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Once you get the hang of making this recipe, you can use variations on the ingredients for a custom treat. Try this recipe on your own birds and see if they don't appreciate the effort you put into making them a homemade treat. I'll bet that they will!
See Also
Bird Food and Treat Recipes
Holiday Bird Treat Recipes
Bird Treat Recipe - Peanut Butter Raisin Pockets
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups cornmeal
- 1 cup flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 egg (with crushed shells)
- 4 tablespoons butter (softened and preferably unsalted)
- 1 1/4 cups milk or buttermilk
- 1/2 cup mixed vegetables
- 1/4 cup corn
- 1/4 cup loose millet
- Non-stick cooking spray
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
Preparation
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees, and use the non-stick cooking spray to grease a baking dish or muffin pan, whichever you prefer.
In a large bowl, place the cornmeal, flour, baking soda, baking powder, and loose millet. Using a spoon, combine these dry ingredients until they are well mixed.
In a separate bowl, blend together the egg, milk or buttermilk, and softened butter. Once blended thoroughly, add the mixed vegetables and corn.
Use a large spoon to mix the egg, milk, butter, and vegetable mixture into the first bowl of dry ingredients. Blend these together until you achieve a fairly homogeneous mixture. The key is to make sure that there are no unmixed clumps of dry cornmeal mixture left in the bowl.
Take the greased pan or muffin tin and spoon the cornbread mixture into it. If you opt to use a muffin tin, only fill the cups 2/3 of the way full to avoid spillage during the baking process.
Bake for approximately 15 - 20 minutes, watching closely so that the top of the cornbread doesn't get too brown. (Some birds are pickier than others, but my own refuse to eat bread that is too brown!) A nice golden brown color should ensure both good taste and that the bread is done all the way through.
Once the cornbread is done, remove it from the oven and place it in a safe place to cool. NEVER serve fresh bread to your bird unless it has been properly cooled to room temperature throughout. To do so could cause crop burn, a serious and often fatal condition.
When the cornbread has cooled, cut it into portions sized appropriately for your pet bird. Any leftover cornbread can be frozen and then thawed and used as needed.
Variations
Once you are comfortable making this cornbread recipe, you can try using variations on some of the ingredients to create a custom treat for your pet bird that is especially suited to his or her tastes. Here are some ideas for healthy and delicious ingredient substitutions:- Instead of mixed vegetables, try using 1/2 cup of mixed chopped fruit.
- Instead of loose millet, try using 1/4 cup of dry oats or barley, or simply 1/4 cup of your bird's normal seed mix or pellets.
- Instead of corn, try using 1/4 cup of chopped jalapeno peppers. Many parrots appreciate a little spice in their diet!
- Sour Cream Corn Muffins - These savory corn muffins are a family favorite of mine and go great with just about any dinner selection.
- Basic One-Egg Cornbread - This simple but delicious cornbread is great with a meal or all by itself as a snack!
- "Skillet" Cornbread - According to many southerners, the only way to make real cornbread is in a big iron skillet. This recipe shows you how!
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