32

Treats for the Perfect Kitty Halloween

Cute Black Cat Halloween Wallpapers - Top Free Cute Black Cat Halloween  Backgrounds - WallpaperAccess

Greetings from Snoops and Kommando Kitty. We are sure that some of your humans are planning Halloween parties this weekend. And more holiday parties will be coming over the next few weeks. We want to make sure that you are not forgotten when the goodies are prepared. (Some humans are amazingly selfish when it comes to their own treats and just will not share.)

Best Cat Costumes For Halloween 2020 | POPSUGAR Pets

Most of these treats are really easy to make, so don’t let your human tell you that they don’t have the time or energy. It’s the least they can do for you in return for all you do for them. These treats can all be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week in an airtight container or frozen for longer storage.

Gladstone Veterinary Clinic. Cat Treats

Kitty Kisses (from Kerrie Rageth at allrecipes.com)

Ingredients: 1 teaspoon catnip, 1 can cat food

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Combine catnip and cat food in the blender.
  3. Puree until smooth.
  4. Spoon into a small bag and cut a hole in the corner.
  5. Squeeze 1/2-inch “kisses” onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
  6. Bake for 15 minutes.

Can Cats Eat Carrots? - All About Cats

Carrot and Catnip Kitty Cat Treats (from Tina Verrelli at epicuricloud.com)

Ingredients: 2 tablespoons coconut or olive oil; 1 1/4 cups flour (plus additional for rolling dough); 1 tablespoon dried catnip (optional); 3/4 cup finely shredded carrot; 1 large egg, lightly beaten; cold water (as needed)

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
  2. Mix 1 cup of flour and oil in a medium bowl.
  3. Stir in catnip and carrots.
  4. Add in egg. Adjust consistency with water or flour if necessary. It should hold together but not be too wet and sticky.
  5. Roll or pat dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Sprinkle dough with additional flour, if needed.
  6. Prick dough all over with a fork. Cut into 1/2-inch squares with a pizza wheel.
  7. Arrange squares on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
  8. Bake approximately 12 minutes (until they start to brown).

Pumpkin for Cats - How and When to Use It - PetGuide

Pumpkin and Salmon Kitty Bits (from Tina Verrelli at epicuricloud.com)

Ingredients: 1 1/4 cup oat flour; 5 oz. salmon, drained; 1 large egg, 1/4 cup pumpkin puree

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
  2. Break the salmon up with a fork, chopper, or blender.
  3. Combine 1 cup oat flour, salmon, egg, and pumpkin in a bowl. Mix by hand or with an electric mixer until a dough forms.
  4. Turn dough onto parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
  5. Roll or pat dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Sprinkle with addition flour, if needed.
  6. Prick dough all over with a fork.
  7. Bake for 15 minutes.
  8. Remove from oven and cut into small pieces.
  9. Spread out the pieces and bake for another 15-20 minutes (until crunchy).

Our cat trying to steal cheese : r/AccidentalRenaissance

Tuna & Cheddar Whisker Biscuits (from Tina Verrelli at epicuricloud.com)

Ingredients: 1 can water-packed tuna, drained; 1/3 cup shredded cheese or finely grated carrot, 1 egg, 1 1/3 cup oat flour (plus extra for dusting); 1 tablespoon dried catnip (optional); 1/4-1/2 cup cold water

  1. In a food processor or blender, mince the tuna and cheddar to a fine texture.
  2. Pulse together the egg, flour, and catnip.
  3. While running on low, add enough water to form a ball.
  4. Divide the ball into 4 smaller balls, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  6. Sprinkle a little flour on the work surface. Roll each ball into a long “snake.” Cut each “snake” into to small pieces and roll into a chick pea-size ball. Flatten with a fork.
  7. Bake on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet for 10-15 minutes to desired texture.

Why Do Cats Like Fish?

Purr-fect Kitty Salmon Treats (from Tina Verrelli at epicuricloud.com)

Ingredients: 1 egg, lightly beaten; 1 tablespoon oil, 6-8 oz. canned salmon, drained with liquid reserved, 1 1/2 cups oat flour, 1/2 cup old fashioned oats, 2 tablespoons brewers’ yeast, 1 tablespoon dried catnip

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Whisk together egg and oil in a medium bowl.
  3. Break up salmon with a fork and add to the egg mixture.
  4. Use mixer with dough hook to add flour, oats, yeast, and catnip.
  5. Slowly add salmon liquid until a stiff dough forms.
  6. Form into 1/2-teaspoon balls, press down onto parchment paper-lined with the tines of a fork.
  7. Bake 10-13 minutes until dry on top, but slightly soft on the bottom.
  8. Cool completely on baking sheet.

Fritz the cat wants to eat all of my cheese and crackers! : r/cats

Meow-ums Kitty Crackers (from Tina Verrelli at epicuricloud.com)

Ingredients: 2 tablespoons coconut or olive oil; 1 cup flour (plus additional for rolling dough); 2 tablespoons brewers’ yeast (optional); 1 tablespoon dried catnip (optional); 3/4 cup shredded cheese or finely shredded carrot; 1 large egg, lightly beaten; 2 tablespoons cold water

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
  2. Combine oil, flour, and yeast in a medium bowl.
  3. Add in catnip and cheese.
  4. Mix in egg and add water 1 tablespoon at a time until a dough forms.
  5. Roll the dough into 1/4-inch thickness (dough may need to be wrapped and refrigerated for an hour if it is too soft to work with).
  6. Cut dough into 1-inch squares with a pizza cutter.
  7. Arrange squares on parchment paper-lined baking sheet and prick with fork.
  8. Bake for 12 minutes or until starting to brown.
  9. Cool on baking sheet.

5 Hidden Dangers To Cats on Halloween – Meowingtons

Ed. Note: Upon further review of these recipes, we would like to note that very nice treats may also be purchased from Chewy, Temptations, and other vendors. Purchasing treats rather than baking them does not indicate any lower level of love or devotion.

Happy Halloween! - Poorly Dressed - fashion fail

Pictures courtesy of Google Images

15

What’s Better Than a Lentil?

Lolcats - tastes bad - LOL at Funny Cat Memes - Funny cat pictures with  words on them - lol | cat memes | funny cats | funny cat pictures with words

First, we’d like to thank everyone for all the love and support you gave Mom after our post last week (and the compassion for our situation). She is doing better.

We would also like to thank everyone for the unwavering support of our dislike of the lentil (That came pretty much from the feline population. There were a few humans who seem to enjoy eating them.)

Cooking with Cats. | Beautiful cats, Cats, Cat reading

We found a couple of recipes for Mom to make for us when she’s back up to speed.

Homemade Cat Treats

  • 1 (4 oz.) can of tuna in spring water, drained and flaked
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon dried catnip
  • 1 large egg
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Place all ingredients in a food processor and process until you get a smooth, thick dough.
  3. Form dough into 1/4-teaspoon balls (about 80 of them).
  4. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and flatten slightly
  5. Bake about 15 minutes (until crispy golden)
  6. Cool completely before serving.
  7. May be stored in an airtight container for up to a week or frozen

Cat wearing apron, stirring pot on miniature stove." As seen on the classic  cooking show Kitten Kitchen. Photo by Harry W. Frees… | Vintage cat, Cute  cats, Cat art

Cat Gravy

  • 1/4 cup chicken liver
  • 1/2 cup mixed chicken gizzard and heart
  • 2 cups of water
  • 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon of salt
  1. Boil the chicken parts until tender.
  2. Set the liquid aside and chop up the meat.
  3. Mix the liquid with the flour, meat, and salt.
  4. Cook over low heat until the gravy thickens.
  5. The gravy can either be pureed or left chunky.

Pumpkin for Cats: 10 Surprising Feline Benefits - PetFoodio.com

We’re including this last one because the site says that cats love them. Mom hates pumpkin, so we’ve never tried it.

Pumpkin and Salmon Kitty Bits

  • 1 1/4 cups of oat flour, divided
  • 5 ounces of drained salmon
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Break up the salmon with a fork or chopper.
  3. Combine 1 cup of flour, salmon, egg, and pumpkin in a bowl using a spoon or electric mixer
  4. Place the dough on the baking sheet, sprinkle with the remaining flour, and press down to a thickness of 1/4 inch. Prick all over with a fork.
  5. Bake for 15 minutes.
  6. Remove from the oven and cut into small pieces with a pizza or pastry cutter.
  7. Spread the bits out and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes (until firm).
  8. Let cool completely.
  9. Store in an air-tight container for a week or freeze to store longer.

Another possibility.

What Do You Know About Eco-Friendly Cat Options? Take Our Earth Day Quiz! -  Catster

Or we could ask for a pet.

Cats and Fish 🐱🐠 Cute Cats Plays with Fish (Part 1) [Epic Life] - YouTube

 

 

0

What Do You Bring to an Inter-Species Potluck?

Like most other offices, “Adventures in Cheeseland” has a holiday party between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Probably the only difference between ours and yours is that being inter-species, we don’t allow meat. It would definitely ruin the ambience if someone saw a friend/family member in the stew.

Being in charge means that Lenny and George (they are the mice in the header) need to make sure that everything runs smoothly. They are looking at the sign-up sheet to see what else is needed.

George: It looks like almost everyone is bringing something.

Lenny: Oh, no! Sigmund Squirrel has signed up to bring acorn squash again. It’s your turn to tell him that smashed up acorns are different than acorn squash.

George: Fine. But you tell Hortense Hen that it creeps out people when she brings in deviled eggs. Everyone knows where they come from.

Lenny: Eww! I forgot about that.

George: It appears that Snoops and Kommando are getting together to make catnip brownies. Do you think that’s appropriate for an office party?

Lenny: If you think it’s a problem, you tell them. They scare me.

George: They’re harmless. Cat won’t let them near us.

Lenny: Don’t you remember what happened last year at the party? Snoops threatened to make me the main dish!

George: I’d forgotten all about it. Well, you did make her pretty mad.

Lenny: I thought she’d like me bringing kitty kibble.

George: You brought kitty kibble from her secret stash.

Lenny: How was I supposed to know that?

George: It was behind the kitty bed in Cat’s office.

Lenny: Oh, yeah. I told you we should have gone in together and gotten pumpkin spice ice cream and pumpkin spice coffee.

George: Most of the staff doesn’t like pumpkin.

Lenny: But it was a great sale!

George: So do you have any ideas for this year?

Lenny: I think so. What are you bringing?

George: Well, I was going to bring a cheeseball. But when I bought one last year, the kids ate out the core. They didn’t think I’d miss it. So I’m thinking almond cookies. I can go down the street to the Chinese restaurant to get them. That way, the kids won’t even see them.

Lenny: That’s a great idea! Almost everyone likes almonds or cookies.

George: So what’s your idea?

Lenny: I was thinking hot chocolate. Well, not really hot chocolate because it’s served cold.

George: So you’re bringing cold hot chocolate?

Lenny: Yeah. I found it in an old book. It think it might be someone’s family recipe. Do you want to try some? I made a test batch and brought it in.

George: Sure! I love chocolate!

(They go to Lenny’s office and close the door. Lenny brings out a pitcher and two small glasses. He pours a brownish liquid into both glasses. George sniffs and wrinkles his whiskers.)

George: This smell kinda weird, Len. Are you sure you made it right?

Lenny: I followed the recipe exactly.

George: Okay. Well, here we go.

(George takes a large mouthful, turns green, and spits it back in the glass.)

Lenny: What’s wrong? Don’t you like it?

George: That is the worst cold hot chocolate I have ever tasted. Let me see that recipe.

(Lenny pulls out the recipe and gives it to George.)

Lenny: See, it says it was put together by some doctor in Spain in 1631.

George: It says “Take one hundred cocoa beans, two chilies, a handful of anise seed and two of vanilla (two pulverized Alexandria roses can be substituted), two drams of cinnamon, one dozen almonds and the same amount of hazelnuts, half a pound of white sugar and enough annatto to give some color.”

Lenny: Yeah, it didn’t say what kind of chilies, so I asked the guy to give me a couple of hot ones. And I told you it wasn’t served hot.

George: Did you try this?

Lenny: No. The smell made me sick.

George: And you want to serve this at our party?

Lenny: I said it was an idea.

George: It’s a terrible idea.

Lenny: OK. What do you think I should bring?

George: We still need napkins and paper plates.

 

References:

http://www.thenibble.com/reviews/main/chocolate/the-history-of-chocolate.asp

http://albanykid.com/2011/12/11/hot-chocolate-hot-cocoa-and-xocoatl/

3

En Garde, Pumpkin

Just so no one gets the wrong idea, I love fall. It’s always been my favorite time of year. The heat has finally gone away, the weather is beautiful, and it’s football season. I try to ignore the fact that the reason the leaves turn all those pretty colors is because the tree has to get rid of them to get ready for winter.

However, autumn’s starting to forget its place in the grand scheme of things. Summer is the season before fall. Half of the summer should not be taken over by autumn activities. Let’s face it – fall is the time we get ready for winter (at least those of us who spend many months preparing for snow, driving in snow, and cleaning up from snow).

We have already lost the battle of school supplies. As soon as July 4 is over, we start getting advertisements for school supplies. We just got our first year-round school here, so best-case scenario is that they are starting seven weeks early.

The weird thing about school supplies is that they go on sale in many places as soon as the advertisements start. I guess it might be because no one is going to buy extra pens and pencils a month and a half early unless they are cheap.

The really good stuff (like the expensive calculators) don’t go on sale until a couple of weeks before school actually starts. And if the class has special requirements for supplies, they don’t let you know until a week before classes (if you’re lucky).

So if you want to make sure that your child gets their favorite folder and notebooks, you need to shop by the early part of August (we only had one tiger folder left last week and mega dogs with only a few cats).

On the other hand, with calculators and specialty goods, it’s usually early September. And first-time shoppers are at a huge disadvantage with the specialty goods. Parents with connections (or older children) have already snatched up the good stuff by the time the rest of the parents even hear about what you need,

But the specific trigger for this rant is an advertisement I heard on the radio earlier this week. Tim Horton’s was advertising its new pumpkin latte as a fall drink you can enjoy now. Apparently they are trying to get a jump on Starbuck’s, who is going to start serving their fall drinks next week.

I really don’t understand the appeal of a fall coffee drink in August. It’s been in the 80’s all week with the worst humidity we’ve seen this summer. Shouldn’t people still be drinking frosty mugs of root beer or real beer or something?

If you’re addicted to coffee, isn’t there some sort of summer flavor? I’m not a coffee drinker, but thinking about it, maybe there isn’t. Raspberry and lemon, two favorites with iced tea, just sound revolting when you put them with coffee. Hmmmm, maybe that’s the answer: iced pumpkin coffee. The worst of both worlds.

As you may have guessed, I don’t like pumpkin. It’s a gourd. A nutritious gourd, but a gourd none the less. All squash are gourds. But most of them know their place. The winter varieties show themselves in the fall and get cooked into all kinds of yummy dishes. We won’t talk about summer squash.

But pumpkin needs to be in pies, and coffee creamers, and cream cheeses. They are developing a pumpkin Oreo. It will have some vanilla-type cookies (good thing – chocolate cookies would be a travesty). I’m sure I just haven’t looked hard enough for pumpkin-flavored potato chips.

We’ll know the end has come when they start selling winter coats in August. I remember trying on a winter coat in July one year when I was little. It was going to be a birthday present. I was so miserably hot trying it on, I didn’t care what it looked like. I’m guessing the marketing people discovered that talking about snow storms in August was just pushing things a little too far.

I know it’s a losing battle. Last week I saw a tree down the road changing colors. Today I noticed that my magnolia is blossoming again. How can we keep things straight when Mother Nature is so confused about what season it is?