Recipe for easy homemade microwave dog treats

This is a simple (even for rank beginners to baking), easy-to-make recipe for dog treats that canines consider scrumptious. It contains all-natural, nutritious ingredients, so you know what your dog is eating—and more importantly, what she’s not eating, meaning preservatives and dyes and empty calories. Cut into small squares, they’re great for training, because one little “cookie” is enough to motivate the dog but chewing it doesn’t take so long that he forgets what he’s supposed to be learning.

The recipe takes about one hour from start to finish. Because these “puppy cookies” bake in the microwave, they don’t heat up the house or use excessive amounts of electricity. The microwave removes most of the moisture from the treats, leaving a hard, crunchy biscuit similar to those bought in the store, which help to scrape tartar from the dog’s teeth while she eats them.

And dogs love them! When I make these, I have to run a canine obstacle course between the counter and the microwave, wading through dogs to reach either. We only have two dogs, but you’d never know it from the concentration of noses and faces and tails surrounding me. If I ever trip while carrying a plateful of these, I’ll be overrun.

As far as baking equipment is concerned, you’ll need a mixing bowl, a big cutting board, a rolling pin, a cookie cutter or knife for shaping, and a dough cutter, although I’ve heard that a fork, held sideways and used to squish the fat into the dry ingredients, works almost as well as a dough cutter.

If you don’t have a lot of experience with rolling pins, don’t let it put you off. The secret is to slowly add flour while kneading the dough until it no longer sticks to your hands, which have about the same level of “attractiveness” for dough as the rolling pin. If you get the consistency wrong and the dough sticks to the rolling pin, just scrape it off, add another spoonful of flour, and knead it a little longer.

Puppy cookies:

1½ cups whole wheat or rye flour

¾ cups milk powder (can be lactose free)

½ cup corn meal ½ cup oatmeal

½ cup fat (Beef or sausage dripping works well; so does vegetable oil. Use a few tablespoons less for dogs on a diet.)

1 egg (Trust me: not two. The dough becomes sticky, impossible to handle, and takes forever to knead out.)

½ cup water or broth or gravy (extra to dampen dry ingredients if necessary)

extra flour

Mix dry ingredients: flour, milk powder, corn meal, and oatmeal. Add fat and cut with pastry cutter until mixture resembles rough crumbs, about one or two minutes. Stir in egg and resist the temptation to add another one when it doesn’t seem to cover all the ingredients. Add water or broth and blend into dough, adding extra to dampen all the dry stuff.

Roll out onto a floured cutting or rolling board and knead for three to five minutes, adding additional flour until the dough no longer sticks to your hands. Divide into thirds. Roll out by turns to ½ to ⅝ inch thick, and cut with a table knife into small squares or use a cute-shaped cookie cutter. (Your dogs won’t care.)

Arrange in a single layer on a ceramic plate or microwave-safe dish. Microwave for six to seven minutes, flipping over halfway, until they sound solid to thumbnail thumping. Cool thoroughly before feeding, no matter how hard they beg. A wire rack in the freezer helps if you can’t stand those starving eyes and dejected tails.

May you always have fun baking and happy tails to you!