CHRISTMAS is creeping closer, and if you are fur-crazy like me, you would want your pups to share in the Christmas fun. Making some festive treats for your furry friend is a great way to include them and make them feel extra special over the holiday season.
You might wonder if investing time in homemade dog treats is worth the effort, but it’s definitely a fun activity if you enjoy baking. There are also added benefits that go beyond treating your dog. It is great knowing exactly what goes into your dog’s treats and knowing what you bake or make at home contains none of the added preservatives and other harmful components that shop-bought treats contain. Baking your own allows you to adjust the portion size and making dog treats certainly fosters creative expression.
With the warm weather over December, I have included some tasty recipes that will help your pup cool down. Most of these are really simply and quick to make and your pup will love you for it.
So let’s look at some delicious recipes.
Photo by Mikkel Bendix from Pexels
Blueberry – bacon – pumpkin pupsicles
For these ones your will need a Popsicle mould.
Ingredients:
• Cooked Pumpkin
• Fresh blueberries
• Fried Bacon pieces
• Water
• Rawhide sticks
Method:
• Combine the pumpkin, bacon and water in the blender. Blend until smooth, some bacon bit deliciousness is ok too.
• Put three to four whole blueberries at the bottom of each Popsicle mould.
• Pour the mixture on top of the blueberries and tap the moulds lightly on the counter to remove any bubbles.
• Place one rawhide stick in each mould. If the sticks wont stand up, put the mixture in the freezer for a short time to firm the mixture, and then add the sticks.
Then simply pop them into the freezer for a couple of hours and pups your uncle.
Simply fresh pupsicles
For these ones your will need a Popsicle mould
Ingredients:
• Watermelon
• Raspberries
• Natural Greek yoghurt
• Rawhide sticks
Method
• Put a few seeded, peeled chunks of watermelon, a handful of raspberries and two or three table spoons of yoghurt into a small bowl.
• Blend them by hand with a fork to make a pink mix with a few small pieces of fruit for texture. • • • • • •Alternatively, use a blender to make a smoothie, or smoother mix if you prefer.
• Pour the mixture into the Popsicle mould.
• Place one rawhide stick in each mould. If the sticks wont stand up, put the mixture in the freezer for a short time to firm the mixture, and then add the sticks.
• Then simply pop them into the freezer for a couple of hours and serve poolside!
You can also substitute the watermelon and raspberries with apples and grated carrots, or even banana.
Frozen pumpkin treats
Ingredients:
• Pumpkin puree
• Plain yoghurt
• ½ cup peanut butter
Method:
• Blend all three ingredients until smooth.
• Spoon the mixture into ice cube trays.
• Freeze for 12 hours.
• Pop them out and place them into your dog’s bowl for a tasty cooling treat.
And then for the baker in you, here are a few incredibly simple dog biscuit recipes!
Image by Pixabay
Pumpkin Carrot Bites
Ingredients
• 3/4 cup pureed pumpkin
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 1/4 cup shredded carrots
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
Method:
• Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
• Stir pumpkin, egg, carrots and flour in a large bowl until moistened.
• Roll the batter into small balls and place on a baking sheet.
• Bake for 30 – 35 minutes.
• Let them cool down and serve.
Store these treats in your refrigerator for a longer shelf life.
Ginger and apple dog biscuits
Ingredients
• 1 cup brown rice flour
• 1/2 cup apple, finely diced
• 2/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 tsp fresh ginger (finely minced) or 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
Method
• Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
• Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
• Stir together until well combined. If necessary, thoroughly mix together with hands.
• Turn mixture out onto a floured, flat surface and roll out with a rolling pin to approximately two cm.
• Cut into desired shapes and place on a baking sheet coated with non-stick spray.
• Bake for 25 minutes, until golden brown.
• Let them cool down and serve with love.
Beefy biscuits
Ingredients
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup oats
• 1/2 cup flaxseed .The omega-3 fatty acids in the flaxseeds are better absorbed when ground first. While you can leave the flaxseed whole, the health benefits are much better when you take the time to grind the seeds.
• 1/2 to 1 cups beef broth
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
Method
• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
• In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, oats and flaxseed.
• Mix in 1/2 cup beef broth and peanut butter.
• Mix well, adding additional beef broth if necessary to bring the mixture together to a thick dough.
• Form into a ball and turn out on a lightly floured surface.
• Roll to about two cm thickness and cut out to desired shape.
• Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown, flipping halfway.
• Let them cool down and feed to your eager woof.
Photo by McDobbie Hu on Unsplash.
Remember to serve all of these treats in moderation, as they are so delicious woofels will probably want to have them all in one go.
That’s it for this week, from me, Vinkel and Koljander.
Paw five! Woof!
