The Christmas season is often full of indulgence. With Christmas parties, family get-togethers and tasty edible gifts, I’d say most of us get our fair share of holiday treats. So why not allow our four-legged friends a little indulgence as well?
I spent this past Saturday at my parents house baking and decorating cookies with my mom, sister, niece and nephew. This has become a tradition for us over the past several years, and one I dearly look forward to. As I was driving there, it hit me that it would be so cute to bake some Christmas cookies for Tucker.
The fact that he was out of dog treats, and Josh had been giving him organic tortilla chips as his treat for taking care of business, gave a little prompting as well. Oops.
I have to admit, the warm sweet potato puree, mixed with peanut butter and cinnamon smelled pretty good, and Tucker was right below my feet the whole time, staring up at me with those big brown eyes.
We couldn’t help but encourage him, you know, speaking in a high-pitched, excited tone that let him know he was likely going to be eating these little Christmas cookies. And for once, his patience by the warm oven paid off and the goodies inside were for him!
We let him have one shortly after they came out of the oven, as I said, he was completely out of treats. But I’m sticking the others back for Christmas! My parents just got a sweet little dog and my sister has two small ones, I can’t wait to wrap these up in cellophane with a pretty ribbon to stick under the tree.
If you are looking for the perfect puppy present, give this one a try! I took a couple to the pups at work and they were a hit! In fact, one of the guys even gave it a try! I wouldn’t necessarily recommend eating them yourself, but your pet will definitely thank you!
Homemade Holiday Dog Treats
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh sweet potato puree
- 1 eggs
- 1/2 cup oats
- 3 cups whole wheat flour
- 3 Tbsp of all natural peanut butter
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 salt optional, I didn't use
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Peel and cube two medium sweet potatoes and bring to a boil in pot of water. Reduce to low and simmer approximately 15-20 minutes or until soft. Drain cooked potatoes and puree using blender or food processor.
- In small bowl, stir together the flour, oats, and cinnamon.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the egg, sweet potato and peanut butter until combined. Stir wet ingredients into dry.
- Pour onto a floured surface and roll dough out to 1/4 - 3/8 thick. Cut out using Christmas cookie cutter. The dough will be a little sticky, dust your hands and the rolling pin with a little flour to help!
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until golden brown.
- Place on cooling racks and let cool thoroughly. They will harden as they cool.
Notes
Do not use a pumpkin spice blend or anything that may contain nutmeg as it is toxic to dogs, even small amounts.
I used fairly small cookie cutters and got 45 treats! Your cookie cutter size will determine your quantity.
Recipe adapted from My Baking Addiction.
