Christmas Cookies for your Dog!

While you’re celebrating the holidays with fresh, delicious Chocolate Chip cookies, there will probably be two sad eyes staring up at you….pleading… hoping… that MAYBE…just MAYBE you’ll give him a bite…or perhaps you’ll drop some crumbs.

Unfortunately, chocolate is not good for dogs. Dogs love the smell, but it is actually very toxic for them. The good news is…CAROB, a chocolate substitute.

Carob is extracted from the pods of an actual Carob tree, a species of an evergreen shrub that grows in the Mediterranean region. Carob is naturally sweet and less bitter than chocolate. It has sort-of a “roasted” chocolate flavor. The benefits to dogs (and to people!) is that carob is low in sugar and fat, high in fiber, and contain no caffeine. Further reading suggests it has tons of health benefits.

Carob is made into powder and chips, so guess what? You can make your 4-legged friend his very own “Chocolate” Chip cookie (don’t worry…he’ll never know it’s carob)!

Here is an EASY Carob Chip Cookie recipe for dogs we found online:

Carob Chip Doggie Cookies

1.5 cups brown rice flour

1.5 cups oat flour

3/4 cup Carob chips

1 tsp Vanilla extract

1 egg

3/4 cup water

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl and fold the dough over to moisten it throughout. Continue until you have a stiff, dry dough.

Shape the dough in whatever fun shape you wish (but remember, it’s a little dry so it may break apart easily). Place cookies onto a VERY LIGHTLY greased (suggested: olive oil, coconut oil, or safflower oil) cookie sheet or use parchment paper.

Bake for about 20 minutes. If you made them large, you may need to cook them a little longer. These cookies will not rise.

Surprise your best friend with these awesome treats this Christmas! He’s MORE than worth the effort, don’t you think?

Merry Christmas, Everyone!