Cooking for Dogs: Roasted Broccoli

We tried something new at Casa de Kolchak this week for our Cooking for Dogs article.

Everyone at our house, pups and people alike, are big broccoli fans. Whether it’s raw or cooked, this tasty vegetable is often on the menu. Broccoli is legit good for you. It’s a rich source of vitamin C, plus its chock full of vitamin A, beta carotene, B vitamins especially B3 and B5, folic acid, phosphorus, potassium, iron, chromium, which is an easily absorbed form of calcium, zinc and lots of fiber.

You’d think that since we enjoy it so much, that we’d know all the best ways to cook it right?
Apparently not. For some reason, we always default to what we know best: plain steamed broccoli; it’s delicious, nutritious and to be completely honest, just a tad boring. As much as we love it, it’s time to branch out and try new things.
We had heard great things about roasted broccoli.

It did not disappoint! We made it one time and we are hooked. This is going to become a favourite at our house, for sure. Crisp and flavourful, roast broccoli is a great way to change up your everyday veggies with something new and different. It is super easy to make and you can spice it so many different ways to make it a different tasty treat every time.

Roasted Broccoli done 6 ways

You’re going to need:
2 heads of fresh broccoli
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Your flavouring of choice:
• Diced, roast garlic and a squeeze of lemon
• Cumin, coriander & chili flakes
• Rosemary, thyme & balsamic vinegar
• Garam Marsala
• Parmesan Cheese & Basil
• Chinese 5 spice & soy sauce

Broccoli will roast best if it is completely dry, so we definitely recommend washing your broccoli well in advance of dinner and letting it dry before you get started.

Preheat oven to 425F and place the cookie sheet in the oven to heat.
Chop the broccoli into large florets and toss with olive oil. If desired, finely chop garlic to roast and use as seasoning. Place broccoli on the cookie sheet and roast for 20-25 minutes, until tender, crisp and some of the floret have browned around the edges.
Remove from oven and set aside a few florets for your dog to enjoy. The dogs at Casa de Kolchak are wild over this tasty treat! Take the remaining broccoli florets, sprinkle with salt, pepper and the seasoning mix of your choosing. Enjoy while the broccoli is still hot and fresh.
We love this treat because it has the opportunity to be spiced with so many great combinations.

What would you flavour your roast broccoli with?

Kol’s Note: While broccoli is safe to feed your dog, it’s good to remember that this is meant to be a treat only. Broccoli should never exceed 10% of a dog’s daily food intake, as at this high dose it is known to cause stomach upset. Higher doses of 25% or more have been known to be fatal. Treat your dog right! As with everything, moderation is the key.

A Note from Two Little Cavaliers: Not every dog is the same some of these seasonings will appeal to your dog while others will not. The Parmesan Basil will probably go over really well in any household. The garlic and lemon would be a favorite in our house (however when using garlic for your dog make sure that it is well cooked and used in moderation as raw garlic can be a problem) you could even squeeze the lemon on after it is cooked to get the maximum benefits for both you and your dog. Rosemary is fine for dogs but should be kept away from cats. As for the Chili Flakes some dogs enjoy a treat of food that is spicy others are not interested. The one with soy sauce is not something you would want to prepare for your dog they do not need the sodium content if however you prepared it for yourself and gave your dog a very tiny bite that would be ok (Davinia and Indiana do occasionally get to share a piece of celery or string bean or sometimes even a small piece of broccoli if I am having Chinese.)

Meet our Cooking for Dogs Contributor Jodi and her dogs Kolchak and Felix

Jodi is a canine nutrition and small animal naturopathy student hailing from beautiful Vancouver, BC. (That’s in Canada, eh?) She loves to experiment in the kitchen, creating tasty (and healthy) treats for her two dogs, Felix & Kolchak and the rest of her family. Jodi’s blog, Kol’s Notes follows the antics of the irrepressible Kolchak as he celebrates good food, good friends and the good life.