Hi Friends! (putting this little note in here: I am experimenting with formatting so this post might be a little all over the place, excuse the mess that is my life)
Today I am sharing my favorite and go-to recipe for homemade dog treats. These are easy to make, they last a really long time and pups love them.
It is just 4 ingredients and the best part about this recipe is that you can make them into any shape or size you want and they will still be good. I have made them for all sorts of occasions for my puppers. One reason I always comeback to this one recipe is because some of my dogs are really picky with their treats and when I first made these, their owners raved about them!
What you’ll need:
Canned PURE Pumpkin You DO NOT want pumpkin pie filling. That is different and icky. I recommend stocking up during the holidays when these show up in the store and might be on sale but I have seen pure pumpkin on shelves now. Pumpkin has many benefits for dogs including good for their eyes, moisturizes their skin and coat, and helps with digestion¹.
Whole Wheat Flour I know this is a little controversial but these are treats and are/should not a huge part of your dog’s diet. Dogs shouldn’t have too much wheat and some doggies can have allergies to it.
Whole Oats/Rolled Oats (not instant) Oats are a good alternate carb for doggies instead of wheat and contain Vitamin B for a healthy coat and omega-6 for healthy skin².
Water Just some good old fashioned water.
*note about ingredients: If you can, I would splurge on the good quality, organic ingredients. Dogs tend to have sensitive tummies and while hoomans are okay with skippy peanut butter, your pupper might not be. When you pick up these things, make sure you’re reading what’s inside. You should avoid artificial sweeteners like xylitol and weird preservatives.
**disclaimer: I am not an expert, I just read and research a lot. Always check with your vet first and read the ingredients on what your giving your fur babies.
Lets Make It! Recipe is originally from The Midnight Baker
3 cups whole wheat flour 1 cup whole rolled oats 1 cup pure pumpkin 4 tbsp water (you might need more or less so I like to have a small cup of water near by)
Pulse the oats in a food processor. How fine you want to go is up to you but I find it easier to manage if I break up some of the bigger oats
(you can do the rest of this in a food processor but by hand is fine)
Mix your oats and flour together, then add in the pumpkin. Add in your water, a tablespoon at a time. If it is looking shaggy and too dry, that’s normal.
When it starts to come together, turn it out onto your work surface and start kneading. If you have some flour/oats not mixed in, don’t freak out, use it to flour the surface and it will get kneaded in. You want a nice and smooth consistency. If it’s too dry, add in a little bit of water and if it’s too sticky add some flour or some finely pulsed oats. It’s going to be a pretty big and thick dough.
*note: you want to knead it to make it smooth but to also get out any air pockets, air pockets will cause the cookies to rise/poof in the oven. That’s not terrible and the dogs will still eat it but you’re going for a flat cookie
Preheat your oven to 350°F. I waited until now to preheat because you are going to rolling and cutting for a while so it will be ready to go when you are.
When you have a nice smooth dough, start rolling it out. Since this is a huge chonk of dough, I like to work in batches. This is the fun (and exhausting) part! Roll out your dough to about 1/8 to 1/4th of an inch. I don’t measure, I just feel it to see if it’s thin enough. Once you have your desired thickness, go ahead and cut. Shapes are up to you, these hold their shape really well so cookie stamps work beautifully. Using different shapes is how I make these treats different for each holiday, but if that isn’t your style you can just stick to a bone shape or little circles. The original recipe says it makes about 36 bone shape cookies but that number depends on what you cut out. I ended up getting about 65 out of this batch.
Once your cookies are all cut, put them on your parchment lined baking sheet. These do not spread so you can place them closer than you would other cookies. Bake for 30-35 minutes. You are looking for the cookies to be hard and should slide right off the sheet. They should also be pale in color and if you touch it it should not be soft or bendy, if it is stick it back in for about 5-10 min. Once they are done, turn off the oven and leave them in there until the oven is completely cool. I leave mine in overnight to fully dry out. You want them dry because any moisture will shorten their shelf life and these can have a reeeeally long shelf life.
anything can be a cookie cutter including biscuit cutters and a ravioli cutter
Once your cookies are nice and cool, store them in an airtight container and they can last for at least a month in a cool spot. If I’m giving them out I like to put mine into little treat bags with the ingredients on the outside so their hoomans know what’s in them.
This was supposed to be a gif but it didn’t translate well
I hope your pups enjoy these treats! Remember these are treats and not to be used to substitute a meal. If you are curious about any of the ingredients and allergies, please check with your vet.
These treatos are pretty cronchy so tag me @CatMakesIt and #cronchcam so we can see all the cronchies! Or if you don’t make them, still tag me so I can see all the puppies!
Okay if you’ve stuck around this long, here is a super cute cookie trick! One thing that makes anything special is personalization. Using a bone cookie cutter, I go in with the back of a measuring spoon and spell out the dog’s name. By doing in the cutter, it helps the cookie keep its shape instead of squishing and spreading out of its shape. Like I said these cookies keep their shape so as long as you press had enough, the names will stay through baking.
Enjoy!
Footnotes 1. Dyck, Amy. “10 Health Benefits of Pumpkin for Dogs.” Homes Alive Pets, 28 Oct. 2016. 2. Anastasio, Alexandra. “Can Dogs Eat Oatmeal?” American Kennel Club, 30 Aug. 2018.
Homemade Doggo Cookies Hi Friends! (putting this little note in here: I am experimenting with formatting so this post might be a little all over the place, excuse the mess that is my life)
