Am I too late to the grain free dog treat recipe pumpkin spice party?
Oops.
Well, I’m not waiting until next year to bring you these homemade pumpkin dog treats. I’m helping you save space in your pantry. There’s an extra can of pumpkin puree in there somewhere, isn’t there?
With Sora’s surgery and cancer treatment taking up so much of our time, energy, and emotion, tending to the blog fell off the radar over the past couple of months.
Luckily, dogs have no idea that the pumpkin spice craze is seasonal and they’ll enjoy these grain free dog treats any time of the year. Trust me, dogs will love these.
Days before Sora was to have her surgery, I reached out to my friend Hannah, and asked for her expert advice on selecting Pet Recovery Collar. She replied right away and helped me select a few options that would arrive in time for Sora’s surgery. With 4 weeks in a cone, there was no way we were going to subject her to the plastic Cone of Shame.
I was super grateful for her help and wanted to send a little gift for her own dogs, Maggie and Orbit (they have a fantastic Instagram account, follow along if you don’t already).
Maggie has been battling some sort of allergies, so I wanted to create a treat that was not only vegan, but also grain-free to reduce the risk of a reaction for her.
Most of us have probably given our dogs pumpkin filling when our pups come down with tummy issues. I’ve also since learned that pumpkin is high in Vitamins A and C, both of which are super important for dogs recovering from cancer treatment, like chemotherapy. They also aid in vision health and boost the immune system, respectively.
In addition to the benefits from pumpkin, these homemade dog biscuits are also packed with a host of other goodies like:
- Chickpea flour, an easily digestible protein high in folic acid, potassium, and fiber, and a good source of iron, magnesium, copper, vitamin B6, and calcium, among others. You can also use Oat flour as an alternative.
- Coconut flour, which is high in fiber, protein and lauric acid, which boosts the immune system response.
- Low amounts of high-quality Blackstrap molasses contain calcium to help fight osteoperosis, vitamin B6 for digestion of fats, and chromium, which may reduce the risk of diabetes.
Sora went crazy for these homemade pumpkin dog cookies! She wasn’t too thrilled that I gave most of them away to Maggie and Orbit, but did I save her several. Yes, she has to share with her furry friends.
Grain Free Dog Treat Recipe: Homemade Pumpkin Dog Cookies
These homemade vegan and grain-free pumpkin dog treats are packed with tons of healthy ingredients like chickpea flour, coconut flour, coconut oil, and molasses. You may even want to eat them yourself!
- 1 flax egg (1T ground flax seed + 3T water)
- ¼ cup Blackstrap molasses
- ½ cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 1 T coconut oil (melted)
- ¼ cup of water
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 ½ cups chickpea flour
- ½ cup coconut flour
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp baking powder
-
Preheat oven to 325°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk together the ground flaxseed and water and set aside to gel for 10 minutes while you get the remaining ingredients together.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flax egg, molasses, pumpkin puree, coconut oil, water, and cinnamon until combined.
- Add the remaining ingredients and stir together until a soft dough forms.
- Using a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop, place balls onto the cookie sheet and flatten slightly with a fork.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until hard like a biscuit, but not burnt.*
- Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.
* If the cookies are starting to brown too much, turn the oven temperature off and leave the cookies in the oven to continue cooking at a lower temperature and check on them frequently. If they are on their way to burning, take them out of the oven, but leave on the cookie sheet to continue cooking a bit longer.
PIN FOR LATER!
Arnie
Monday 14th of September 2020
Hello fellow fur buddy lover! I am,getting ready to,mske a batch of the biscuits off of ykur grest sounding recipe. I waa wondering if yku had tried freezing unbaked, that way they could be baked fresher. I bake a lot of small batch items in,my,airfryer, and I sn thinking rmthus would work. Thank you for the recipe, and please let me know if you feel this would work. I di my own chickpea flkur, I sprout my chickpeaa first, I feel there are more good nutrients that way! Stay safe and heslthy!Arnie
Mary
Monday 15th of June 2020
Can I add salmon to this recipe?
Jen Sotolongo
Tuesday 16th of June 2020
I haven't put salmon in my dog's baked goods. My guess it that it would get fairly dry during the baking stage. If you try it, let me know how it turns out.
MARIANNA ABATE
Thursday 21st of November 2019
IS there a substitute for the molasses if I don't have any? Otherwise, these sound great!
Jen Sotolongo
Friday 22nd of November 2019
I would swap for raw honey!
Elizabeth
Saturday 17th of August 2019
Easy to make and my dogs seem to like them! My jj has allergies to grain and chicken and potato chips so these are great to make on my own and give them. Vegan too!
Jean Hadlock
Sunday 18th of November 2018
Great recipe! Our French Brittneys, Isabelle and Libby, love 'em! The grain free aspect and addition of pumpkin were factors that first attracted me to them. Izzie and Libby live for retrieving birds, and they need foods focused on providing them with nutrition for the energy they need while hunting in the field. To make them more easily carried in the field and to use at home for treats, I rolled out the entire recipe into sort of a rectangle on parchment to about 1/4", cut them into small squares, about 3/4", and baked according to your time. I then turned the oven down to 200 degrees until they were close to being dry like a biscuit, and finally turned the oven off, leaving the biscuits in to further help dry them out.
Jen Sotolongo
Friday 30th of November 2018
I'm so glad that Izzie and Libby loved the treats! Thanks so much for describing how you baked them. I think I'll incorporate that into my recipe, because mine came out a bit soft and didn't last as long as I had hope. I'd prefer ones that are crunchy like yours came out.