The Kichten


Here are some of the favorite dishes served at the 'Keet Kafe. They are good for budgies and almost all parrots.

Hanging Treat

Take some peanut butter. Spread it on a pine cone. Roll the pine cone in your birds food mix. Hang using a twisty tie. Then hang from the bird cage..!

Summer Treat

This is a very simple recipe that requires no cooking!

Ingredients:

Fruit juice(Depends on which fruit your bird likes)
Apples, Mango, Pear, etc.(your Birds' FAV Fruits)
Carrot (OPT)

Procedure:

Freeze the fruit juice. In the mean time, cut the fruits into small pieces. Take out the fruit juice when it is 70% frozen. Put the fruits into the juice. (There should be more fruits than juice). Serve. Note: Avoid putting too much mango as it may be 'heaty'.

Mineral Blocks - chalky kind



Ingredients: equal parts of,
Plaster of Paris (available at craft shops or Pharmacy)
Calcium Carbonate ( my vet got this for me)
Garden lime

Mix these together with enough water to make mixture similar to pouring custard (don't have it too wet). Pour into containers/moulds and add a piece of wire shaped like a U. Have about 2" protruding from the top, this is used to attach the block to something in the aviary. For moulds you can use :- Plastic cups, muffin tins, empty fast food containers. Allow to dry before removing from the mould.

You can also add your own vitamin or minerals or maybe a little grit to this mix. Note : the calcium MUST be "calcium carbonate".

BIRDIE BREAD RECIPE



Ingredients:
2 Cups finely ground pellets
1 Very ripe banana
1/3 Cup wheat germ oil
1/3 Cup vegetable oil
6 Large eggs
2 Heaping tablespoons of canned pumpkin
1 Heaping tablespoon of applesauce 1 Cup of mixed vegetables
1 Cup of cooked or canned pinto beans
1 Cup boiled brown rice
2 Cups corn meal
4 Tablespoons baking powder
1 Teaspoon Spirulina

Mix the first five ingredients in a food processor until you have a fine blend. Add the next two ingredients and continue to process. Pour entire mixture into a large bowl and add the vegetables, beans, rice, corn meal and baking powder, Spirulina and stir. The mix should be the consistency of cornbread. If it's too dry, add the liquid from the pinto beans. If there isn't enough liquid add water. When you have the desired consistency pour into a 13x9 inch baking pan.

Bake the bread at 325 degrees for about 40 minutes or until done. To test your bread insert a toothpick in the middle of the pan. If it comes out clean the bread is ready. Make several pans at once so you can freeze the loaves and use them as needed. Sprinkle vitamins on the bread and crumble it before serving. Good vitamins to sprinkle are: Wheat Grass powder.!

Mineral Block



Ingredients:
2 parts Plaster of Paris
5 parts Garden Lime
4 parts Bonemeal
1 part mineral supplement for birds

Mix in enough water to make a smooth gravy. Pour into paper cups the size you want. You can also use cute molds and add some food coloring to make pretty. Insert a U shaped wire (small birds) or the bolt and drop washer of a diameter to cover most of the cup size (harder for them to break it off the bolt with big beaks..). Let cure for several days depending on size. When totally dry you may drill hole in them and hang on toys etc.

HEALTHY SEED BELLS



Materials
small terra-cotta pots
microwave-safe plastic wrap or plastic oven bag
length of firm wire (coat-hanger type is fine)
birdseed of your choice (measure it dry in your chosen pots to gauge amount needed)
two egg whites per cup of birdseed (or thereabouts)

Beat egg whites until white and fluffy but still liquid - you're not making a meringue. Prepare pots by lining them with microwave-safe wrap or oven bag. Bend the end of the wire that goes into the seed bell into a closed loop (so that birds and/or leg rings can't get caught on it when most of the bell has been eaten).

Mix beaten egg whites and bird seed in a bowl until all seed is coated, then spoon the mix into the prepared pots, patting it down firmly. Push the uncoiled end of the wire through center of mix in pot then out of the drainage hole until looped end rests flat on top of mixture, then push loop slightly into mixture.

Place on an oven shelf set high enough to allow wire to hang free. Cook for approximately 60 - 90 minutes in a very cool oven or longer if pots are larger size. The important thing is not to burn the mixture and slow cooking is needed to set it firmly. Cooked bells will slip easily from pots, peel away the plastic wrap while they're still warm but don't handle the wire until it has cooled. Using a pair of pliers, twist exposed wire end to form a hook for hanging in the aviary.

Handy tip - Sometimes if you use large seeds in your mixture, the widest part of the bell which is exposed during cooking will become slightly crumbly. This only happens for a centimeter or two, but if they are to be given away, and you want a less 'rustic' appearance, just spoon the mixture into the pot as usual, but mix another beaten egg white with seeds of last few centimeters and cook as instructed above. This extra 'adhesive' keeps the top layer very firm.

BIRDIE BARS



INGREDIENTS:
3 ounces uncooked quick oats
3 ounces TOTAL other cereals:
- Shredded wheat crumbled
- Grapenut cereal
1 cup evaporated skim milk
1 cup applesauce (no sugar added)
1/2 cup reduced calories margarine, melted
1 cup TOTAL of the following mix:
- Chopped nuts (unsalted)
- Raisins, dates, dried fruit
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 F. In large bowl, combine cereals; add other ingredients and mix well. Spray 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking pan with nonstick spray. Bake for 30 minutes (until tester inserted in center comes out clean).

Remove from pan and let cool on rack. Cut into 16 bars. Wrap each bar in plastic and freeze. Break one bar in pieces appropriate to bird size! This recipe is good for people too!

BEAN SOUP



- 1 package bean soup
- 1 bag frozen corn
- 1 cup raw brown rice

Soak beans overnight. Add rice, cook for 1 hour or until done. Add corn 50 minutes after you started beans cooking. Drain water and serve. Store excess in leakproof containers. May be frozen in 3 day serving sized containers, and thawed before use.


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