Thursday, April 14, 2011

Snicker-Poodles


Nope... not a typo.  We bring you the ever popular "Snicker-Poodles".  Wrapping up our Spring Break adventure in Central California we have a treat for the Pups.  While some of us were back in the Yosemite Valley shooting away with our lenses, Liv and Fran whipped up a batch of treats for the canine members of our families.  

Liv found a new friend!
Arriving three days earlier at Tom and Fran's house we were thrilled to meet Wrinkles!!  Wrinkles is a full of life, 5 month old Golden Retriever with the sweetest personality.  He's working his way through his toddler years and starting to realize that there are some rules in the world, but as any true toddler would, he tests his boundaries on occasion bringing smiles to all of our faces.  Wrinkles is filling a portion of our friend's empty hearts with their recent loss of Who, another golden who passed away about 8 months ago.  Yes, his name was Who!  A bit confusing on occasion, but the name suited him and we had many laughs reminiscent of "Who's on first".

Tom and Fran have been family friends since I was a wee-one myself and staying with them is always a true pleasure.  Both retired from the education field they now pursue new hobbies in addition to welcoming their new canine friend.  Fran has amassed a somewhat gigantic pig collection over the years with her home sporting pigs of all types (figurines, dishes, towels, lamps, pillows, benches, hood ornaments, etc) tastefully incorporated into the decor.  Some 10 years ago we arrived for a visit with my then 4 year old son and we had told him on the drive up that he should count the pigs at Aunt Fran's house.  He excitedly began the moment we arrived with the pig stepping stones in the front of the house.  A few hours later he came to us crying saying "Mommy... there are too many pigs, I can't take it, they are everywhere!  I can't count them!!!"  We have laughed at his expense for year since then and always enjoy seeing what new pigs Fran has added to her collection.

Garden pig decor
Tom on the other hand turned his eye to photography and wine-making.  Planting his own vineyard a number of years ago, Tom's hobby has developed into delectable wines.  With the '08 Zin being my favorite we are eagerly awaiting a taste of the '09 version which is nearly ready.  Presenting us with Cabs, Zins and a few other blends we had quite a fun time tasting and generally partaking of the ambrosial liquid every evening as we reminisced about our day and edited our photos.


Bringing the pig/wine theme together they have titled the Vineyard the Eggboldt "Swinery", which perfectly suits their personalities.  First place ribbons from the Fresno Fair have been handed out on more than one occasion and hung lovingly on the wall of their stand alone tasting room.  While the wine is not for public sale, all of the ambiance of a true, open to the public winery surrounds their personal vineyard - right down to the musty/winey aroma when you enter the tasting room.


Wrinkles loves playing in the vineyard and can frequently be seen charging around the still dormant vines, thankfully not digging them up.  After his afternoon romp he was more than excited to partake in his own Snicker-Poodle tasting.  With a recipe from The Good Food Cookbook for Dogs, Liv and Fran put together a tasty afternoon for this toddler.  Filled with oatmeal, flour, and applesauce and then spiced with cinnamon and honey these treats had the house smelling like their snickerdoodle cookie companions and we had one happy Pup.




Snicker-Poodles
The Good Food Cookbook for Dogs: 50 Home-Cooked Recipes for the Health and Happiness of Your Canine Companion


5 cups all-purpose flour
1 25 oz jar of applesauce
2 cups old fashioned oatmeal
4 Tbs cinnamon
2 Tbs vegetable oil
2 Tbs honey

Preheat oven to 325º.

Place all ingredients into a large bowl, mixing thoroughly to combine.

Roll dough out on a floured surface to about a 1/4-inch thickness.  Using a cookie cutter cut into Poodle (or any other) shapes.  Place cookies onto ungreased foil lined baking sheets.  Combine dough scraps, rerolling and continuing to cut into shapes until all of the dough has been used.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes.

Note:  this recipe makes 5-6 dozen cookies, scale ingredients as desired!



Signs of spring.  Perhaps we are witnessing the birth of Zin '14?






27 comments:

  1. Wow I have never seen anything like these before this is awesome... can't wait to make for Christmas for the pooches in the family! thank you~

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  2. I love that this is food for our 4 legged friends! My husband and I are getting our first dog this summer and I cannot wait to make treats like this for him or her. Definitely going to bookmark this one! Thank you!

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  3. Ehehehe...awesome treat for the pups.

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  4. What a creative idea! That is really cute! My mom used to make treats like this for the family dog when she was still around, bless her heart. I always loved treating her with them, they are part of the family right!?

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  5. Wonderful recipe! Lunchbox and Mamadawg are going to be thrilled. Thank you so much for sharing! Oh, and 'swinery'...adorable :)

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  6. The name of these made me giggle out loud. Adorable!

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  7. These are great. My boys are going to want to help make these for the dogs :-)

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  8. what a fun recipe..thanks for sharing I will pass to some of my friends! btw amazing photos!::)

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  9. That is just adorable! lol! I love it!

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  10. What fun! I am absolutely going to make these for my dog! They are adorable! Thanks for sharing :)

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  11. Another great post! We used to make biscuits for dogs that had Parmesan cheese in them, I bet these would be good too, wish I still had a doggy, but great idea for a gift!

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  12. I made snickerdoodles for my husband and I last weekend...and now it only seems right to make these for my dog! He would certainly enjoy the extra love :)

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  13. What a nice post. Dog biscuits look so cute:)
    http://mywanderingspoon.wordpress.com/2011/04/14/manhattan-beach-farmers-market-homemade-carrot-soup-kumquats-bagel-shop/

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  14. What a GREAT recipe! I have a 10 year old Lasha Apso named Max and he would absolutely love these. I have saved this recipe! Enjoy your weekend.

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  15. Cute! My sister's dog would love these!

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  16. You make me laugh! What a fun post, Kim. Sounds like you all had such a great time, too.

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  17. I love these! These would make great gifts!! Hope you all had a great spring break!

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  18. Kim, I LOVE this recipe! I have a 6 year old Golden Retriever and a 2 year old Cocker Spaniel that we love dearly and I know they would enjoy those awesome snicker-poodles. :o) Thanks so much for sharing this, they will definitely go on my "must-make" list!

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  19. Golden Retrievers are the best. We lost ours - Shadow - a year or so ago and haven't had the heart to replace him yet.

    Soon though, soon!

    Never thought about making my own treats for our pet, but when we get another Golden puppy I am going to try it!

    Penny

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  20. You are so clever with your title name! Love it! And I happen to like the name "who" how unique is that? :)

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  21. I wish I had a dog just to make these snicker-poodles. Maybe i can find a variation for kitties :)

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  22. Bailey the Wonder Dog, and Cock a Poo would love these. I have made peanut butter bones before, but now I'll have to make these Snicker Poodles, because she is part poodle:)

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  23. I love the name Snicker-Poodles;-)
    Thanks for sharing this recipe, I look forward to making these for my canine friends especially around the holidays for a unique gift;-)

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  24. Oh wow, you sure know how to treat your pooch!! :) Beautiful snacks!

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  25. These are so adorable- I don't have a dog, but when I do I can definitely see myself making him/her a treat sometime. I agree, I enjoy reading the 7 things people chose. Make sure to bring your wand and some snacks for the move to the Wizarding world!

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  26. My little Laptop just loves his cookies. Thanks so much

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  27. So excited!!! Love the name Laptop. I've got a couple of those too!

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