Tag: In Purrsuit of Flavours

In Purrsuit of Flavors Stew by Xena

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia33 Comments

Thanks to Shoko and Tyebe of the Canadian Cats and Nelly and Phenny of Easy Blog for hosting this yummy day.

And, despite it being very wordy Xena posting today, we’re also joining Wordless Wednesday blog hop. Thanks to Comedy Plus for hosting!

Hi everyone! Mommy said I’m such a snoopy dog, I might as well post the recipe I found in her old recipe box. I think this recipe would keep us fed for a very long time. I wonder if we could eat it raw. It would be done and ready to eat sooner that way, too. And it doesn’t have any foods I’m allergic to!

Mmm, daydreaming about stew.

Ready for the unique recipe I found in Mommy’s box? Here you are, and if you make it, be sure and let me know how it is. (Sorry, I don’t have any pictures of it.)

A note from my Mommy about Riley’s new food:

Shortly after my post about Riley’s new food, a concerned blogging friend emailed to say grain-free dog food has been associated with cardiomyopathy in dogs. I researched some articles, and there may be some correlation. Nothing has been proven yet, and there is not a final determination. I did want to make my readers aware of this, though. Even more importantly, I asked my holistic vet, who gave me the full story, and it does not correlate with most of what you find on-line, not even with the CDC report. She even explained in detail how the nutrients in the grains work and why there is now all this hype about it, without revealing the entire story. Once again, it comes down to the big dog food companies like Hills and Purina trying to beat down their competition.
Most of The Honest Kitchen’s food is NOT grain-free, but contains whole grains, so I hope you will still check it out. The two things that stood out the most to me….
1. It is all HUMAN-GRADE. I don’t have to worry about sick or euthanized animals or moldy corn being used in their food.
2. NO High Heat Cooking. First the meat and then the formed chunks are all cooked at a low temperature. The very high temperatures at which most other kibble is cooked causes carcinogenics to form.
Also, if you do want to try it, check on-line with Petco. Apparently they are “gobbling up” most of what Honest Kitchen is selling, so they’ve got it in stock with free shipping over $30.

Thanks to my blogging friend for sending me this info, and I will soon be letting Riley try some of Honest Kitchen’s other great offerings!

Xena: Hey, Mommy, can we try the one with the funny-looking schnauzer on the bag? Or do you think they have any elephant recipe?

In Purrsuit of Flavors: Teas

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia18 Comments

Thanks to Shoko and Tyebe of the Canadian Cats and Nelly and Phenny of Easy Blog for hosting this yummy day.

My favorite summertime tea drink is a simple mixture of two different teas, steeped together and poured over ice.

No need to add sugar, as both the peppermint and especially the ginger teas have a natural sweetness. And they’re both caffeine-free, so enjoy them any time of the day.

We are also joining Comedy Plus on Wordless Wednesday!

Thanks to Comedy Plus 
for hosting Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

Purrsuit of Flavors: Xena and Her Mom

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia26 Comments

Thanks to Shoko and Tyebe of the Canadian Cats and Nelly and Phenny of Easy Blog for hosting this yummy day.

Xena: Hiya friends. I get to post one of my favorites today, so I’m going to give you my favorite beverage recipe. I know it’s supposed to be fruits, but I already gave you my favorite fruit in a previous post: apples. I’m a rebel, a schnauzer without a cause, a..

Lucy: You’re off topic, Xe.

Oh, right. Beef bone broth. Can you believe it takes two whole days to make? Seriously! I promise I’m not egg-zagerating.

Lucy: She’s not.

I’m telling you how it is.

Xena: Like I woofed, my recipe is called Beef Bone Broth. I get it at lunch to help make my poopie softer.

Lucy: Please don’t talk about food and poopie in the same sentence.

Xena: I’m not! I’m talking about drinks and poopie. Sheesh!
So, do you know how good bone broth is for you? Here’s some of the things the recipe says about it:

Bone Broth

  • Builds and maintains the immune system
  • Is a great source of collagen , calcium, magnesium, iron, copper, manganese, potassium, phosphorus, sodium and zinc
  • Provides chondroitin, which is good for joint pain, arthritis and increases the body’s shock-absorbing properties (like when we jump of the bed or even the kitchen table)
  • Is high in amino acids, which means it’s anti-inflamatory. It helps prevent chronic illness

Here’s what some of the raw beef bones look like. You can use other kinds of bones, as long as they have lots of marrow and gelatin. You can even make turkey or lamb or goat bone broth!

Dump the bones into a crockpot. Cover them with filtered water, so the water comes 1 to 2 inches over the bones. Add raw organic apple cider vinegar. For a small batch, use 2-4 Tbsp, and for a big bath (which I guarantee you’ll want!) add 1/4-1/2 cup. You can add extra goodies such as garlic (it’s ok, really!), ginger, kelp, mushrooms, fennel, carrots, or dog-safe herbs. Mom doesn’t add anything cause I love it just like it is.
Turn your crockpot on low or around 300F degrees (150C) and leave to cook for about 48 hours. The longer it cooks, the more nutrients will extract from the bones.

After a couple of days – see, I told you I wasn’t egg-zagerating – strain the bones out of the broth and throw them away.

The bones will look like this.
It’s very, very, very important that you throw the bones away *sigh*. Cooked bones can splinter and are very dangerous for us to eat. If there’s any meat left on them, it can be pulled off and we’ll happily eat it!

Let the broth cool and scrape the fat off the top. Mommy waits to scrape off the fat until it cools good in the fridge. She thinks it’s easier that way. The fat is where animals hold their toxins, so you don’t wanna dump those toxins into us, right? Now, if you use bones from grass-fed, pasture-raised animals, go ahead and eat the fat!

Here’s the finished product, all packaged and labeled neatly in 12 ounce jars. We got four jars this time.

Hey Mommy, you labeled the jars wrong. It should say bone broth not beef broth. Sheesh, you can’t get good help these days. She re-uses jars, so ignore the almond butter label on the side of the jar.

Be sure to leave a coupla inches headspace if you use glass jars or they will break in the freezer. (Mommy can attest to that.) You can also use silicone molds.
Mmmm. I can’t wait for lunchtime!

Xena Schnauzer Warrior Princess

We’re joining Wordless Wednesday at Comedy Plus. Thanks, Sandee

Now that Xena’s happy, let me (the Mom) give you my favorite fruit recipe. Tuscan Apple Cake.

In Purrsuit of Flavours – Mom and Xena’s Choices

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia28 Comments

Thanks to Shoko and Tyebe of the Canadian Cats and Nelly and Phenny of Easy Blog for hosting this yummy day.

Mom’s favorite childhood treat is really funny. It’s not food at all. It’s a drink. And she got it every day! The recipe is easy. Walk to the corner grocery. Insert a dime into the machine outside the store. Pop the cap and drink.

Actually Mom liked hers unfizzy, so she popped the cap and let it sit around for a few hours before drinking.

This is Xena, and it’s my turn for my favorite food. It’s easy, just like Mommy’s. Get someone to go to the store and buy an apple. Then have that someone cut it in pieces and give it to you.

Lucy: *shaking head* Dear friends, maybe you should go visit some of the other posts if you want a good recipe.

In Purrsuit of Flavours & Wordy Wedneday: Dad’s Cookies

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia34 Comments

Thanks to Comedy Plus 
for hosting the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

Thanks to Shoko and Tyebe of the Canadian Cats and Nelly and Phenny of Easy Blog for hosting this yummy day.

Xena: I’m hoping for some yummy strawberries as my Valentine’s treat. Or some blueberries or black-berries or raspberries. Mmmm, berries.

Lucy: You love everything having to do with food Xena…well, except lettuce and spinach and garlic. Me, I’m hoping to get a nice card from my guy Achilles. Even better, I hope I get to see him, but I don’t think that’s gonna’ happen. So I’ll settle for some berries and a card!

We have Dad’s favorite cookie recipe to share with y’all today. Remember, he can’t eat gluten or dairy and some other “normal” stuff. This recipe also fits nicely into our Dr. Gundry way of eating to “create a healthy gut.” I hear we’ve started on the same diet as Mom and Dad for the same reasons they are on it. I haven’t noticed. It’s pretty much the same as we’ve been eating, except more organic food and only grass-fed meat. All that to say, these aren’t going to be your regular chocolate chip cookies. They look and taste a bit different. But if you are on a restricted diet, they are great! Anyhoo, here we go.

Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free, Dairy-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
1 C ghee*, softened (Mom uses about 2/3 C ghee and 1/3 C Spectrum Culinary Organic All-Vegetable Shortening)
5 Tbsp Truvia
1 1/3 C packed Swerve Brown Sugar
Cream together in a large bowl until smooth.

2 eggs
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Beat eggs in one at a time, then stir in vanilla.

1 tsp Baking Soda
2 tsps hot water
1/2 tsp salt
Dissolve baking soda in water and add it and the salt to the mixture.

3 C Almond Flour (next time Mom’s going to try a mixture of Almond Flour, Coconut Flour and Millet Flour)
2 C Lily’s Dark Chocolate Baking Chips (you can use a little less if you want)
1 C chopped walnuts (optional, and Mom leaves them out at Dad’s request)
Stir all into batter.

Drop by tablespoons onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. (If you skip the parchment paper, expect to end up with nothing but cookie crumbs to top your ice cream.)

Bake for about 10 minutes in a preheated 350 degree F (175 degrees C) oven, or until edges are nicely browned. Allow to cool completely on the parchment paper.

*From Mom: No need to buy that terribly expensive ghee in the grocery when you can easily make it yourself! Here’s how: First, know that you will lose a quarter or 1 stick of the butter in making this. So plan your containers to each hold about one stick of butter. Put your butter in a small sauce pan over very low heat. Leave it for about 30 minutes. Longer is ok. There should be a white bubbly and/or crusty top that you can scrape off with a tablespoon and pour into your grease jar to discard. Very slowly pour the clear, yellow ghee into your containers. Be careful to not pour in the white part that has settled to the bottom. You can also use a turkey baster, but that takes longer. When you get all the clear yellow that you can, discard the white part that’s left. Let it cool and refrigerate. The reason we divide ours into 3 parts is so that we can let one of them sit out and be softer to use. If you don’t want to do that, you can pour it all into one container.

Until next time,
Lucy and Xena Schnauzer Warrior Princess

In Purrsuit of Flavors – Enchilada Sauce

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia17 Comments

Thanks to Shoko and Tyebe of the Canadian Cats and Nelly and Phenny of Easy Blog for hosting this yummy day.

Lucy: For today’s Purrsuit, we are sharing Dad’s most favorite Mexican sauce. He even brags to his friends about this wonderful enchilada sauce that his wonderful wife makes. So far, no one has asked for the recipe, BOL!

Riley: But first, Mom Amy said I could share my favorite sauce recipe. I call it…

“Riley’s Super Tasty Topping”

Ingredients:
1/4 can dog food – I’m currently eating Beyond Ocean Whitefish, Salmon & Sweet Potato Recipe
About 2 big tablespoons of organic coconut oil

Directions:
Mix all together in a glass cup or bowl or whatever is laying around.
Heat for about 20 seconds in the microwave, or until the coconut oil is real soft, or even melted.
Mix real good with whatever kibble you are eating, and enjoy before another dog in the family who shall not be named scarfs it down.

Lucy: Thanks Riley. Good food post. Now it’s Mom’s turn. Take it away, Mom!

That’s sure a hard recipe to follow! *giggle* Since Lucy so kindly introduced this sauce, we’ll get right down to the recipe.

We hope your first week of 2021 is going swell!
Lucy, Riley and the Mom

Santa Paws Treats and Turkey Stuffed Peppers

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia12 Comments

Thanks to Shoko and Tyebe of the Canadian Cats and Nelly and Phenny of Easy Blog for hosting In Purrsuit of Flavours.

Xena: It’s that time again! We get to share our favorite recipes and this month it’s all about color. But since me and Lucy, umm, I mean Lucy and I, didn’t get to give a doggie recipe last month, Mommy said we didn’t have to follow the rules (like we ever do)!

Lucy: I always follow the rules. Mom and Dad say I’m “compliant.”

Xena: OK then, Lucy, I’ll post our (my) recipe and you can help Mommy post hers. Mine has nuts and dried fruit in it, just like the fruitcakes that I hear are so famous at Christmastime. This recipe is called Santa Paws, BOL, and the picture is very “colorful”!

Lucy: Now that Xena has given you something yummy for your Moms or Dads to make for you for Christmas, here is something my Mom and Dad enjoy eating, and it’s bright red for the Christmas holidays. I think you could probably use ground chicken too. This week, Mom is going to find out if it is any good with her already cooked leftover turkey! Or you veggie terians can try something like tofu or whatever. I hope you like our recipe and it is yummy in your tummy.

Slow-Cooker Turkey Stuffed Peppers
Serving Size:6 (if you have lots to go with it, BOL)

Ingredients

  • 6 small red bell peppers 
  • 1 cup cauliflower rice (or use real rice)
  • 1 pound ground turkey (or use your food processor to chop fine your leftovers)
  • 1 cup shredded Monterey jack cheese
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
  • 1 cup water

Instructions:
Cut off the stems from the peppers. Scoop out the seeds on the inside, leaving a hollow shell.
In a bowl, mix the ground turkey and spices. Stir in the cauliflower and coconut oil, then mix in the Monterey jack cheese.
Scoop up some of the turkey mixture and pack it into each pepper shell.
Place the stuffed peppers into a Crock-Pot and pour a cup of water into the bottom. Cook on high for four hours or low for eight hours. Top with a little extra cheese 10 minutes before they are done.

“The discovery of a new dish does more for the happiness of the human race than the discovery of a star.”
― Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

In Purrsuit of Flavors Pot Pie Soup

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia23 Comments

Thanks to Shoko and Tyebe of the Canadian Cats and Nelly and Phenny of Easy Blog for hosting this yummy day.

A warm comfort food for a cold day!

Mom’s Vegetarian Pot Pie Soup

Prep Time 15 minutes Cook Time 40 minutes Total Time 55 minutes
4 big servings
NOTE: This would also be good with cooked chicken added.

Ingredients:
3 medium Yukon gold potatoes (or use sweet potatoes)
3 tablespoons olive oil divided
1 large onion finely chopped
6 medium carrots peeled and sliced ¼-inch thick (or get a bag of frozen, sliced carrots)
about 1 ½ cups+2 tablespoons unsalted butter
 ½ cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
2 cups vegetable broth
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dried thyme
¼ cup white wine
3/4 cup frozen peas thawed

Instructions:
1. Pierce the potatoes several times with a fork or knife, and microwave until cooked through, about 5-10 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes and the power of the microwave. Allow potatoes to cool slightly so that you can handle them, and chop into ½-inch to 1-inch dice. Transfer cubed potatoes to a large bowl, and set aside. (NOTE: I diced my raw sweet potatoes in my food processor and steamed them.)

2. Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, and add 1 tablespoon oil. Once the oil is hot, sauté the onions until starting to brown and caramelize, about 15-20 minutes. Add the carrots to the onions, and continue to cook, and until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Transfer cooked vegetables to the large bowl with the potatoes, and set aside.

3. Reduce the heat to medium, and add the butter and 2 tablespoons oil to the same pot. When the butter has melted, stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute. Slowly and gradually stir the milk, broth, thyme, salt, and pepper into the flour mixture. Continue to stir constantly as the sauce thickens. Stir in the white wine, and cook for an additional minute.

4. Stir the cooked vegetables and the peas into the sauce, and cook on medium-low for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve hot and enjoy!

Xena: Now that we got that over with, what about us?
Lucy: Mom said we don’t get a recipe this month.
Xena: Grrr. You know what that means...grrratuitous pictures of us!

Xexe: My Daddy would never tell me no.

Lucy: Will someone please rub my tummy?

We wish everyone around the world Peace today and every day.

Love, peace and hugs, Lucy (Ora) and Xena Schnauzer Warrior Princes (Grruvah) who is practicing peace today

In Purrsuit of Flavors for Halloween

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia27 Comments

Thanks to Shoko and Tyebe of the Canadian Cats and Nelly and Phenny of Easy Blog for hosting this yummy day.

Xena: This month is all about Halloween. The Thanksgiving turkey has already been out aggravating me, but I’m waiting to see the pumpkins and ghosts and ghouls, oh my! This month I told Mommy I wanted to postme and Lucy’s recipe first, and she agreed. Believe me friends, these are yummy!

If you don’t want to bother with rolling and cutting, I’m sure your pup will be happy with you just squishing it onto a baking pan and breaking it up after it’s cooked. Now, while I sit here and daydream about these cookies, Mommy’s gonna share a recipe for all you peeps.

There’s so many great fall recipes, I finally decided on Tuscan Apple Cake and since apples are a fall crop, I thought it still appropriate. (OK, not very Halloweeny, so if you need Halloweeny, please do your pups a favor and bake them Xena’s recipe, LOL!)

Tuscan Apple Cake
More like a flan than a cake, this dessert is chock-full of apples and incredibly moist. The list of ingredients is short, and for good reason: it’s all about the apples! The apples can be cut into super-thin slices easily by using the slicing attachment of a food processor, or just slice them by hand.

Bake it right on the floor of the oven! This causes a caramelized skin to form at the bottom of the cake and intensifies the flavors of the sweet apples.

Ingredients:
4 large Golden Delicious, Gala or other firm flesh apples (1 3/4 lbs) (800 g)
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
pinch sea salt
2 extra large eggs – at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk
7 tablespoons unsalted butter – melted and slightly cooled
powdered sugar as garnish
1 10″ non-stick round spring-form pan, buttered and floured 

Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).

 Peel, core, and quarter the apples. (I like to leave the peel on them). Then using the slicing attachment of a food processor cut them crosswise in 1/8″ slices. Set aside. In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

 Place the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract in the bowl of an electric mixer. Whisk at medium speed until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is pale and thick, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Fold the flour into the egg mixture with a wooden spoon, until just incorporated. Fold in the milk, then the butter and finally the apple slices. Be sure not to over mix. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Pack the apples into the mold and flatten the surface of the cake with the wooden spoon.

Bake for 10 minutes on the floor of the oven. Transfer the pan to the middle rack and continue baking for 50 to 55 minutes until golden-brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven, and run a paring knife around the edge to loosen the cake from the ring of the mold. Cool in its mold to room temperature. Unmold the cake and transfer to a serving platter. Dust with powdered sugar and serve.

Cook’s note: The cake can be baked up to 6 hours ahead and kept in its mold at room temperature in a cool place. It is best eaten the day it is made.

In Purrsuit of Flavors

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia26 Comments
By The Canadian Cats
and Easy Blog

We originally had a different post for today, but this is about food, and that is much more important!

Our easy, midday “meal” is always kefir in a soup bowl. We don’t get much, though. Sometimes we get berries in it, or other yummy things. Kefir acts as a pro-bi-ot-ic to help keep us healthy. It’s better than having to take medicine, fur sure. But that’s not what this post is about, right? So…we bugged Mom about this until she thought of one of her simple, any-time meals.

Mommy, think “food.”

Our Dad is a great cook, but his cooking is usually a bit more complicated. Mom eats to live (unlike us, who live to eat) and doesn’t especially like to cook. This meal is a favorite of Dad’s, so we won’t let him know it’s so simple to do. We’ll go with the “she slaved over a hot stove all day just so you could have this” theme.

Mom and Dad always complain about on-line recipes where the author yammers endlessly with stuff no one wants to know, so we’ll stop here and present our easy summer recipe for you.

Sloppy Joes
1 lb ground beef
1 regular size can whole or crushed tomatoes
2 or 3 Tbs dill pickle relish
about 1 tsp sugar (we use 1/2 tsp stevia)
a little salt, to taste

Brown ground beef, breaking it up into small pieces. Pulverize tomatoes in a food processor, then add to cooked beef, along with everything else. Simmer for 15 to 30 minutes to reduce liquid. Pulse a few times in the already dirty food processor, just enough to make the hamburger pieces very small.
Makes enough for 2 to 4 hearty portions.

Mom makes homemade coleslaw to go with this. You can use store bought if you’re lazy you prefer, but Dad’s dietary restrictions means almost everything has to be homemade.

Also, since neither of them is eating bread, they put a serving of sloppy joes into a bowl and top with the coleslaw. They say it is yumdillyicious, but we don’t know, as we never get any of it.

I like laying in the sun almost as much as I like food.

Thanks, Phenny and Nelly and Shoko and Tyebe and Budd for hosting posts about food!!! You’re our kind of anipals!

Lucy and Xena Schnauzer Warrior “Food-Loving” Princess

In Pursuit of Flavors Summer Edition

Published on by Xena, Lucy and Chia30 Comments

After saying a prayer of thanks that all the ideas that Tyebe and Shoko of The Canadian Cats and Da Phenny, Neilson and Katty of Easyblog  threw out – such as beer can chicken and squirty whip cream – really did get thrown out, we had to sit down and think up what we like to eat in the summer. Me and Xexe immediately agreed on the frozen treats Mom made for Xe’s birthday. That recipe is at the end, so that you will remember it best. Mom finally decided on the cold soup she’s been making this summer. She likes it and Dad asks for it a lot. Besides the taste, one of the things Mom likes about it is how quick and easy it is to make. So here we go…

Chilled Lemon Basil Avocado Soup 

Ingredients:
2 ripe avocados, peeled and roughly chopped
1 C coconut milk
1 C vegetable broth
about 1 tsp of fresh lemon zest (original recipe called for 1 Tbsp, but I thought too lemony, so adjust if you just love lemon flavor)
1 Tbsp lemon juice (adjust to taste)
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1 Tbsp lemon or regular basil
2 tsp minced shallots (can substitute leeks or onion if you don’t have shallots)
1 tsp kosher salt (adjust to taste)

Instructions:
Add all ingredients to a blender and puree until very smooth. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to let the flavors blend. Best when made the day before. NOTE: The soup will taste very mild when first blended, so wait before adjusting seasonings. It will end up about this color, or a little darker.

It’s our turn now. Here’s the recipe for

Frozen Banana-Almond Butter (or Peanut Butter)-Cocomut Oil Dog Treats

1 C softened or melted coconut oil
1 C almond or peanut butter
1 medium very ripe banana (sorta’ ripe is ok too)

Dump everything in a bowl and use an electric mixer to get it all mixed together good. Scoop it into an ice cube tray. Makes about 1 1/2 dozen.

Notes: We get almond butter because it’s a lot healthier than peanut butter. Mom had to use a butter knife to loosen the edges to get each cube out. You might want to spray some olive oil in the tray compartments first.
Also, the recipe called for filling a plastic baggie with the mixture, snipping the end, and squeezing it into a fancier mold than an ice cube tray. Really? We don’t care what they look like, just give us more! Oh, and they come out about this color.

It’s time to come inside, Xe. Mom’s made our favorite summer treats, and they’re ready!

Lucy and Xena Schnauzer Warrior Princess