© 2024 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY · WNPR
WPKT · WRLI-FM · WEDW-FM · Public Files Contact
ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Share Your Own Dinner with Your Dog

Dog with puppy eyes
Soggydan Benenovitch/flickr creative commons
Dog with puppy eyes

It's an ingenious recipe collection from a longtime dog lover and legendary cookbook editor, Judith Jones. Combing her two passions, Jones has written Love Me, Feed Me, her new book of tasty meals humans can make for themselves and share with their dogs.

Before Jones retired, she edited or lured some of the nation's top cookbook authors to Knopf publishing, including Julia Child, Jacques Pépin, James Beard, Joan Nathan, Edna Lewis, and LidiaBastianich. Through all those years and associations, Jones and her late husband Evan Jones had a series of beloved dogs. Only now, as Jones has become skilled at cooking for one, has she begun to see the advantages of cooking for two once again, this time for herself and her companion animal.

The recipes are "vetted" to include the right amounts of protein, carbs, fat and fiber to keep your pooch healthy, and to please human appetites; it also advises on what foods are dangerous for dogs.

Why cook meals humans and dogs can enthusiastically share? Jones says it's a joy if you love your animal; it assures that your dog is getting healthy ingredients; and a well-fed dog often means lower vet bills and lower overall food costs for you and your canine pal.

What's fascinating about Love Me, Feed Me is that the recipes are relatively simple and good, prepared daily by Jones for herself and her dog Mabon, an adorable white curly-haired Havanese straight out of central casting.

There is nothing wildly exotic in the recipe ingredient lists; think chicken, beef, pork, fish, butter, oil, vegetables, and various grains. If Jones suspects your pan sauce is best for you, not your dog, she will advise serving it to your pooch just before adding the sauce.

Best of all, it turns out that your dog is the most skilled dishwasher of all time when you've cooked something stubbornly glued to the pan; there are several hilarious photographs showing Mabon devotedly assisting with clean-up by licking the dishes already stacked in the dishwasher.

Join the conversation by email, on Twitter, or on Facebook.

GUEST:

  • Judith Jones is the author of Love Me, Feed Me: Sharing with Your Dog the Everyday Good Food You Cook and Enjoy.

MUSIC:

  • “Gne Gne,” Montefiori Cocktail
  • “Do You Feel Loved,” U2
  • “Demolition Man,” The Police
  • “Life in Technicolor,” Coldplay

Lori Mack and Jonathan McNicol contributed to this show.

For more than 25 years, the two-time Peabody Award-winning Faith Middleton Show has been widely recognized for fostering insightful, thought-provoking conversation. Faith Middleton offers her listeners some of the world's most fascinating people and subjects. The show has been inducted into the Connecticut Magazine Hall of Fame as "Best Local Talk Show".

Stand up for civility

This news story is funded in large part by Connecticut Public’s Members — listeners, viewers, and readers like you who value fact-based journalism and trustworthy information.

We hope their support inspires you to donate so that we can continue telling stories that inform, educate, and inspire you and your neighbors. As a community-supported public media service, Connecticut Public has relied on donor support for more than 50 years.

Your donation today will allow us to continue this work on your behalf. Give today at any amount and join the 50,000 members who are building a better—and more civil—Connecticut to live, work, and play.

Related Content