My first time trying to make the HHB's

[mpetys]

Hi everyone. Well, I went and screwed up and forgot to order MonkeyButt's HHB's in time for there to be no lapse. I have ordered 2 pounds but in the meantime we ran out. So, this evening, I am trying my hand at making a batch. I already had all the ingredients as I had ordered them from Henry's Healthy Pets a while back.

So, I get my scale out to weigh the ingredients. I decide that I might as well make two batches. So I have my two batches of dry ingredients. I add an egg to each one, and the vanilla extract. The instructions say 8 oz of water so . . . . . oh crap, I read the instructions wrong. It says 1/2 cup! One batch I put 8 oz and when it was sooo soppy, I only put about 5 - 6 oz in the next batch. It was still a bit soppy. AARRGGHH!!!!!!!!

Well, what I did was to try to salvage it by adding more of the whey powder and pecan meal. The one that only had 5-6 oz of water, seems okay. The other one is still a bit moist. For instance, it doesn't hold it's roll shape; it kinda spreads out.

Oh well, I will see how they turn out. I can't believe that I misread the instructions. Hopefully at least one batch will turn out. If the really moist one does not turn out, I guess I can always give them to my dogs for treats. They practically beg for them when MonkeyButt gets his.

This has got me wanting to make another batch tomorrow to see if I can get this right! Thank goodness for Leigh.

Michele in Tampa

[4skwerlz]

Hi Michele :wave123

According to USPS tracking, your blocks should be delivered with tomorrow's mail.

You could let the dough dry out a while in the fridge, then try rolling it. You can bake them wet, but they'll turn out real soft and crumbly. Should be okay though. :)

[mpetys]

Hi Michele :wave123

According to USPS tracking, your blocks should be delivered with tomorrow's mail.

You could let the dough dry out a while in the fridge, then try rolling it. You can bake them wet, but they'll turn out real soft and crumbly. Should be okay though. :)

Great! MonkeyButt is not thinking much of my cooking at this point! My husband fed MonkeyButt his blocks in the morning for quite a few days recently and he kept telling me we were getting low. It just didn't register until I opened the freezer and was shocked to see we were almost out!

I just took one batch out of the oven. This is the batch that had the 5 - 6 oz of water in it. I just cut them up and they look pretty good. I actually just tasted one of them. Kinda bland but not bad! Do you have any idea what the calorie count on them is? How about the carb count. I just finished the block I tasted and it really is not bad at all. I might add a bit more vanilla to them for my taste or add shredded coconut to them. Has anyone else eaten them?

Ok, I am going to get the second batch, the one that was still a bit mushy. I'll see how they look.

Michele in Tampa

[4skwerlz]

Do you have any idea what the calorie count on them is? How about the carb count. I just finished the block I tasted and it really is not bad at all. I might add a bit more vanilla to them for my taste or add shredded coconut to them. Has anyone else eaten them?

Carbs, almost none. Of course I've tried them.:D They ARE bland to a human's taste; to me, they taste like a dry, bland nut biscotti. For our taste, they'd need more salt/sugar, but then not so healthy. On the other hand, have you ever tasted a Mazuri block? Ewww! :D

[mpetys]

Okay, I just finished cutting up the second batch. They looked so funny! The roll had spread so wide! Anyhow, I still cut it up into 60 pieces so the pieces are a bit bigger than the first batch.

Okay, I am doing the taste test. Hmmm, something interesting. Even though this is the one that had much more moisture in it (even after I added more whey powder and ground pecans); it is much dryer when chewing. They are also lighter in color than the other batch and the blocks appear to be much denser. I am still eating this block and it is difficult since it is so dry.

As soon as they cool, I will offer one of each batch to MonkeyButt and see what he says!

Michele in Tampa

[mugzeezma]

Everytime I make them they com out different. the last batch had ground walnuts, I think,,,:thinking and all this yellow oil , I assume from the nuts(???) oozed out. Mugzi still ate some and peed on the rest.
He pees on everything and everyone :shakehead except for me :Love_Icon

His palette has been spoiled by the kids Little Debbie Nutty Bars so why eat those? He found the chocolate bars for the S'mores and tried to drag the entire box off. It took 2 off us to get them away from him.

[mpetys]

Okay, they have cooled and I just gave MonkeyButt one of the first batch, the one that seemed the most normal. He grabbed it and is chowing down on it. Boy he must have missed his HHB's. I guess absence makes the heart (or tummy) grow fonder. There are times when I give him his blocks that he just ignores them or eats a bit and then leaves them. He does go back later in the day and eat them. I do keep track, when I clean his cage out, to see how much he is actually eating. Sometimes I will put them in the microwave for just a few seconds and it brings out the aroma and I guess he thinks he is getting a new block!

I am going to give him one of the second batch to see how he takes to it. May have to wait until morning to make it a fair comparison as he may have a belly full now.

Oh and mugzeezma, usually anything I make comes out different every time, even people food! Of course, the next time I make these, I think I will have the water amount memorized so if I get it right, it should come out differently! :jump I had to keep an eye on my husband at first to make sure he didn't slip MonkeyButt some crackers or bread. I think he knows I am pretty serious about trying to keep MonkeyButt on a healthy diet. We started keeping a few nuts on top of his cage. His cage has a 12" metal cabinet on top of it. Well, now when MonkeyButt comes out, he is determined that he is going to get up there and grab a nut. It is over 6 feet tall so I can't reach him up there. I would hate to think how he would be with chocolate!:rotfl

Michele in Tampa

[mpetys]

Ok, I just went and checked on MonkeyButt and he has demolished the first block. All I see are crumbs where he was eating. I thought, what the heck, I'll offer him the block from the second batch. I opened the door and held it out for him and he grabbed it and went to his food shelf where he is eating it. Maybe this is his way of telling me how neglectful I was to let him run out.

Michele in Tampa

[mpetys]

Hi Michele :wave123

According to USPS tracking, your blocks should be delivered with tomorrow's mail.

You could let the dough dry out a while in the fridge, then try rolling it. You can bake them wet, but they'll turn out real soft and crumbly. Should be okay though. :)

Thanks for the update on the delivery! I was pretty pitiful Saturday waiting for the mailman. We have a six foot chain link fence around the property and we leave the gate open during the week, during business hours for UPS and FedEx Deliveries. I was worried that since I got two orders from you this time that the package might not fit in the box and the mailman wouldn't be able to come to my door. So, I sat outside and waited. When the mail came, I met the mail lady at the mailbox and she handed me this pitiful handful of bills and magazines. I asked, "no packages" and she said, "no, not today". I must have looked pitiful because she said, "I'm sorry". :crazy

Michele in Tampa

[mpetys]

Carbs, almost none. Of course I've tried them.:D They ARE bland to a human's taste; to me, they taste like a dry, bland nut biscotti. For our taste, they'd need more salt/sugar, but then not so healthy. On the other hand, have you ever tasted a Mazuri block? Ewww! :D

No, I haven't tasted a Mazuri block and now I never will!:crazy I wonder how these blocks would be if I added some of the baking Splenda to add sweetness. I have never used the baking Splenda before so I don't know how good it does. I am talking about for me, not for MonkeyButt! Would be nice to have a healthy snack. Hmm, maybe add some veggies, some chili seasoning. I wonder if there is a vitamin supplement more suited to a humans needs that can be used in baking. Ok everyone, I am not nuts; but I do need to lose weight. My problem is not sweets or junk food. I could do without those. My vice is bread. I can tell when I go to the grocery store hungry. My cart has bagels, pita bread, rye bread, garlic bread etc. in it. Whereas I usually just buy loaf bread for my husbands lunch sandwiches.

When I was taste testing the blocks I made, while they were bland (no sugar/salt), I did find that they satisfied that desire to have a piece of hard bread to chew on. Okay, I better get off now before I sound too pitiful! :jump

Michele in Tampa

[momma2boo]

No, I haven't tasted a Mazuri block and now I never will!:crazy I wonder how these blocks would be if I added some of the baking Splenda to add sweetness. I have never used the baking Splenda before so I don't know how good it does. I am talking about for me, not for MonkeyButt! Would be nice to have a healthy snack. Hmm, maybe add some veggies, some chili seasoning. I wonder if there is a vitamin supplement more suited to a humans needs that can be used in baking. Ok everyone, I am not nuts; but I do need to lose weight. My problem is not sweets or junk food. I could do without those. My vice is bread. I can tell when I go to the grocery store hungry. My cart has bagels, pita bread, rye bread, garlic bread etc. in it. Whereas I usually just buy loaf bread for my husbands lunch sandwiches.

When I was taste testing the blocks I made, while they were bland (no sugar/salt), I did find that they satisfied that desire to have a piece of hard bread to chew on. Okay, I better get off now before I sound too pitiful! :jump

Michele in Tampa

Please don't use Splenda. I wouldn't consume it myself and neither would you if you only heard the things my husband had said about it. I would highly recommend staying away from all artificial sweeteners. For critters AND humans. Bad stuff ... really bad stuff. Unless, of course, chemicals is what you're lacking nutritionally :D

[mpetys]

Please don't use Splenda. I wouldn't consume it myself and neither would you if you only heard the things my husband had said about it. I would highly recommend staying away from all artificial sweeteners. For critters AND humans. Bad stuff ... really bad stuff. Unless, of course, chemicals is what you're lacking nutritionally :D

Geez, my husband is a beekeeper. Why didn't I think of honey. Or, I just bought some Agave Nectar. Found this info on the internet:

It is sweeter than sugar, and hence you need less if using it as a substitute in cooking or baking. Agave nectar is a newly created sweetener, having been developed during the 1990’s. It has the lowest glycemic index among all the natural sweeteners, and is suitable for diabetics.

Hmm, I may have to try it. I am still waiting for MonkeyButt to wake up to see how it takes to the blocks this morning. He has been keeping some weird hours lately. Sleeps in til 11 in the morning. He goes through spell where he gets up at 5 am and then it is 7am and now it is around 11 am. When I check on him, he is cuddled up with his stuffed elephant and is usually awake, just playing quietly in his hammock, loving on his elephant.

Michele in Tampa

[momma2boo]

Geez, my husband is a beekeeper. Why didn't I think of honey. Or, I just bought some Agave Nectar. Found this info on the internet:

It is sweeter than sugar, and hence you need less if using it as a substitute in cooking or baking. Agave nectar is a newly created sweetener, having been developed during the 1990’s. It has the lowest glycemic index among all the natural sweeteners, and is suitable for diabetics.

Hmm, I may have to try it. I am still waiting for MonkeyButt to wake up to see how it takes to the blocks this morning. He has been keeping some weird hours lately. Sleeps in til 11 in the morning. He goes through spell where he gets up at 5 am and then it is 7am and now it is around 11 am. When I check on him, he is cuddled up with his stuffed elephant and is usually awake, just playing quietly in his hammock, loving on his elephant.

Michele in Tampa

I love agave! I buy and use the raw one since I don't like anything too processed.

I love the thought of MonkeyButt playing quietly in his stuffed elephant. What a cuteness factor there is to that picture playing in my head!:D

[Fireweed]

Agave Nectar is the bomb. Light, dark...doesn't matter. It's all good. For cooking, in your coffee, in anything you'd put sugar or honey in/on.

Congrats on making your first (successful) batch of HHBs!! :alright.gif

[mpetys]

I love the thought of MonkeyButt playing quietly in his stuffed elephant. What a cuteness factor there is to that picture playing in my head!:D

Ok, got some pics, but he was not playing. He had gone back in his sleeping bag hammock under the covers and was snoozing. I woke him up! The first one he is under the covers with his elephant guarding. The second one he hears me and is waking up. The third one, he is stretching and yawning. And the fourth one he is up and ready to face the day. "What Mom? Me, a sleepyhead? I was just napping. I already ate two HHB's this morning!"

[Fireweed]

AH! AHHHHHHHHH!!! A YAWNING PICTURE!!!!!!!!! CUTEST THING!!!!!!! *faints*

[momma2boo]

Too cute!