dog JOY: homemade dog biscuits

today went to the dogs. Lucy wanted to make some treats as part of a special welcome home package for a doggy named Nellie.

vintage canister (c) dana rogers photography

i was astounded at the options and the variety of ingredients. the breath-saver formula caught my eye, but that wasn't the statement Lucy was hoping to make. so, we stuck with a basic martha stewart recipe. we can branch out later. (note to self: breathsaver treats!)

mysterious wheat germ (c) dana rogers photography

we had most of the ingredients on hand, but not this one. this is found in the cereal aisle.

use the whisk (c) dana rogers photography

 i like to whisk dry ingredients to blend them. you should try it.

oil in midstream (c) dana rogers photography

 decided to deploy my most favorite appliance - the mint-green kitchen aid. (this is really dear to me, so dear that it was among the evacuations items for the fire.)

roll away (c) dana rogers photography

 so you mix it all up into a pretty stiff dough and then roll it out. it was easy to work with; not sticky.

bone stamp (c) dana rogers photography

 of course i went and dug out the bone-shaped cookie cutter. i wanted to use the kitty cutter, but Lucy also thought that would send the wrong message. "What do you think we are," she said, "barbarians? We no longer chase cats." 

scraps (c) dana rogers photography

 rolled it out again to get as many cookies as possible. let me tell you, there weren't many. once lucy taste tests, we'll be down to a baker's dozen.

pre-baked bones (c) dana rogers photography

 the silpat didn't make the evacuation list, but in retrospect, it probably should have. into the oven they went. we painted the biscuits with chicken broth once during the baking.

cooling treats (c) dana rogers photography

here are the finished biscuits. i snapped one when they were still too hot for our taste-tester. believe me, she is standing by.

tentative lucy (c) dana rogers photography

okay. here we go, the taste-test. a hush came over the back porch. will she like them? cautious at first.

mm mm good (c) dana rogers photography

good enough to eat one. final evaluation?

mm mm mm good (c) dana rogers photography

yes folks, martha has done it again. another delicious recipe.



martha stewart's dog biscuit recipe
note: i have edited out some of the ridiculous parts: "if desired, you can spell out your dog's name or a holiday message in the dough with a toothpick (wet the toothpick first so it won't stick." my dog can't read!

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/4 cup brewer's yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 cup low-sodium canned chicken stock, plus more for brushing


1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, wheat germ, yeast, and salt; set aside
2. Place oil in a large bowl. Add stock and flour mixture in three alternating batches, beginning and ending with stock. Mix well.
3. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to about 3/8-inch thick. Shape biscuits using a dog-bone-shaped cookie cutter.

4. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough.
5. Bake biscuits 10 minutes. Brush with stock; rotate baking sheets, and bake 10 minutes more. Turn off oven, leaving door closed. Let dog biscuits stand in oven to dry completely, about 1 1/2 hours. Wrap as a gift, or store in an airtight container.


Read more at Marthastewart.com: Homemade Dog Biscuits - Pets - MarthaStewart.com

seal joy

book joy: rubber stamped jewelry by sharilyn miller

scan of rubber stamped jewelry cover

Just picked up this cool book. I am was lured in by its cover - aren't these gorgeous projects? The book starts off with a clinic on basic jewelry-making techniques, including wire stuff which is the author's special love. Then it's on to the recipes for the twenty projects.

Apart from the totally predictable stamped dominoes, the projects are extremely creative. One uses vinyl tubing to create a housing for rubber-stamped art. Toothpicks make a pendant. There's also a liberal use of shrink plastic - love it - bearing no resemblance to its original state. Also, polymer clay, which I haven't really gotten into yet.

scan of i love paris - project by suzie heinzel

Because I would like to incorporate my photos into jewelry, I was hoping for detailed how-tos on the cover project called "I Love Paris." Unfortunately, there isn't much explanation re: the soldering process. (No how-to in the front of the book.) She does give the ingredients, so i think going to assemble these and see if I can't figure it out. That's half the fun, no?

for the soldering, here's what i am going to need:
precut glass, .2 mm thick
copper tape
flux
soldering iron
rosin core solder 60/40

will check back in once the key items are in the house!

Meanwhile, here are the book deets:

Rubber Stamped Jewelry

by Sharilyn Miller

What's Doing Here?
Well today has been tough. The fire continues to rage - 0 percent containment. I wasn't able to carry on normally even though i am not directly affected. It's smoky, it's tough to breathe and people are fighting an enormous fire less than a mile away. When I went out today, everyone seemed business as usual, and it just made me feel weirder.

k.l. man is out of town visiting the kids in Los Angeles, so I am hoping for a little extra crafty time this week in between working on my wordpress skills and fixing up the dana rogers photography blog. feel free to check it out for more fire news.

creating some bead joy

watch trio bracelets (c) dana rgoers photography

i can always find some joy in beads.     always.

the colors, the textures, the quiet time spent stringing and combining make for certain joy.

a new spool of .5 mm elastic i use to string bracelets arrived just in time. i like to keep a stash of these around at all times and i needed a set to go with my birthday swatch.

i love them because:

• one size fits all, even on "fat" days
• its fun to name them
• they are easy to make
• they can be combined to "go" with any outfit or mood
• and finally, they make great gifts

whenever i receive a compliment on a bracelet, off it comes and into the hands of its new owner. and that creates more joy.

pebbles (as in the flintstones) (c) dana rogers photography

sparkly girl (c) dana rogers photography

modern pearl (c) dana rogers photography

what is your "sure thing" for making joy?

bedroom joy (not what you think!)

photo courtesy of urbanoutfitters.com

my beloved duvet has shredded. it's over ten years old, so it "did it's bit." it gave me a wonderful opportunity to try something a little bohemian: the sunshine duvet cover from urban outfitters.  i wonder if this will set off one of those painting-rearranging-complete do-over extravaganzas. quite possible and somewhat needed. on the frugal side, it should "go" with what's currently going on in there. would you like to see the "before"?