Winston Wednesday: Apple Banana Pumpkin Oh My! Muffins

Are you ready to spoil your dog? Here is a great and easy recipe to do just that! It has been Winston approved as well. I spoiled the cats on Monday with some homemade treats so I figured today I would make Winston some special treats. I literally looked in the pantry and pulled out what seemed like a good ingredient and went with it. So I had no idea if this would work out or not but I gave my makeshift recipe a try and it worked!!! I was thrilled and so was Winston. Now I am going to make it easier for you than it was for me by adding in little tips. So here you go, my made up recipe for my made up treats, which I am calling:

Apple Banana Pumpkin Oh My! Muffins

(Makes about 12-13 muffins)

* 2 cups of oat flour

* 1 Tablespoon of baking powder

* 1/4 cup of pumpkin puree

* 1 ripe banana (smashed)

* 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce

* 1 Tablespoon of peanut butter

* 1 cup of water

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and get a cupcake/muffin tin ready by greasing it with non-stick cooking spray (I always use coconut oil spray). Set aside for use later.

2. In a large bowl combine pumpkin puree, banana, applesauce and peanut butter.

3. In another bowl combine the oat flour and the baking powder.

4. Slowly add dry ingredients into the wet ones mixing in a little at a time then when it gets too thick add small amounts of the 1 cup of water. Alternate adding the water and then the flour mixture until its all mixed into the one bowl together.

5. Once it is all mixed together pour it into the cupcake/muffin tins and set it in the oven on 350 degrees for 25 minutes. 

The final result. Not the prettiest things but Winston will be the judge of how they taste!

Winston's final verdict was captured on video just for you guys. Let me know what your dogs think of these if you end up making them! 

Meow Monday: Homemade Tuna Bites

Today I decided to spoil my cats just a little extra than I normally do and I was thinking of either making them a toy from scratch or some treats and I settled on treats! This recipe is really easy and I honestly had all the ingredients already in my pantry which was nice. I found the recipe on Pinterest and figured I would give it a try. Although every post on Pinterest makes everything look all beautiful and professional...I don't have the patience for that. This is the link to the original post which I changed a bit by omitting catnip and renaming because I like my name better: Design Sponge Here is my messy take on the whole thing and Charlie and Jasper's reactions which good lord Charlie would not leave me alone once the can of tuna was opened up where as Jasper was a little gentleman and kept his distance.

Homemade Tuna Bites

(makes about 3 dozen or 2 if you make them larger)

* 1 (5 oz) can of tuna, packed in water
* 1 cup of oat flour
* 1 large egg
* 1 tablespoon of olive oil

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper which you can set aside for right now.

2. In a mixing bowl or food processor combine drained tuna, oat flour, egg and olive oil.

Charlie was making it difficult to do anything.

3. Mix together well. It seems really thick and kind of dry but it is easily manipulated.

All mixed together

 4. Roll the dough into little balls and place them on the parchment paper. I then decided to just press them down to flatten them a little by using my thumb because I wanted to make sure they cooked nicely. They look huge in this picture but they are quarter size.

Charlie waiting for the first batch to go into the oven

5. Bake the treats for 10-12 minutes at the 350 degrees. 

All done! 

I then let them cool down and started another batch and once I was done I put them in this little container to keep in the fridge.

You can store them in the fridge for up to 7 days

Once they had cooled down it was time to let Charlie and Jasper test them so I brought one to Charlie who was sleeping on the couch and immediately Winston stole it! So I had Charlie come into the kitchen for better results. As for Jasper he pretended not to want it but as soon as I left him alone he gobbled it up. 

Well I hope you guys enjoyed this little post today and there will be a new one going up on Wednesday so make sure to check back! :]

Winston Wednesday: Peanut Butter Dog Treats

For today's Winston Wednesday I decided to make some homemade Peanut Butter Dog Treats. I don't usually like buying store bought treats because a lot of the time they have preservatives and unhealthy ingredients. There are only a couple brands I will buy. I figured Winston was due for a special treat. I found the recipe on Whole Foods website but changed it a little because I didn't feel like driving all the way there so I went to Target for ingredients and they didn't have exactly what I needed. It all worked out though. Here is the recipe (with pictures of the process):

Peanut Butter Dog Treats

1 banana, peeled
1 cup of whole wheat flour
2/3 cup of rolled oats
1/2 cup of dried parsley (freshens breath)
3 tablespoons of peanut butter
1 egg, beaten

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees

2. Put the banana in a large bowl and mash it thoroughly with a large spoon or potato masher.

3. Add whole wheat flour, oats, parsley, peanut butter and egg. Stir well to combine. Set aside for 5 minutes.

4. Roll the mixture into balls using about 1 tablespoon of dough for each; transfer to a large paper parchment lined sheet tray as they are done. Then use the back of a spoon or the heel of your palm to flatten each ball into a coin.

5. Bake until firm and deep golden brown on the bottom, 40-45 minutes. Set them aside to let them cool completely.

Once they have cooled down go ahead and let your dog try one! To store them put them in an air tight container in the fridge or freeze them and just thaw them before giving them to your dog.

If you're mean like me you can trick someone into eating one...not that they are all that horrible to eat. I did however tell my dad they were healthy cookies I made for us and he ate one and proceeded to spit it out into the sink. Then I proceeded to let Winston try one and he disagreed with my dad. He thought they were delicious! 

Happy Winston Wednesday!