My meatballs bring all the dogs to the yard.

More specifically the kitchen, but, that does not fit the song as well.

Confession – as much as I love a cheese stick for high value treats, Jasper is a total meat dog. I am not a huge meat eater, and hot dogs have a lot of stuff in them, so, I have been experimenting with different treats. He loves chicken but it shreds in my hands, and makes a mess on the floor. He will happily eat steak, but, that is not budget friendly. Liver is harder to prep and gets soft in my hand. So I have been buying pre-made meatballs for Jasper for agility class lately.

They are tempting to him, easy to defrost, and store, and because they are frozen they do not spoil on me before I use them. But, I do not love all the ingredients (onion powder), and they are a little fattier then I like. So, today I decided to make my own. Judging from how his head lifted and his nose hit the air as they came out of the oven, and how quickly Tabby came running from upstairs when I brought one to the living room for sampling, I think they are a hit.

I also like how they break up easily without being too crumbly, although, next time I might add some shredded mozzarella cheese to help them bind up even more.

Full confession, I was learned to cook from my Armenian grandmother, and mother, so, until it feels right is a common measurement in my house. I did my best to track amounts though.

• 1 lb. lean ground beef (96%)
• 1 lb ground turkey (85%)
• 1 large egg
• 4 Tbs. canned pumpkin
• 3 Tbs. grated or shaved parmesan
• 1 Tbs. Nutritional yeast (confession, I am trying to use it up, you can ommit it!)

First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees farenehit. Then put the ground beef and ground turkey in the bowl, followed by the egg. Add the canned pumpkin, grated parmesan, the nutritional yeast (if you are adding it) and then mix (I did it by hand, but, you can use a spatula). If you sing ‘my meatballs bring all the dogs to the yard’ at this stage, it adds some extra love.

Prepare your baking tray buy lining it with foil, and if you prefer, placing a baking rack on the tray too (I did not do this but I wish I had). Shape the meatballs so they are about 2 inches in diameter (should make about 15) and place the meatballs on the rack/tray. You can make them smaller, or larger, but you need to adjust your baking time. I made them large planning to defrost a few at a time and break them up as needed.

Place them in the oven and bake for 25 minutes, or until the internal temperature is 165 degrees farenheit.

Once they cool, store them in the freezer and take them out as needed. If you forget to take them out the night before, you can pop them in the microwave for a quick defrost.

Like I said, if you want them to be less crumbly, you can add some shredded mozarella cheese to the recipe. Play with it, make it your own, and let me know how your pups like them!