Making your very own dog biscuits is fun and only requires a little effort. They make great presents for friends with any breed of dog and they are healthy to boot. With all that parsely your dog's breath will smell just great and there's a stack of Vitamin C and iron there as well!

Step 1 Preheat the oven to 180C. Lightly grease 2 baking sheets or put baking paper on them. In a small bowl mix the parsley, carrots, cheese and oil. In another bowl, stir together the flour, bran and baking powder. Add the parsley mixture and stir well. Gradually add 1/2 cup water. Mix well, adding more water if needed to make the dough moist. Knead for 1 minute on a floured surface.

Step 2 Roll the dough to 1cm thickness. Using a small dog-bone cookie cutter, or even a glass if you don't have cookie cutters, cut as many shapes as you can, re-rolling the scraps. Put them on the baking sheets. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until biscuits have browned. Cool on a rack. The biscuits will harden as they cool. Store in an airtight (and dogproof) container for up to two months.

Shopping: bone-shaped cookie cutters are available from: www.bakerysugarcraft.com.au or www.icedaffair.com.au

Reader, Anita Bergmans writes: "I just wanted to drop you a line to say thanks for the great recipe. I've been baking dog biscuits for some time and it had never occurred to me to include parsley and grated carrot in the mix. My Siberian Husky Jack is crazy about them. The second time I made them I added a little crushed garlic and substituted stock for the water and Jack is loving them!"

Source:Better Homes and Gardens, November 2005