Bosco's Biscotti

This year, I decided to make cookies for the four-legged members of my family.  They inevitably prefer treats to, say, grooming tools.

I wanted to do something that looked like chocolate chip biscotti, but with dog-friendly ingredients.  I was kind of making it up as I went along, but used a ideas from recipes here and here.  Happily, my taste-tester approved.

Ingredients:
Dry
5 c. whole wheat flour
1-1/2 t baking powder
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t ground ginger

Wet
1 15 oz. can pumpkin
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1/4 c. honey
1 egg plus 1 egg white  (You can probably go ahead and just use 2 whole eggs.)
1/2 t vanilla
1/2 t salt

1-1/2 c. freeze dried liver (optional, but my dog goes nuts for it.)


Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 325.  In large bowl, beat together wet ingredients; in separate bowl, combine dry ingredients.  Slowly add dry to wet, stirring or beating on low.  Stir in liver pieces, if using.

2.  Form dough into ball in bowl.  If dough is still a little crumbly, knead in a couple of tablespoons of water, one at a time (I added 1/4 cup; it was a little too much.)  Cut into 4 pieces; roll into logs roughly 3 in. in diameter.

3.  Grease or cover two cookie sheets with parchment paper (did I ever mention how much I love baking with parchment paper?).  Place two logs on each sheet; flatten with fingers until about 1 in. high in the middle.

4.  Bake for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven (leave it on!); let cool on racks for 10-15 minutes, until cool enough to handle.  Slice logs diagonally in to 1/2 in. pieces.

Place pieces back on cookie sheets; bake for another 10 minutes.  Remove from oven; flip over all pieces.  Bake for an additional 10 minutes.

5.  Cool on cooling racks until room temperature; store in airtight container.  Use within 1 week or so; freeze if storing for longer. 

I figured this out the hard way, when my sister unwrapped a lovely jar of fuzzy dog cookies for Christmas.