Apple Crumble for Dogs

Looking for a special treat for your furry friend? LoveToKnow's guest columnist Wendy Nan Rees has just the thing.

Apples are a great treat.

The fall season brings with it wonderful apples. This tip offers an apple crumble recipe with a twist - additional berries and citrus. I have to say, California is not always the most fun state to live in. I know it isn't too bad in the middle of February when winter has our country in its grip, but how I long for the wonderfully crisp days of Massachusetts where I went to boarding school and then college.

I think fall is my favorite season next to summer. How I love the trees changing color, and the smells in the air that change so dramatically from cut grass to fresh cut hay bundled to dry for the coming months ahead. I love the smell of nature's tap, fresh running streams, the ocean and my wet dogs after a day at the beach. I miss how my horse would smell in the late summer before and after we would ride, with the dogs barking alongside the trail.

All of this changes sometime in late September, but it happens so gently that you wake up one day, look out your window and the smells belong to a whole new world. It's a world of burning wood, falling leaves and ripe apples ready to be picked. It is the last of summer and the best of what fall has to offer from the end of September to the end of October, in my personal opinion. It's a time I long for and miss so very much.

If I am having a really hard day and the timing is right, I go to the local farmers market and treat my doggies to my Apple Crumble with a little twist. They love it. and I love the way the house smells when I make it because it is scented like fall all day long!

This recipe freezes very well, and it will keep in the refrigerator for about five days if kept in an air tight container. Remember, as with any of my recipes, if you feel inspired to add something else, go for it. These are all just basic recipes, and they can be personalized any way you would like. The entire point is to just have fun and bond with your dog.

Ingredients

• 5 pounds, red sweet apples, peeled, cut, sliced and cored
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries or dried cranberries (Sometimes I use both!)
• ¼ tsp grated lemon peel (Also known as lemon zest)
• ¼ grated orange peel zest
• 6 tbsp orange juice (Fresh if you can)
• 6 tbsp lemon juice (Fresh, if possible)
• 1 cup dark molasses
• 2 tbsp cinnamon

Crumble Topping

• 1 ½ cups un-cooked oatmeal
• ¼ cup wheat germ
• 1 cup crushed graham crackers, non-sweetened (You can find them at almost any natural food market, and my boys go crazy for these.)
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup light brown sugar (When I make it now, I use less sugar but this takes some practice. Once you know how to make a crumble topping, it is really just about finding the right ingredients that will bind together without melting, which is a cooking technique I have learned.)
• ½ tsp of kosher salt (Please only use this type for two reasons: it really brings out the flavors and you know exactly how much salt this is adding to your dog's diet.)
• ½ pound of non-salted butter, ice cold and cubed (It must be ice cold and cubed or it will become too mushy to use.)

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350°
2. Mix together the lemon zest, orange zest, lemon juice, orange juice, molasses and cinnamon.
3. Soak the apples and blueberries (and cranberries) in the above mixture for about 45 minutes or for as long as it takes you to make the crumble top.
4. Crush the graham crackers well.
5. In a food processor, mix together the oatmeal, wheat germ, graham crackers, sugars, salt and butter. Use the pulse button to mix well until you have what looks like a mix of crumbles. Once you reach this consistency, stop mixing.
6. Use a baking dish or baking pan that is large enough to hold the apple mixture.
7. Pour the apples, berries and juices into the pan and spread evenly.
8. Sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over the top of the apple/berry mixture.
9. Bake until the liquid in the pan is bubbling and the apples are tender. Be careful not to burn the crumble topping. (Baking time from 1 hour to 1 hour and 20 minutes)
10. Remove from oven and cool very, very well.

Depending on size of dog, serve from 1/2 cup to 2 cups (for an 80 pound dog). Enjoy!

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