I went to visit my parents in Florida for a week in August and discovered something truly amazing about my father. My dad, a retired career Navy man who spent my entire life either on deployment or working very hard, cooks. Not only does he cook, but he bakes, too.

And what does he bake? Well, my mom tells me he's been known to bake a cobbler or a cake on occasion, which baffles me. I remember growing up and him not making anything more complicated than tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches or -- my favorite -- egg in the nest (you know, egg cooked in the middle of a piece of bread).

But what surprised me the most is that he makes his own dog biscuits for his two miniature schnauzers. I laughed at him at first, I'll admit. Why make your own dog treats when you can buy a whole bag of them in the pet store for not that much money?

And then I saw the way his two dogs -- and my own miniature schnauzer -- responded when he made the treats. Not only were the three dogs stalking him in the kitchen until they'd cooled, but I've never seen my dog inhale a treat so quickly.

And they're not that hard to make.

So now, I've joined the ranks of people making their own dog treats. I made him copy the two recipes he uses -- I never would have imagined swapping recipes with my dad -- and I found one of my own. Two recipes are adapted from Rachel Ray recipes my father found somewhere. The third is one I found online.

And every time I make a batch of treats, my Sally anxiously hovers in the kitchen until she can get her paws on one.

Do you make your own dog treats? Send me an e-mail at sbsarino@gmail.com. Not only am I interested in knowing how you make your treats, but I'd like to do another column on this in the future. We may not be facing the dog food scare of a year ago, but I must admit it's still nice to know exactly what goes into those treats.

Crunchy cheddar oat snacks

These are from the Web site Culinary in the Country, www.desertculinary.blogspot.com.

1 cup rolled oats

1 cup boiling water

5 tablespoons butter, softened

3/4 cup cornmeal

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons instant chicken bullion

1/2 cup milk

4 ounces shredded white cheddar cheese

1 large egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole-wheat flour, plus additional for kneading

Preheat oven to 325

In a large bowl, stir together oats, water and butter, cover and set aside for 10 minutes. Add cornmeal, sugar, bullion, milk, cheese and egg, stir well to combine. Add all-purpose flour and mix until combined. Add whole-wheat flour, stirring to form a stiff dough.

Scoop the dough onto a floured surface and knead, adding additional whole-wheat flour, until the dough is smooth and no longer sticky. Roll out the dough to a thickness of about 1/4". Cut out as many pieces as you can with your cutters and place onto parchment-lined baking sheet. Pull the scraps together, re-roll dough and continue cutting out shapes until the dough has been used up.

Bake, rotating sheets halfway through, until browned, about 30 to 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer the dog treats to a wire rack to cool completely.

Olive oil and bacon treats

2 packages real bacon bits

3 1/2 c. whole wheat flour

1/4 c. beef broth

1 c. corn meal

3/4 c. extra-virgin olive oil

1 1/3 c. warm water

In a large bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal and bacon bits. In a large measuring cup, stir together 1 1/3 c. warm water and the broth and pour into dry ingredients. Add the olive oil and stir together to form a loose dough. Knead on a work surface until smooth.

Roll out the dough to about 1/8-inch thick, and then cut into 1-inch squares.

Bake 12 minutes, flip, and then bake 12 more minutes. Let cool completely.

Peanut butter dog treats

2 c. whole wheat flour

1 Tbsp. baking powder

2 pinches cinnamon

1 c. peanut butter

1 c. milk

Combine whole wheat flour, baking powder and cinnamon in large bowl. In medium bowl, microwave peanut butter for 15 seconds to soften, then combine with milk. Stir peanut butter mixture into dry ingredients.

After combined, roll out the dough to about 1/8-inch thick. Either cut out with very small cookie cutters (which is what I do) or cut into 1" squares (like my dad).

Bake 5-6 minutes, flip, and bake 5-6 minutes more.

Cool completely before feeding your canine friend.

Have a recipe you want to share? E-mail Shannon Baylis Sarino at sbsarino@gmail.com.

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