A little something for the dogs: Bok-bok-bok Choy Love Biscuits

It's no secret that we love our dogs and spoil them rotten.  But, unlike the rest of the helicopter parents our generation is known for, our children wag their happy tails when they hear the jangle of a leash or think there might be left overs from last night's dinner for breakfast today.  Simple, cost-free things make them so happy.  And I'm happy to indulge.

The won ton we made with Zoe was served in a luscious, home-made broth.  It started with a coarse mirepoix, topped with six chicken backs, a couple of heads of bok choy, a hunk of ginger root, a handful of parsley, and enough water to cover.  The mixture was boiled for a couple of hours, then the solids were drained and -- here's where we differ from other households -- set aside for doggie treats.

I cannot stress enough how lovely and fragrant the broth was.  All the goodness from the cornucopia of ingredients were completely absorbed into the water, needing only a little bit of salt to finish it off.  Yet, somehow, the oft-discarded solids can be picked free of bones and mixed with a few other bland ingredients to make the most scrumptious treats my girls have ever eaten. 

Taking a page out of Mark Bittman's book, I have moved my food processor to an easily accessible location and now use it now fewer than 2-3 times weekly.  Today, I threw the chicken bok choy broth solids into my food processor with some cooked rice and egg, and gave it all a hearty whirl to make a lumpy sludge.  I put small handfuls of the sludge on wax paper-lined baking sheets and threw them in the convection oven at 350 degrees till they were stiff enough to be peeled off without breaking apart.  (No, I don't have any idea how long that was.  I was too busy writing this blog and giving love biscuits out to all the doggie neighbors that have stopped by this morning to note the time.)  Behold, the bok-bok-bok choy love biscuit!