Some pooches in North Texas are really pampered, and Thursday gives owners permission to go overboard.
Fort Worth chef Asdren Azemi is inviting North Texans to celebrate National Dog Day with him at his restaurant Ruffino's. On Thursday from 5-9 p.m., restaurant staff will take photos of pooches and their owners. Pooches get chef-made Dawg Daze cookies, and owners get recipes to make at home.
Azemi started cooking homemade food for his miniature pinscher Roxie a year ago.
"I can make nutritious food, cheaper and better than anything on the retail shelves," he said in a news release.
National Dog Day was created six years ago by a pet lifestyle expert and author who simply wanted to celebrate the best friend to so many.
Colleen Paige's website explains it this way: "National Dog Day was created to honor dogs more than we currently do, to give them "a day", to show deep appreciation for our long connection to each other - for their endearing patience, unquestioning loyalty, for their work, their capacity for love and their ability to impact our lives everyday in the most miraculous ways. National Dog Day wishes to encourage dog ownership of all breeds, mixed and pure - and embraces the opportunity for all dogs."
If you can't make it to Ruffino's, here are three of Azemi's Roxie-tested recipes:
Carob Chip and Oatmeal Biscuits
2 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour
3/4 cup of water
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1/3 cup molasses
5 tablespoons margarine
1/2 cup wheat germ
3 cups oatmeal uncooked
1/2 cup carob chips
Combine whole wheat flour, water and evaporated milk in a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Chill dough for 45 minutes. Roll out rounded teaspoons of dough onto a greased cookie sheet. Flatten dough and bake in a preheated, 300-degree oven for 60 minutes.
Salmon Balls
1 cup couscous
1/4 cup green peas, frozen or fresh
3/4 cup cooked salmon, diced
1 tablespoon blended oil
1/4 cup diced carrots
3 cups water or low sodium vegetable broth
Boil and couscous and cook until almost all the liquid is gone. In a saute pan, add one tablespoon of blended oil and cook the salmon on one side for one minute. Flip and cook the other side for one minute. Set aside and allow salmon to cool. In a bowl, combine couscous, peas, carrots and add one tablespoon of butter. Take two tablespoons of the mixture and roll it into a ball. Place in an airtight container. Keeps 3-4 days. Can freeze up to a month.
Doggie Ice Cream
3 cups plain yogurt
1 teaspoon blueberry juice
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Mix ingredients and freeze in ice cube tray. Perfect for your doggie on a hot day.
