Monday 19 May 2014

Puppy Chow



What the heck is going on with dog food these days? Take one look at the ingredients and you’ll see things like duck, organic blueberries and filet mignon in a bordelaise sauce. And let’s not get started on how much it costs.

I had a dog growing up and here’s what we fed him: orange and brown Ken-L-Ration food (it looked like Play-Do pushed through a meat grinder), little discs of brown wax called “Chocolate Drops,” and, at Christmas, red and green-dyed rawhide sticks. Heck, we’d even let him lap up the milk from our cereal bowls. It saved us having to wash them.

You know what? That dog lived until he was 18. Of course, the fact that we never got him fixed might’ve had something to do with it. He was likely holding onto the hope he’d eventually get something other than a leg.

In spite of its name, Puppy Chow isn’t dog food. It’s caker food. And it’s dog-gone delicious. You get the sweetness of the icing sugar mixed in with the creaminess of the peanut butter, not to mention all that free riboflavin in the Crispix. Move over, dogs. This one’s for the people.

8 cups Crispix cereal
½ cup margarine or butter
½ cup creamy peanut butter
½ cup chocolate morsels
2 cups powdered sugar

Melt butter. Add peanut butter and morsels. Stir well until melted. In large bowl, pour over cereal. Stir until cereal is coated. Put sugar in large plastic bag. Add cereal mix. Shake well.


Source: Our 20th Anniversary Cookbook, Lambeth Co-operative Playschool Inc.


17 comments:

  1. This would make a lovely companion piece for the 'fake cat turds in a litter tray' that you delighted us with a while ago. Can't imagine what the social occasion would be though….

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    1. Amen to that, Veg-o-matic. Although I'd be inclined to reserve Kitty Litter Cake and Puppy Chow to more formal occasions like a stag-and-doe.

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    2. Hey! That was the recipe I submitted (she said proudly, despite making Brian's "Worst of 2013" list ; ). I've had Puppy Chow as well. A friend from the States made it for us and it was pretty addictive. And Brian - about the ridiculous dog food trend? I hear ya! Our dog loves eating goose excrement and even has gobbled up his own vomit. So... yeah. P.S. Sorry. That's quite indelicate for a food blog ; ).

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    3. I should start up a new food blog, only for caker dogs. The first recipe? Goose Shit Casserole.

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  2. This looks delicious. Also like dog food. So..win?
    And I know what you mean about actual dog food. My dog has to eat *prescription* food, only available from the vet, and significantly more expensive than anything Hubs and I eat.
    Well, other than Velveeta, which we all know is more expensive than anything.

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    1. When did this trend start? I can't remember when it became not okay to give your dog Alpo. And let's be honest - the dogs don't care. Mine ate a canvas bag once. He wasn't a picky eater.

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  3. I'd never seen the Puppy Chow/Muddy Buddies/things you do with Chex until I moved to Omaha. They sell it at the grocery store in the bakery (I guess because it is too much work to make at home?). I kinda-sorta remember Chex mix from the commercials in the 70's, but no one I knew made, or ate it, and my mother never emerged smiling from the kitchen carrying a bowl of snack food. A cocktail, yes. Snack food, definitely not.

    Our dog ate that cellophane wrapped food too-until he figured out how to get into the box, chew open the packets and eat a dozen when no one was watching. That wasn't pretty. He "ran away" soon after.

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    1. You had a smart dog, Goody. At least he knew he was supposed to eat food. See my comment above for the non-food thing my dog ate. The worst part? When I had to pull the book bag handle out. Wasn't pretty.

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  4. This looks too good to give to Rover for sure. I note that the recipe is from a Playschool cookbook. You'd think this recipe would be confusing to the toddlers. Looks like Dog food but they're telling me I can eat it!??? I remember as kids my best friend and I decided to "taste tested" the different flavours of milkbones. Frankly they all tasted like bland, hard crackers. This looks far more delicious.

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    1. I've had a few milkbones in my day. I'm not too ashamed to admit it. And no, they don't pack too much in the flavour department. At least they're low in fat.

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  5. Wow, I thought my mom made "human puppy chow" up. Hers was just like this, with the addition of pretzel bits and now I must make some.

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    1. You should, Dee. Just make sure there are other people around to share it with. You don't want to be solely responsible for consuming 8 cups of Crispix and 2 cups of icing sugar. It came close to happening with me.

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  6. What is a morsel? You and your fancy book learnin'....

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    1. A "morsel" (pronounced more-SELL) is a dollop of hardened chocolate. In other words, Chipits.

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    2. I was waiting for Crispix to go on sale for the last 35 days. It never does. So I found some at Walmart.ca for $4 a box. Here's a little tip. Don't buy your cereal over the internet. By the time it got here in shipping, then I stirred it and shook it to make this, I was left with Crispix dust. Tasty dust, but dust.
      Also I would like to recommend cutting the icing sugar in half to one cup. I had a few spoonfuls of puppy chow dust and went into sugar shock.

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    3. You bought cereal over the internet? Just don't buy meat, okay? Cutting back the sugar isn't a bad idea, especially if you value your teeth. Hope you've recovered from your shock.

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