Cooking for Dogs - Canadian Icelandic Sheepdog Club - Summer 2007 Issie

WELCOME to COOKING FOR DOGS: Summer 2007 Issue
By Valerie Sharp

In Keeping with our Herding Issue, here is a Recipe that is good for both the owner and if there is any left-over, it is very healthy for your Icelandic Sheepdog as well. If you are concerned about the onions, you can pick them out, but for that little bit, I personally don't worry about it, as they don't often get a treat like this.

Shepherd’s Pie
Ingredients:1 pound ground Icelandic Lamb if Possible, Beef if not.
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion sliced into rings or chopped into small pieces if you prefer (if just for dogs, no onion)
1 clove garlic chopped
1/4 cup Gravy made from dippings of a roast (if possible)
4- 6 large potatoes boiled, mashed with salt, butter, savory and milk
.2 cups corn or 2 cups peas or 2 cups mixed veggies (to cover the meat)
Salt, pepper, thyme, savory and paprika to taste

Directions:
In a frying pan that can go in the oven, saute the onions and the garlic until wilted, remove. Add the beef to the pan and cook it until done. Remove the fat. Return the onions and the garlic, add salt, pepper and thyme, add the gravy and stir evenly. Cover the whole thing with corn. Spread the hot mashed potatoes on top of the corn, making grooves. Put little dashes of butter all over and sprinkle some paprika all over. Set in the oven about 1 hour at 300F or until the potatoes are all brown and crispy all around the rim. We use an iron frying pan and it's just great. The longer you leave it in the oven, the better because all the flavours marry and it is just nice. You can lower the heat in order to leave it in longer if you would like.

The other thing that all good Shepherds need is a cool drink when they come in from working..

Sparkling Rhubarb Juice (yes, I checked, Rhubarb does indeed grow in Iceland)
Take four to six cups of Fresh or Frozen Rhubarb (fresh is best)
add half a cup to a cup of sugar depending on the Rhubarb.
1/2 to a 1 cup of water and simmer for ten minutes or until the rhubarb is cooked and soft, then strain though a couple layers of cheese cloth, the less you swish it, the clearer the juice, and put in a glass jar and into the fridge..

When ready to serve, pour Ginger Ale over Ice and add 1/3rd of the glass with the rubarb juice, its a delightful fresh drink that on a hot summer day is perfect and its packed full of Vitamin C.

Have a great summer.