, roll out the dough to 1/4" thick.

Cut out using cookie cutters.

Place on baking sheets and bake for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

Place on racks to cool.

Let your pup enjoy!