I have a wonderful dog named Maggie, a pit-mix I rescued from Save-A-Pet in Port Jefferson Station about 4 1/2 years ago. She is the most affectionate dog I’ve ever known, and so easy-going! Well, mostly. The biggest issue we’ve faced together is her sensitive skin and food allergies. At first, everything seemed to make her break out into uncomfortable-looking rashes! Several expensive vet bills and many different varieties of specialty kibble later, we had finally found a food that worked for her, but I had to avoid most store-bought treats. A good puppy still deserves to be spoiled every now and then, though, so I started making my own cookies for her. I thought it would be rather complicated at first, but when I started looking into dog-friendly recipes I was surprised to learn that most call for less ingredients and less steps than people-friendly treats! This one is a favorite, only four ingredients and dog approved. I’ve shared these cookies with a few other friends and their dogs, even those without food sensitivity issues took to them right away!
Easy Sweet Potato Dog Treats:
1 medium sweet potato
1 extra-ripe banana
Approx. 2 C flour (I used brown rice flour)
2 eggs
Preheat oven to 325 F. With a fork poke holes in one side of sweet potato and microwave on high for 5-6 minutes, until soft. Once cool, cut open and scoop contents into a mixing bowl. Add banana to bowl and mash together, then stir in eggs and keep mashing until an apple-sauce-like consistency is reached. Start working in flour - depending on the size of your sweet potato and banana, you will need somewhere between 1 1/2 & 2 1/2 C to achieve a dough-like consistency. If you use rice flour, it will feel a little grainy but should still pull away from the sides of the bowl like any other dough. Once it’s reached sticky-ball stage, turn it out onto a well-floured surface and roll out to approx. 1/4” thick. Using your favorite shape, cut out cookies and place them on a cookie sheet (on top of parchment paper/silicone sheet). Bake for about 25 minutes, checking regularly to see if the edges have started to brown. Once they look dry and slightly brown at the edges, remove from oven, allow to cool, and share with your favorite pooch! They should keep for up to a month if stored in an airtight container - however, they should be COMPLETELY cool before storing.
EVEN EASIER Sweet Potato Dog Treats:
Though I love making the pretty cookies described above, sometimes you just want something quick and dirty. Cut one sweet potato into strips/slices/whatever, lay out on a single layer on a cookie sheet, bake at approx. 300 F for 25 min, turn over, then turn off oven and allow potato slices to sit in there for about another hour to finish drying out. These are SO simple, and every dog I’ve offered a piece of this “potato jerky” to has chowed down with gusto.
Alice Glass, a Port Jefferson native is an all around creative, dabbling in a bit of this and that. Of special interest is her incredible knack for baking delectable treats. Be sure to check out Alice's Etsy shop, where you can purchase these freshly custom made doggy treats and homemade organic lip balms and salves.
Alice Glass, a Port Jefferson native is an all around creative, dabbling in a bit of this and that. Of special interest is her incredible knack for baking delectable treats. Be sure to check out Alice's Etsy shop, where you can purchase these freshly custom made doggy treats and homemade organic lip balms and salves.
