Ode to the Ice Cube--And Other Frozen Delights

Ice Cubes are Awesome!

Hi, all, Lily the Corgi here.  Well, summer weather has arrived and it is important that all dogs keep ourselves cool, hydrated, and full...as in not hungry.  I understand that it is not healthy for dogs to stand around and munch on noms all the time.  Unfortunately, as we get older, those extra treats tend to stick to our bodies and make us look like plump little sausages.  Because of my advanced cuteness, I am almost always able to fill my humans with guilt enough to share food with me; however, my parents are smart and know there are things that are much better for me than other things.  And some of those things are home made!  That's right, my mama is a pretty great dog-snack-maker.

Now, I hear you thinking "Lily, I want to be cool, hydrated, and full, but my human doesn't know how to make awesome dog snacks."  Well, let me tell you a little secret--my mama says dog snacks are super easy to put together and she has agreed to share some of these!  With my mama's easy recipes, any corgi-person should be able to whip up some delightful doggy treats in no time.  So, sit pretty, put on your best hungry face, and your humans too can enjoy the satisfaction of knowing they have served you some wonderful, ice cold, home-made goodness!

Your best bet for the frozen treats is to lay in a supply of ice cube trays.  Just the regular old square cubes are fine, but you can also buy some cute little shaped trays.  My mama has some in the shape of bones that are just super cute (but they are also smaller than plain old squares so, really, I'm fine with the squares!)  If you have a larger dog, you can also make these in paper cups to make a bigger snack.

Ice Cubes:  Ahh, the sublime perfection that is the ice cube.  My mama says these are not difficult; she just goes to the ice maker in the fridge and hands me a chunk of icy goodness.  I love ice cubes above all other snacks (except, of course, bacon.)  My ridiculous brother and sisters don't like ice cubes, but I will sit around the kitchen all day on the chance of having one of those special treats.  Sometimes when it is really hot, mama or daddy will toss a few cubes in our water bowl.  I charge right in and start liberating the cubes for my own personal pleasure.  Ice Cubes are Awesome!!

Dog Ice:  Seeing how much I loved ice cubes and how these cooled me off on a hot day, my mama decided to try something to get the other dogs to take in some iciness.  So she invented something she calls Dog Ice. Mama takes broth--chicken, beef, any kind will do-- and pours it into ice cube trays and then pops those in the freezer.  A few magic hours later, heaven in a cube!  Even my silly brother and sisters like dog ice.  (You can also drop a small treat into the molds before freezing--a little piece of fruit or veggie or even a bite of chicken.)

Frosty Paws:  My mama says she heard there is an actual store-bought frozen dog treat by this name, but we've never seen it in our area.  Anyway, here's the home made way and no infringement intended to the brand name Frosty Paws people.  Mix 16 oz plain yogurt, 1 mashed banana, 2 Tbsp peanut butter and a TBS honey.  Freeze the mixture in ice cube trays and serve!

Frosty Jacks:  Line the bottom of your ice cube molds with a few blueberries.  Next, mix a container of plain yogurt with a can of pumpkin puree and put that mixture on top of the blueberries.  Freeze and serve!  (Jacks, like in Jack-O-Lantern, get it?)

Frozen Pea Treats:  Cook some frozen green peas until they are soft and mushy.  Mix in enough beef broth to make it "batter" consistency.  Put in ice cube tray and, you guessed it, freeze!

Mama says you can freeze anything your dog enjoys to make a great frozen treat.  Mama gives us our frozen snacks in the kitchen so we don't let any of the melting stuff get in the carpet.  We tried doing our frozen snacking outside once, but that turned in to a dirty, muddy mess.  

Well, all of this talk of snacking has made me hungry so I'm going to go in the kitchen and see what mama has lying around.  If there's something good, I will put on my best begging face and score a few cool noms.

Til next week, everyone!

Love ya,

Lily the Corgi

This is my best begging face...you'd give me a treat, yes?