Deep Fried Twinkies

Deep Fried Twinkies
one box of Twinkies, frozen
 (preferably ones made before they were bought out and made even worse... too late now)
one batch of your favorite pancake batter
lots of coconut oil
one deep-fryer
dark and/or milk chocolate syrup
favorite ice cream

Mix up that batch of pancake batter. Put enough coconut oil in your deep-fry to measure about 4" deep. Shortening can be used, also. Plug in and get the oil hot- 350°F or so.

Frozen Twinkies deep-fry better, by the way. It is not imperative, though.

Dip Twinkies in the batter, giving them a little shake to remove excess. Do not do shake too hard or your clean-up will suck. Gently put twinkie in oil. Fry until puffy and golden, then remove with a slotted implement. Set on paper towels to drain.

Repeat with remaining Twinkies until you run out of batter or Twinkies.

Fancy-Smancy Way of Serving
Place Twinkie in a bowl. Add a scoop or three of your favorite ice cream next to the deep-fried abomination. Drizzle a little chocolate syrup over the Twinkie and a lot more over the ice cream.

If you are on a diet, ignore the recipe above. I stay away from any processed, GMO-filled, nasty "foods". I had to try this. It brought a lot of naughty verbiage, all said in awe of how good it tasted. I am split between disgust of what I was eating and the delight of how good the above tasted.

Debbi
(7/4/12)

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Alfred's Soda Stream Syrup Recipe

Alfred's Soda Stream Syrup Recipe
The saffron syrup I made:

2 cups sugar
2 cups water

about a teaspoon of saffron threads (some recipes I have seen for saffron syrups use half or a quarter of this, but I find that for a soda flavoring, since the flavor is so diluted by the soda, stronger is better)

Cook at a low boil, on very low flame, until reduced to about two thirds.  Be sure to not let it get to the candying stage.  Watch like a hawk to be sure not to burn it.

Pour into a heat-proof glass container like a Pyrex measuring cup to cool. Don't pour it directly into glass if it's not heat-resistant; the syrup will be very hot.

Some people strain out the saffron threads, but I don't.

For an 8-oz glass of Soda Stream fizzy water, add syrup to taste.  I like about a tablespoon stirred in, but that is very saffrony; a teaspoon of it is also very nice, and lighter in flavor.

Cardamom in almost the same amount works very nice for a cardamom syrup.

I recently heard about a lavender syrup but I've not tried that yet! :-)

Alfred
(6/8/12)

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3-2-1 Cake (Microwave)

3-2-1 Cake (Microwave)

Anyone heard of this? My ex MIL came by for a visit today. We've always been on good terms. She told me about this. I've not tried it. She swears it's fantastic.

Mix 1 pkg of angel food cake mix and 1 pkg of another cake mix of any flavor you want in a big bowl. Store it in, say a big ziplock bag, not in the refrigerator.

When you crave a bit o' cake, mix 3 tbsp of mix and 2 tbsp of water in a small microwavable dish like a custard dish. Microwave for 1 minute (more or less depending on how close your microwave is to 1100 watts.)

She said she's particularly fond of using strawberry cake mix as the 2nd mix, topping with whipped cream and a couple of sliced strawberries. She also says keeping a can of icing in the fridge works well with chocolate.

Jola Gayle
(4/21/12)

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Livertaters Dog Treats

Livertaters Dog Treats

1 pound liver
1 egg
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1-1/4 cups potato flakes
Beef or chicken broth

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Cut liver into approximately 1" pieces. Place the liver pieces, egg, garlic powder and potato flakes in food processor. Pulse ingredients to combine.

Add as much broth as needed to make the mixture spreadable (the consistency will be very thick).

Spread mixture into a greased 13" x 9" pan. Bake for 25 minutes; cool on wire rack for 5 minutes.

Loosen sides with a knife, turn pan over and empty mixture onto wire rack. Cool completely before slicing.

Place slices in airtight container and refrigerate or freeze until ready to serve.

Debbi
(4/3/12)

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Home-Style Dog Treats

Home-Style Dog Treats

3/4 cup hot Meat Juices, Broth or Water
1/3 cup Butter
1/2 cup powdered Milk
1 Egg, beaten
3 cups Whole Wheat Flour

Pour hot liquid over butter in bowl. Stir in powdered milk, and egg. Add flour 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. Knead 3 or 4 minutes, adding more flour if necessary to make a very stiff dough.

Pat or roll to 1/2" thickness and cut out with a cookie cutter, or roll into logs and slice. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 325°F for 50 minutes. Allow to cool and dry out until hard. Makes about 1-1/4 lbs of treats.

You can add grated cheese, ground beef (cooked?), garlic, peanut butter or other flavors to the dough.

Debra
(4/3/12)

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Oatmeal, Peanut Butter, and Banana Doggie Cookies

Oatmeal, Peanut Butter, and Banana Doggie Cookies
1 to 1-1/2 cups unbleached Flour
3/4 cup Oatmeal
1/4 cup Wheat Germ
1/4 cup crunchy Peanut Butter
1/4 cup soft Butter or Vegetable Oil
2 mashed Bananas (can substitute 1/4 cup Honey)
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 cup Water

Preheat oven to 325°F. Combine all ingredients until well blended.

Form into tablespoon-sized balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten balls to 1/4" thickness using the tines of a fork.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Makes about 20 cookies. I made Sally's to her size, 1" little cookies. I got a lot more cookies.

Debbi
(4/3/12)

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Crunchy Beef-flavored Bagel Dog Treats

Crunchy Beef-flavored Bagel Dog Treats

1 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1 pkg. (1/4 oz. or 1 tbsp) dry Yeast
1 cup Beef* Broth, warmed
1 cup unbleached Flour
(* you can use chicken broth instead)

Preheat oven to 375°F. In a large bowl combine the whole wheat flour with yeast. Add 2/3 cup of the warm beef broth and beat for about 3 minutes. Gradually add the remaining flour. Knead dough for a few minutes until smooth and moist, but not wet. Use reserved broth as necessary.

Cover dough and let stand 5 minutes. Divide dough into about 15 to 20 pieces, rolling each piece into a smooth ball. Punch a hole into each ball using your finger or end of a spoon and gently pull the dough so the hole is about 1/2" wide. Place on a greased baking sheet and allow to rise 5 minutes.

Bake for 25 minutes. Turn heat off and allow bagels to cool in the oven to harden.

I wonder if one can boil them in broth instead of baking? Or roll out and use my doughnut cutter, having "doughnut holes" too?

Debbi
(3/30/12)

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Lemon Brownies

Lemon Brownies

3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick butter, soft
2 eggs
juice from 1/2 lemon (about 1 tbsp)
zest from 1/2 lemon (about 1 tsp)

Glaze
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
additional lemon zest

Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Mix in the softened butter.

In another bowl whisk the eggs with the lemon juice and zest. Add to the larger bowl and mix well.

Pour into prepared 8" x 8" brownie pan. Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes.

You can double the recipe and bake in a 9" x 13" pan for 30 minutes.

Remove and let cool. Stir together glaze ingredients, then glaze brownies.

Kate
(2/14/12)

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Cat Treats

Cat Treats

We can’t forget our favorite feline friends on Valentine’s Day, and this mix of catnip and tuna will have Kitty purring.

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 1 pound

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup soy flour
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup dried catnip
1/4 cup canned tuna (water packed), drained
1/2 cup juice from drained tuna – add water if needed
1/2 cup corn oil
1 egg, lightly whisked

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix. Add in wet ingredients and stir until the mixture becomes stiff. If the dough feels too sticky, add more whole wheat flour.

Mold the dough into a large ball and place it on wax paper. Use a rolling pin to flatten the dough to a thickness of 1/4" to 1/2".

Score into bite-size squares for a cat. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for about 25 minutes.

Cool and store in a tightly sealed plastic bag in the fridge until treat time.

Maggie
(2/12/12)

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Cupid’s Canine Cookies

Cupid’s Canine Cookies

Everyone loves an extra treat for Valentine’s day and Fido is no exception. But don’t overfeed: Think of each treat as the canine equivalent of a nutritious candy bar.

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 25 to 35 minutes
Yield: 2 pounds of heart-shaped dog treats

5 cups whole-wheat flour
1 cup milk
1/2 cup beef broth
1/2 cup corn oil
2 eggs

heart-chaped cookie cutter

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a cookie sheet using 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.

Combine the remaining ingredients and mix well.

With clean hands, roll the dough out to 1/4" to 1/2" thickness and use a heart-shaped cookie cutter in honor of the holiday. If you have a small dog or a large cookie cutter, perforate the cookies with a fork down the middle to break apart easily after baking.

Instead of a cookie cutter, you can roll the dough into 1/2" to 2" balls and place them one" apart on the greased cookie sheet.

Bake for 25 - 35 minutes until they turn golden brown. Baking times will vary based treats’ size, the altitude, and your oven.

Cool cookies on wire racks, as far away from your dog as possible. After treating your dog, store the rest in the refrigerator or freeze until the next visit from Cupid.

Maggie
(2/10/12)

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