cover image The Dog Ate It: Cooking for Yourself and Your Four-Legged Friends

The Dog Ate It: Cooking for Yourself and Your Four-Legged Friends

Linda West Eckhardt, Barbara Bradley. Gotham Books, $15 (146pp) ISBN 978-1-59240-229-8

There are people who bake birthday cakes for their dogs; there are also people who don't stop at the cake, but throw birthday parties for their dogs, complete with hats, gifts, favors and multiple canine celebrants. This cookbook is for them, offering not only Bowser's Birthday Pawty Cake but Party Pup Cakes with Apple and Cheddar, Profiteroles sprinkled with powdered sugar, and an authentically caramelized Tarte Tatin. Simple Sushi Hand Rolls stuffed with ham or crabmeat are another elaborate way to feed a pet, as are Spaghetti Squares with Fresh Mozzarella and Tomato; Italian Tuna Roll; and Sausage Cheese Grits. These recipes, along with most of the others in this book, are entirely human-friendly, but some of them, like Gizzard Stew Made with Love are strictly for the dogs. And no matter how longingly he's staring at the brownies on the counter, the authors make clear that chocolate is an absolute no-no for dogs (as are coffee, avocado, macadamia nuts and onions). So instead, prepare Rover a nice serving of delicious Barking Biscotti and don't be afraid to snag a few for yourself.