PB & Bacon Dog Biscuits: Gluten-free treats fit for The King's best friend

If Elvis still graced the earth he’d probably ask me to send him these PB & Bacon Dog Biscuits for his beloved companions.  I’d keep busy making GF dog bones for the Elvis pack and running my little blog for the rest of my natural born days.

Despite numerous Elvis sightings it seems that dream isn’t going to happen any time soon.

I’ll just have to keep making them for my little imps—Border Terriers who keep us constantly entertained and just as often irked. 

They’re pretty spoiled. Very loved. They give back as good as they get.

We take care of them—feed them, walk, play with and cuddle them. They give us endless kisses, tail wags, and unconditional love. Oh, and, chewed furniture. Did I mention upset tummies and mystery rashes?

That’s why the dogs are now officially gluten-free. They’ve had gluten-free dog food from the beginning but your run-of-the-mill treats which are, as we all know, laden with wheat and gluten. I hope ridding their diets of gluten will help with their tummy and skin issues.

GF dog biscuits are not readily available at your local pet store.  I was excited when I found a local dog biscuit company, Bubba Rose Biscuit Company, who specializes in just such treats. Besides a wide variety of GF dog goodies they had a copy of their cookbook—The Organic Dog Biscuit Cookbook—available for sale. The recipes feature all the flours we GF folks have in our pantries—mostly brown rice and GF oat flour.

The recipes are easy and enticing. Bonus: the house will smell wonderfully peanut buttery when you bake this version of one of their popular treats. So good you’ll be tempted to eat them yourselves. Don’t bother. According to my husband they may smell good but they taste like cardboard. Save them for the furry ones.

Do my dogs savor these treats? Haha. Well, if you’ve ever had a dog you know that word is not in their food vocabulary. Dogs savor life; they do not savor food.

Do they love these treats? You bet they do!

Elvis’ dogs would have loved them, too.

PB & Bacon Dog Biscuits

(Inspired by Bubba Rose’s Organic Dog Biscuit recipes.)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Combine in a medium size bowl:

1 cup gluten free oat flour (can be made by “grinding” rolled oats in a food processor)
½ cup sorghum flour
¾ cups brown rice flour

In a large glass measuring cup whisk together:

½ cup unsalted peanut butter
1 egg
½ cup water
2 teaspoons honey

Stir into the liquid mixture:

1 carrot, shredded and chopped into small bits
3 slices cooked bacon chopped into small bits

Mix the wet mixture into the flour mixture until thoroughly combined.

Roll the dough out between two pieces of parchment lightly sprinkled with sorghum or brown rice flour until about ¼ inch thick.

Cut out with a cookie cutter the size of which would suit your dog. (I used a small 1.5” cutter because my dogs weigh 14 and 22 pounds.) The dog biscuit shaped cutters are cute but any cutter that’s roughly round, oval or rectangular will work well.

Place the cookies on a parchment lined cookie sheet. You can place them fairly close—but not touching—since they don’t spread.

Bake for 30-35 minutes. Let the biscuits cool in the oven for a few hours. Remove them and continue cooling on wire rack.

Store about a week’s supply of cookies in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator. Freeze the balance for future use.

Note: Although it’s fun to experiment with ingredients in recipes it’s important—when it comes to pet treats—to understand what ingredients are poisonous to our furry friends. Please consult the appropriate sources before changing the ingredients list.

This ASPCA page has a great list for review.

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I’m not the only crazy lady making gluten-free biscuits for my dogs: 

Simply Gluten Free: Homemade Gluten-free Dog Biscuits

Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free: Gluten-Free Pumpkin Dog Biscuits

A Sugar and Spice Life: Gluten-Free Bacon Dog Biscuits

Hot Pomegranate Cider {with a White Tea Kicker}

Hot Pomegranate Cider goodness—so nice to sip while you read the post.

It’s January—the month that follows the busiest, most indulgent, frivolous, joyful month of the year.

It’s the time we slow down. Take stock. Renew ourselves.

We vow to exercise and eat right. To savor life. To cherish our families. To put our heart and soul into some big endeavor.

We detoxify and revitalize.

What better way to do that than to boost our immune systems with vitamins and antioxidants, fruits and vegetables—smoothies, juices, and detoxifying soups.

It’s a call to arms by Nicola of gfree-mom where a month of bloggers share their antioxidant drinks and soups to create D-Tox January. Welcome to Day 25 of D-tox January. For links to all the other wonderful detoxifying & healthy recipes visit at gfree-mom.

This easy recipe incorporates three antioxidant powerhouses—pomegranate, apple cider and white tea. The combination, hot and steamy will soothe you—a good friend, your honey, and your kids—on a cold winter evening.

I’ve been sipping it to help ward off this darn cold I’ve been fighting. And, just because it tastes really really really good.

So, make a cup, or two, and mosey on over to g-freemom to read her call to arms and peruse the list of other D-tox January drinks and soups. It will inspire you to start on your own D-Tox path.

Hot Pomegranate Cider (with a White Tea Kicker)

Heat and lightly simmer in a small saucepan for 10 minutes and remove from the heat:

2 cups apple cider
1 cinnamon stick
4-6 whole cloves

Brew the tea for 1 minute in a small teapot:

2 White Tea tea bags (I used Republic of Tea Asian Jasmine White Tea-it’s gluten-free.)
2/3 cups hot (not boiling) water*

Add to the teapot with the white tea:

1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice**
Warmed spiced cider

Pour into two large mugs. Sip. Smile.

*Bring the water to a boil and take it off the burner. Let it cool for a few minutes (optimal temperature is 170-180 degrees Fahrenheit). Here’s a really nice guide on how to brew tea from my friend Amber over at Bluebonnets and Brownies.

**I used POM Lite. If you use 100% pomegranate juice reduce the amount to 3/4 cup and substitute the other 3/4 cup with half water/half cider or all water. Of course, if you like the kick pomegranate juice gives this drink go for the whole 1 1/2 cups!! It’s all a matter of taste.

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