Homemade Frozen Dog Treats: Pupsicles!

When my dog Oscar hears me getting ice from the freezer, he comes running – even if he was in a doggie coma. I like to give him ice cubes to munch on, especially when it’s hot outside. A few months ago I tried and succeeded in making him some frozen treats that he adores. And now, when we get some ice cream from the little soft serve joint across the street, he can feel like he gets some too!

Here’s how you can make your own doggy pupsicles:

In a large bowl, add two (2) 6 ounce containers of plain yogurt. I use Dannon All Natural. Add in 2 tablespoons of honey, 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, and 1/3 cup applesauce. (I use one of the Mott’s Original 4 oz. snack size containers.) *To get the honey and the peanut butter off the measuring spoon more easily, just put a thin coat of olive oil on the spoon first.

Combine well with a spoon.

Divide up the mixture evenly among paper or plastic cups and freeze. The amount for each cup will depend on your dog’s size and how much you want him or her to have. For small dogs you can use an ice cube tray for something more bite-sized. I have a medium to large size dog and I fill an 8 oz. cup a little less than halfway. I get about 6 servings from this recipe that way. (That little bit of whining or barking is their way of offering to lick the mixing bowl for you. 🙂 )

Freeze for at least 3-4 hours. When you are ready to serve your drooling pooch, just place the outside of the cup under the faucet with some warm water to release the frozen treat from the cup. (If you are using an ice cube tray, just sit the bottom of the tray in some warm water to loosen the treats.) If you want, you can remove all the treats and individually wrap them to go back into the freezer.

My dog has always had a sensitive stomach and these treats don’t upset his tummy. You can substitute mashed bananas for the applesauce if your dog likes them. Mine does not and makes that very clear. Because of these tummy troubles I haven’t tried other substitutions yet, but feel free to get creative if you don’t have that issue. You can also try my homemade baked dog treats that get Oscar’s Seal of Pupproval.

Frozen Dog Treats (aka Pupsicles) Recipe:
Ingredients:
2 containers (6 oz. each) plain yogurt
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1/3 cup regular applesauce (or a 4 oz. snack size portion)

Instructions:
Stir together all ingredients in a mixing bowl with a spoon until well combined. Divide mixture into small paper or plastic cups (or ice cube trays for bite-sized treats) and freeze for about 3-4 hours. Loosen treat by holding cup under warm water from the faucet and serve.

(Sometimes he appreciates a little help getting started to avoid brain freeze!)

~Micha

Homemade Dog Treats

When we got our dog Oscar as a puppy about a year ago, the idea of making him homemade doggie treats seemed like a fun idea. It turns out he has a very sensitive stomach and most of the treats, biscuits, and bones on the market don’t agree with him. I decided to start researching some recipes sooner rather than later. What I found was more than I expected! I had to be careful, though, so I took the basic ingredients and changed a few things. {Oscar loves apples and peanut butter so they were definitely going in there!}

Here’s the adapted recipe:
2 tablespoons plain applesauce (3 tablespoons if you want softer treats)
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 egg
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup rolled oats

See? Nothing fancy. If your dog likes bananas you can substitute a mashed ripe banana for the applesauce. Mine does not. He makes that clear! Add some honey if you want a little more sweetness. Also, you don’t need a special dog bone cookie cutter. Just use any old cutter you happen to have…or use a pizza cutter and slice the dough into pieces that are suitable for your dog’s size. My cookie cutter was about 3 inches wide.

Okay, let’s get baking! Grab a medium/large mixing bowl and a spoon to mix the ingredients. To the bowl, add the applesauce, peanut butter and 1 egg. Combine until blended well.

After mixing first three ingredients together, add the flour, baking powder and rolled oats.
Mix well. At this point I like to get my hands in there and help it out.

When all of the ingredients have been combined, form a ball from the dough and place it on some wax paper for rolling. If you don’t have any wax paper, you can use some wheat flour and dust your work surface.

Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to about 1/4″ thick. {Pick it up and turn it a few times as you roll.} Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. If you don’t have parchment paper, lightly grease the baking sheet so they don’t stick. Using your cookie cutter, cut out your treats and place them on the baking sheet. I get about 12-14 treats using my bone cookie cutter.

{Note: I use parchment paper for all my baking. It keeps the goodies from sticking to the pan, I don’t have to grease the pan, and it’s easy peasy when it comes time to clean up. Try it if you have never used it!}

Bake the treats at 325 degrees for about 15-20 minutes. The time will depend on how thick you rolled your dough. Mine took closer to 20 minutes. As soon as you see them get golden brown on the edges, they are done. Remove from oven, cool in pan for 10 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

They get Oscar’s Seal of Pupproval! (I just made that up as I was typing…)

I love giving these to Oscar and knowing exactly what is in them! Who knows what’s really in the treats you buy off the shelf? Give them a try!
~Micha