Gluten-Free Ghoulishly Good Pumpkin Dog Treat Recipe

Amy Tokic
by Amy Tokic

Did you hear that? Was that a creaking oven door? Creepy paw steps walking toward me? OMD! It’s… it’s… Oh, wait… it’s just Oscar coming to see what I was making. That little goblin always knows when I’m baking, and this week, he’s in for a treat because I’m making my Ghoulishly Good Pumpkin Dog Treat Recipe! I’ve been experimenting with carob icing, since I wanted to make my treats to have a little more pizzazz and taste a little sweeter. Thanks to some advice from some great doggy bakers (Jodi from Kol’s Notes is a baking superstar and my treat-making mentor), I was able to come up with a mixture that hardened a few minutes after placing it on the cookie.


Gluten-Free Ghoulishly Good Pumpkin Dog Treat Recipe


Makes about 30 medium-sized cookies


Ingredients



2½ cups rice flour



2 eggs



½ cup pumpkin puree



2 tablespoons dry milk powder



½ teaspoon dried parsley



1 banana



1 teaspoon ginger


Icing (Optional)



½ cup carob chips



1 tablespoon vegetable oil


Instructions


  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
  2. Mash banana in a small bowl. Add mash to eggs and pumpkin in a large bowl until well combined
  3. Add in dry milk, ginger, and parsley. Stir until well combined.
  4. Gradually add in rice flour to wet mixture and stir until a stiff but moist mixture is formed.
  5. Roll out dough onto a floured surface to ¼ to ½-inch thickness. Cut into shapes with Halloween-themed cookie cutter.
  6. If you want to make eyes for your treat critter, use the end of a pencil (eraser) or pen (make sure to wash the end before using). Press the end into the unbaked treat twice to leave circular impressions.
  7. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool on racks. Store in airtight container and keep in fridge or freezer.


Icing directions


I used a double boiling to melt the icing. Carob is tricky – it doesn’t melt as smoothly as regular chocolate and tends to dry out. Fill the bottom pot of the double boiler with about 2 inches of water. Cover with the top pot and set to medium heat. Add carob chips and stir continuously for 5 to 10 minutes. Once it has melted, add the vegetable oil. Once you get the consistency desired, spoon the mixture into a piping bag and decorate your cookies. I just filled up the eye indentations I had made with the pencil, but you be as creative with your decorations as you want – there’s no wrong way to decorate a cookie!


I still have a long way to go with my carob decorating skills and had to make a lot of treats to practice on, but I’m excited to take it up a notch. And all those extra cookies when to Toronto Animal Services – I hope they like them as much as Oscar did!

Amy Tokic
Amy Tokic

Amy Tokic, Editor of PetGuide.com, is a passionate animal lover and proud pet parent of Oscar, a Shih Tzu/Chihuahua cross, and Zed, a Japanese Chin. Her love of animals began in kindergarten, when she brought her stuffed dog Snoopy into class with her every day. Now, she writes about her adventures in pet ownership and tirelessly researches products, news and health related issues she can share with other animal enthusiasts. In her free time, Amy loves perusing used book and record stores, obsessing over the latest pet products available and chasing squirrels with wild abandon (a habit attributed to spending too much time with her pooches).

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