I have big dogs.  Big hungry well-trained dogs who need lots of rewards for well-done tasks and good behavior. Eddy is the black & white short-hair on the left, Dante is the brown & black plush with the big grin on the right. They also have lots of friends - that dog in the center is their buddy Nic Little Bear, a Bouvier des Flandres.

Another thing I have is a lot of shredded vegetable & fruit pulp, left over from the juicer. Yes, full confession, I am absolutely convinced that juicing is the best thing I've done for my health since giving up fast food and white sugar. It's great! But making those yummy, super-healthy juices takes a lot of produce and leaves behind a LOT of pulp.



So, of course, I had to put these two things together and the result is... Taaaa Daaaa! .... dog biscuits!

Now, this is not a normal recipe with precise measurements, because there is nothing whatsoever "normal" about this concoction. First, you'll probably be using different combinations of vegetable and fruit pulp in each batch, and there's no way to predict how much flour will be needed each time.  So don't fret over exact amounts; just work up a stiff dough that can be cut and baked, and your dogs will thank you.

As always, BE CAREFUL. There are a few odd things, like grapes and onions, that aren't good for dogs and should not go into these biscuits. You can check a list here at the Humane Society site. It is also wise to give your dog only one small biscuit until you know how your particular dog's tummy will digest these treats.

Recipe: Absurdly Healthy Dog Biscuits

2 to 3 cups safe Veggie / Fruit Pulp from juicer;
       Apples, Carrots, Sweet Potatoes and Greens are all good.

2 Eggs
1/4 cup Fat (oil, lard, peanut butter or any meat or fish drippings)
2 to 3 cups Flour, enough to make stiff dough. Whole Wheat is good.

Combine veggies, eggs and fat with mixer. Switch to the dough hook if you have one, and add the flour slowly. Once all the flour is mixed in, increase the speed to medium and beat the dough for 5 minutes or longer. If it feels too sticky to shape into a ball, add more flour 1/2 cup at a time. Don't worry about over-working the dough, because you want the biscuits to be as hard and tough as possible!

Preheat oven or toaster oven to 275 (F.) Turn the ball of dough out onto a floured surface and roll 1/4" to 1/2" thick. Thinner biscuits will be crisp, while thicker biscuits will be more chewy for big dogs. Transfer to metal racks (usually meant as cooling racks.) I have double-decker racks that work nicely for  baking an entire batch at one time in the toaster over.

 Bake 2 hours at 275 (F.)  The long baking at low temperature allows the biscuits to get thoroughly dry without scorching. They may feel a bit soft while still warm, but will dry out overnight. In fact, it's fine to just turn off the oven and leave the biscuits in the warm oven overnight. Cool thoroughly before presenting to your pups.