Barking Good Baking: 3 of our favorite homemade dog treat recipes

Are you a DIY-er with a passion for your pets? ... SAME! Making home made dog biscuits is surprisingly easy and fun plus it’s a DIY activity that you can get the whole family involved in. Knowing the ingredients of what your dog eats on a daily basis (including treats) is a great way to monitor their health and easily identify any food allergies that they may suffer from! We’ve put together a list of 3 of our favorite homemade, healthy biscuit recipes. Feel free to get creative with your cookie shape. Happy Baking!

Grain Free

If you have a dog that eats a grain free diet, feeding them grain free treats is a great way to keep their belly’s happy and avoid any adverse reactions to grains. We got this recipe from our friends at Simplyquinoa.com

 What you’ll need:

·       1 medium banana

·       2 large eggs

·       1/2 cup peanut butter (dog safe and free of xylitol)

·       1 cup chickpea flour

·       1/2 cup coconut flour

·       1/4 teaspoon baking soda

·       Cookie Cutters

 How you’ll do it:

1.     Preheat the oven to 350ºF. 

2.     In a large bowl, mash the banana as smooth as possible. Beat in eggs until fully incorporated, then beat in peanut butter. Once smooth, add the chickpea flour, coconut flour and baking soda, and start to fold together with a spatula.

3.     It will likely be tough to get everything incorporated with just a spatula, so switch to using your hands to finish kneading the dough. Once all the flour has been folded into the dough, transfer it to a flat, parchment lined surface and roll it out to 1/4" thick. You might have to sprinkle with a little flour if the rolling pin starts to stick.

4.     Cut the dough into whatever shapes you want (I used this dog bone cookie cutter) and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 14 minutes until the treats are golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool completely before serving to your doggie (or packing up as a gift).

5.     Keep for at least 7 days in a sealed container!

 Few Ingredients and Frozen

Looking for a SUPER simple, easy treat to feed your pup on a hot day? Try these Frozen peanut butter and yogurt dog treats courtesy of Ceasersway.com

What you’ll need:

·       32oz of vanilla yogurt (try something low in fat and sugar)

·       1 cup peanut butter (dog safe and free of xylitol)

·       cupcake papers

How you’ll do it:

1.     Melt the peanut butter in a microwave safe bowl

2.     Combine the yogurt and melted peanut butter

3.     Pour the mix into cupcake papers

4.     Place in freezer until frozen and store in freezer to keep frozen

Sweet Potato

Sweet potatoes are naturally sweet and delicious. Dog’s love them and they make a great key ingredient in homemade dog treats. Check out this recipe from Allrecipes.com

What you’ll need:

·       1 sweet potato

·       2 ½ cups of whole wheat flour

·       ¼ cup of unsweetened apple sauce

·       2 eggs

·       Cookie Cutters 

How you’ll do it:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Prick sweet potato several times with a fork.
2. Heat sweet potato in a microwave on high until tender, about 6 minutes. Cut potato in half and scoop flesh out of the skin into a bowl; discard skin. Mash potato with a fork or potato masher and transfer about 1 cup to a large bowl. Save any remaining sweet potato for another use.
3. Mix whole wheat flour, applesauce, and eggs in the large bowl with the sweet potato until a dough forms. Turn dough out on a well-floured surface and roll dough to about 1/2-inch thick. Cut out shapes using a cookie cutter or cut dough into strips with a pizza cutter. Arrange cookies on an ungreased baking sheet.
4. Bake until crisp, 35 to 45 minutes. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.

Your pups are sure to love your homemade treats and you get the added value of peace of mind from knowing exactly what your dog is eating!