Nope, I haven’t gone completely crazy. Liver is really good for humans (and dogs). However, my little guy won’t eat liver raw. Not that I really blame him …
So I bring to you liver brownies!
WARNING: there are pictures of raw meat ahead .. if this grosses you out, skip to the end for cute pictures of my dog!
Chicken liver is really cheap to buy. I got a pound for less than $1. This recipe is originally from my favorite natural health book for animals – Dr. Pitcairn’s Complete Guide to Natural Healthy for Dogs and Cats. I made a few adaptations to ingredients I had on hand, as well as making it gluten free.
I love these brownies as treats for Sammy because they are all natural – no weird ingredients or fillers in them. There are a couple ingredients you may need to get — lecithin granules, kep powder, and Animal Essentials calcium. I like this calcium because it almost all calcium, and very little phosphorus, so it almost pure calcium.
In the book it says that these brownies have been tested with many animals, and “all the pets love them”. Hmmmmm … I wanted to test that with mine, because he can be a very picky eater!!!
Liver Brownies
Adapted from Dr. Pitcairn’s Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats, Liver Brownies
Print this recipe!
6 large eggs
1/3 cup oil
800 IU Vitamin E
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 pounds raw liver (beef or chicken)
3 cups garbanzo fava flour (or whole wheat flour)
1 cup corn meal
1/2 cup oats (or other flour)
1/2 cup lecithin granules
1/4 cup kelp powder
2 tbsp Animal Essentials calcium
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
water, as needed, to make a spreadable consistency
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, combine the eggs and oil. With the tip of a knife, break into the vitamin E capsules, and squeeze the contents into the egg mixture.
In a blender, process the liver into a paste.
Turn this:
Into this:
I’ll be honest, this REALLY grossed me out. Maybe it was the smell or something … the picture kinda looks like strawberries…. yum.
One bonus, I wasn’t tempted to lick out the pan!
Add to the egg mixture and mix well.
Add in the rest of the ingredients.
Lecithin looks like this:
Kelp:
Mix well.
Add water, if needed, to make a spreadable consistency. (I didn’t need to)
If you have a large jelly roll pan, use that – or I just used my largest cookie sheet. Grease well, and spread in the batter.
Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the center is firm.
It’s done! Ohhhhh Sammmy!!!
Break or cut into bite size pieces. I also used my bone cookie cutter to cut them into bone shapes.
So what did Sammy think of them? Well there was … you expect me to eat that?
Then it kinda went like this …
Yay! Success!
Good thing, because the other little yellow dog was looking a little interested…
I am storing these in the freezer, cause they will probably last us a year plus some more!
Just make sure to label them …
Also, these treats are very high in vitamin A, primarily from the liver. Just make sure to feed in moderation – as a treat, not for daily food.
This is linked to the Homestead Barn Hop.
Awww Sammy is so cute! These look great! I agree with the labeling. My hubby was none too happy one time to find what looked like his Dr. Pepper in the fridge was actually Wisteria Flower Juice.
hahah, too funny! I get lazy about labeling things in the fridge sometimes, but these I definitely labeled!! I had fun taking the pictures of Sammy, I think sometimes he thinks — why are you hovering over me with the camera AGAIN?
Lol…I have to laugh at the “just make sure you label them”. Our dog was pretty particular about cold water so we kept a carafe in the fridge {unlabeled}. We had several unsuspecting visitors almost drink the dog water!
These looks neat and Sammy sure seems to like them!
haha, yes labeling is important! He really does like them, and he is super picky! I was surprised he ate them so fast because he has to play with his food before he eats it … once it is sufficiently played with, then he will eat it!
I love all the pics of Sammy, he definitely looked skeptical in the beginning. I am super finicky about what I give my dogs, so making home made biscuits is a great idea.
Thanks Rhonda, he really does go through all those phases with everything he eats, it is so funny!
I wish I were a nicer person and could make liver biscuits for my dog. But she does like carrots, so hopefully a carrot every now and again isn’t so bad for her!
I almost couldn’t make these… the liver really grossed me out, and it smelled soooo bad while it was cooking!
But, I feel like giving him organ meat every once in a while is important so I did it. I think these will probably last the rest of his life time — since he has to have them broken in such small pieces, there are so many of them!!!
Ha! When I first read your post title I didn’t see “for dogs”. I thought to myself, “Well now Jane has figured out how to substitute liver for chocolate. That’s taking healthy a step too far!”.
haha that is taking it a little too far! Nope, let me tell you, I am not a liver person, and these just smelled soooo bad while they were baking. I baked them while my husband was sleeping, and when he woke up I had to warn him what was in the oven! But Sammy likes them, so that is what counts!
lol.. I got very concerned when I first read the title to this in my inbox. I didn’t see the for dogs or cats part! hahaha!! I wish I had a pet so bad!
Brittany (Delights and Delectables) recently posted..Tropical Tilapia and a Challenge
haha, too funny! I grew up on a farm so we always had animals, but I never thought I would be a small dog person – we always had big dogs! But Sammy has definitely stolen my heart
I love the progression of Sammy photos! So funny.
LOL, I would imagine the temptations to lick the pan were minimal. I love your little sequence collage of Sammy. Well, I make their own food so why not treats. We just switched treats on ours because we found the ones they loved were made in China and now the new ones are causing Chili an allergy problem. Maybe this is a good project for me this weekend.
Lea Ann recently posted..Chinook Tavern
yeah treats made in China probably aren’t a good thing … I will tell you, the smell of these baking almost grossed me out, but Sammy is enjoying them! And liver in the store really is so super cheap .. probably because no one else wants them!
Sammy is sooooo cute! He’s very lucky to have a Mom that cooks liver brownies.
kimberly montgomery recently posted..A HAPPY {Meal} Day
ahh thank you