Pumpkin and Peanut Butter Dog Treats

During my previous employment at a Doggie Daycare, I came to learn that dogs actually LOVE canned pumpkin.  Not only do my dogs go crazy for it when mixed in with their food, but it's a great source of fiber as well.

As I've asked in the past, please make sure your dog doesn't have any allergies to these ingredients!  Try in small doses if unsure, and make sure there aren't any upset tummies.  Yes, this recipe calls for cinnamon, which is fine for dogs in small doses, and has even been said to help increase blood flow.  If at all concerned, please leave it out, I'm sure your dog will still enjoy them. ;]

Some of the cookies I rolled into small balls and pressed slightly in a criss-cross pattern with a fork to resemble peanut butter cookies, others I used a small maple leaf cookie cutter.  I wanted some softer cookies as well as crunchy ones.  For softer cookies take them out of the over right away, whereas for harder cookies leave them in the turned off oven until they get as hard as you like.  If still not as hard as you want your treats to be, consider baking them for 5 minutes longer.

The only change I made was increasing the amount of canned pumpkin, as this made the dough more manageable without the addition of water.

Pumpkin and Peanut Butter Dog Treats

Adapted from "Peanut Butter and Pumpkin Dog Treats," by Kelly
www.allrecipes.com
Makes 25 medium servings, or 40+ smaller servings

• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (plus some extra to flour surface)
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup canned pumpkin (NOT PUMPKIN PIE MIX)
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter (smooth)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)

~Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

~Mix all ingredients in a large bowl with a heavy spoon until a dough forms.

~Place the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead it. You will then want to roll out your dough until it is about 1/2" thick.  At this point you can use your cute cookie cutters, or whatever means you like, to get your desired shapes and sizes.

~Bake your treats on your lined baking sheet for roughly 30-35 minutes, or until golden brown and slightly hard to the touch.  For a harder treat, rather than removing them from the oven at this point, turn your oven off, and let the treats sit for another 10-30 minutes. (If worried too hard, make sure a butter knife can break one)

~Cool them off completely, and let your puppies enjoy!  These should be stored in an air tight container or zip lock bag.

Daisy gets more of these than she should, haha, but how could I resist that face! xxoxx

Pumpkin Cupcakes

I love anything pumpkin, and these totally fulfilled my craving!  I found the recipe on Martha Stewart's site, so they have some prison cred. to boot...haha

I topped these with cream cheese frosting.  I'm still not 100% happy with the consistency of the frosting I made, so instead of posting the recipe I'll let you choose your own.  As an alternative, these would be killer topped with whipped cream!

I got some dark purple cupcake liners as a Christmas gift, and I thought they were a nice contrast with the orange.  I didn't realize it was so dark in my kitchen until after I took the pictures! lol

The batter was pretty thick, which I always love because it makes scooping the batter out so much easier.  Overall, I loved everything about these!  I went a little heavier with the spices as I love that pumpkin pie flavor, so I did slightly heaped/rounded measuring for the cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice. This is definitely my new go-to pumpkin cupcake recipe!

You'll notice in the bottom picture I line my cooling racks with paper towel sheets.  This gets rid of any moisture on the bottom that accumulated while baking, and keeps the cupcake liners nice.


Pumpkin Cupcakes
Adapted from MarthaStewart.com
http://www.marthastewart.com/317069/pumpkin-cupcakes
Makes 22-24 cupcakes

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (heaping tsp. recommended)
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger (heaping tsp. recommended)
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (heaping 1/4 tsp. recommended)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice (heaping 1/4 tsp. recommended)
• 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1, 15 ounce can of pumpkin puree

~Preheat oven to 350 °F.  Prepare muffin tins with cupcake liners.

~In a medium bowl mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice.

~In a large bowl whisk together brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree.

~Fill your cupcake liners about two-thirds full and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. (20 minutes was spot on for me)

~Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack and cool completely.  Once cooled, top with your favorite cream cheese frosting, whipped cream, or whatever topping you like, and enjoy!