Carrot Apple Oatmeal Flax Cookies

Carrot Apple Oatmeal Flax Cookies
Vegan; Makes 1 lb Dog cookies

For those who know me, I can't stand Made In China (See prior postings for reasons). Currently, most big dog food companies (and if you read the label) you'll find the Made In China printed on the package. These are perfect since the carrots can be found at the farmers markets and if the season is right, so can the apples. I use organic, let's face it... Why are you going to feed your family members something that you're not willing to eat yourself.

3 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
2 Tablespoons flax seeds
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup chopped carrot
1/4 cup finely chopped and cored apple
2 Tablespoons blackstrap molasses
2 Tablespoons canola oil
egg replacer equal to 1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease baking sheets and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, combine flour, oats, flax seeds and cinnamon. In a food processor, combine water, carrot, apple, molasses, oil, egg replacer, and vanilla. Puree until smooth. Add to dry ingredients and mix well.

3. In the bowl and using hands, knead until dough holds together. Transfer to a floured surface and using a rolling pin, roll out dough to about 1/8 inch thickness. With a fork poke holes in the dough (this keeps it from becoming a puffy soft cookie and keeps it crunchy). I use cookie cutters (puppy shapes), but you can use a sharp knife or a pizza cutter and cut into bite size squares. Place about 1/2 inch apart on baking sheets.

4. Bake, in batches if necessary, for 20 minutes or until firm. Place cookies on cooling racks and lower the oven temperature to 300 degrees. Bake for 30 minutes more (again, this helps make a crunchy cookie to help prevent tarter build-up). Transfer cookies to a rack and cool completely. Store in a air tight container for up to 30 days. If you live in a humid climate, store in the fridge.

Found and adapted: Better Food for Dogs

Blueberry Frozen Puppy Pops

Blueberry Frozen Puppy Pops

There are certain things that I love about San Antonio. The fact that it's almost Thanksgiving and yesterday it 86 degrees and today will be 74 degrees is one of them. This allows me to go to a farmers market year round. I missed this while living in Colorado. However, Fortune and Choxie are not enjoying the heat so much. That being said, I made these yesterday for them. SO tasty, one can turn these into a smoothie for a quick morning breakfast ;)

Ingredients
1 cup of blueberries (I used frozen organic)
1 extra ripe banana
3/4 cup plain coconut yogurt
1 tsp of ground flax seeds

1. Mix all the ingredients in a blender, until smooth. (I had to add a little water to not over heat my blender.)

2. Pour into an ice cube tray or mold. Freeze it for about 2 hours

Money Saving Biscuits

Money Saving Biscuits
Vegan; Soy Free; 25 minutes

In my quest to omit Earth Balance (see prior postings) from as many of my recipes, here is a biscuit recipe that I made last night. Since I used coconut yogurt, these come out super light. Here I used Spectrum Organic Vegetable Shortening. They have it printed right on the package "... Even better are the dozen of small family farmers in Colombia who cultivate and press our palm oil in an environmentally sustainable manner...." Not that I believe everything right off the package. But going to their website and clicking the link to their parent company; they have their corporate 2012 standards for transparency.

2 cups organic all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea-salt
1 teaspoon vegetable shortening
1 Tablespoon coconut yogurt
1 cup unsweetened hemp milk

1. Preheat oven to 425 F degrees.

2. In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add vegetable shortening and coconut yogurt. Taking either 2 butter knives or a pastry blender and cut shortening and yogurt into the flour. Slowly add milk and continue to combine till all the liquid is gone and a soft dough forms.

3. Drop dough, 1 1/2 inches apart, evenly onto baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes and cool. Serve with jam for breakfast!

Banana Date Oatmeal Cookies

Banana Date Oatmeal Cookies
Vegan; Soy Free (Gluten Free)

These are great for a quick breakfast or a healthy snack. I love these due to the fact that it's an easy clean up and one bowl for all of the ingredients!

3 ripe bananas
2 cups rolled oats (Use gluten free oatmeal or groats)
1 cup combination of dates (pitted and chopped) and goji berries
1/3 cup coconut oil, liquidfied
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. In a large bowl, mash the bananas. Stir in oats, dates, goji berries, oil, and vanilla. Mix well, adding the spices, and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet.

3. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly brown.