Ingredients:
1 Large Yogurt 16 oz– Plain, lowfat
¾ cup of Crunchy Peanut Butter
½ cup Coconut Oil (from the cooking isle)
Either 2 whole Bananas or ½ to ¾ cup Apple Sauce – Chunky
This container helps eliminate a mess
Aldi Find
Pour all ingredients into blender and blend well. I find that if you add the yogurt and Peanut butter first that it tends to blend better than if you add the bananas first, then I’ve had to stop it and scrap the sides and push things down. The consistency I try for is slightly thinner than a smoothie or milk shake. This makes approximately a full blender.
Once blended I pour into silicone molds and freeze. The silicone molds I have are relatively flimsy so I cut some cardboard flaps off a few boxes, wrapped them in plastic wrap and place my molds on them before filling. This makes lifting them and transporting them to the freezer easier and less messy. It also helps to stack them on top of each other. Freeze until firm. I normally leave over night at least. Then I remove from the molds and put in zip-lock freezer bags or a plastic storage container with a lid. If left uncovered or sealed it will get frost bit in a short amount of time.
Modifications;
I have substituted pumpkin puree for peanut butter, when I did that I also added bacon bits. I have also added sausage bits, salmon, or other left overs. I have also used chunks of fruit without the peanut butter or pumpkin. There are tons of ways to modify this base to provide your fur babies a cold yummy treat.
Since Link is 9 now and showing signs of arthritis we have tried a variety of glucosamine chondroitin and other supplements meant to help with arthritis. He turns his nose up at about 90% of them. So I have also added supplements to the mix on occasion.
I have done an all fruit version too – Yogurt, coconut oil, apple sauce, and then added fruit chunks to the molds rather than blending them in.
I find silicone molds work best. I try to keep track of approximately how much each treat is (size/volume), because I offer treats to clients dogs and all the dogs I interact with are different sizes and have different needs. Working with silicone molds can be challenging because most I have found are not rigid and therefore need to be set on a base to transfer from counter to freezer without flopping about and making a huge mess. I cut down a few pieces of cardboard and covered them in plastic wrap, I am still on the lookout for something more permanent but the cardboard works. I’m able to transport and stack the silicone molds.
Once the treats are solid I have started packaging them. I have a vacuum sealer. I look at my calendar and I try to group treats based on upcoming jobs. The size dog and number of dogs and days of the job. Or I’ll group with a few big ones and a few small ones. The silicone mold I found at Aldi is a great one because each sphere is approximately one ounce I have 2 or 3 paw molds, that are ¼ oz to ½ oz, some star wars jello molds, some snow flakes, some Halloween ones with bones, skulls, and fingers. Ice cube trays work great as molds, so do chocolate molds.
The current favorite
Bacon – I use the salad topping crumbled bacon in the bag, I believe its 10 oz. I normally look at the package to determine which one is just bacon not a ton of artificial ingredients. I use one whole package.
Coconut Oil – ¾ cup give or take. I may use a bit less in this version because the bacon has fats in it and adds to the overall consistency being more creamy. So start with a ½ cup and you can add more if you think it needs it.
3 sticks of string cheese – I typical what I have on hand. Sometimes its mozzarella sometimes its a blend. If you do not have string cheese on hand shredded cheese or block cheeses will work, I assure you the dogs will love it all the same. If you use shredded cheese I’d start with a ¼ cup and limit it to a ½ cup max.
1 Large can of Sweet Potato or Yams – I look for the ones that are in light syrup. If you cook, buy fresh and bake them yourself.
For this recipe I do not use the yogurt, or peanut butter. If you need to thin the mixture I would add a bit of apple sauce, you can add yogurt or milk, I avoid adding water because it tends to separate from the mixture.
Always keep in mind while your experimenting with options what foods are no no’s – read labels, you might be surprised at what you find. I am a bargain shopper so I try to look for the best price 1st but then I read ingredients and compare. I try to avoid gluten in anything I make even for my animals. There are plenty fur babies out there with allergies too. Some of the most common ones I’ve run across are wheat, chicken, mushrooms, and certain types of grass.
Follow this link for a more complete list from the Animal Health Foundation.