Easy Pumpkin Dog Cookie Recipe

Thinking of tossing that jack o’ lantern after Halloween is over? Don’t!

Instead of letting it go to waste, you can make fresh, nutritious, and inexpensive dog treats for the pup in your life using that old pumpkin and a bit of flour.

While there are probably a thousand recipes, here’s a super simple recipe with just 3 ingredients that all of my dogs – large and small – absolutely love:

Terri’s Easy Pumpkin Dog Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1 pumpkin (or 1 cup pumpkin puree)
• 2 cups flour (plus a little extra for rolling)

Equipment:

• Mixing bowl
• Whisk or mixer
• Cutting board
• Rolling pin
• Cookie cutters (I use a mason jar lid)
• Baking sheet

Instructions:

Pre-heat your oven to 350°

1) Turn your jack o’ lantern into pumpkin puree

Basically, you cut your old jack o’ lantern in half, and bake it until soft. Detailed instructions can be found here.

If you’re using canned pumpkin puree, you can skip this step (just make sure you’re using “puree” and not pumpkin “pie filling”).

2) Mix your wet ingredients

In a medium-size bowl, beat together your pumpkin puree and egg until smooth

3) Add dry ingredients

Gradually fold in your two cups of flour, mixing until it forms a smooth dough no longer tacky to the touch.

4) Roll out the dough

Spread a little extra flour on a large cutting board and use a rolling pin (or large bottle) to roll out the dough until it’s about ¼-inch thick.

5) Cut out your cookie shapes

Use a cookie cutter to cut out your cookies. You can have a little fun with it and cut out dog bones, etc. I just use a mason jar lid which make nice, round cookies that won’t crumble after cooking.
Re-roll the dough scraps and cut as needed (they don’t need to be perfect. Dogs aren’t judgy that way.)

6) Place on a cookie sheet and bake

Place the cookies on a baking sheet about ½-inch apart and bake for 20 minutes.

7) Rotate the pan and flip the cookies

Rotate the cookie pan and flip the cookies over. Bake another 20 minutes until the cookies are hard and golden brown (the dryness lets them store longer)

8) Remove from oven and cool

Once the cookies are finished baking, remove them from the oven and let them cool completely.

Cookies are ready!

Once the cookies have cooled completely, they’re ready for your pooch to snack on.

If you want to give your doggy an extra treat, rub a little bacon grease or gravy on top before giving them over – they’ll go crazy!

Storing your cookies

If you cooked them properly, the cookies should be dry and hard, so you don’t need to put them in an airtight container. A paper or plastic bag works just fine. If your cookies are still a little soft or moist, keep them in an airtight container to keep them from molding (they should store for at least 2 weeks just fine).

If you made a really big batch of cookies, you can also store them in the freezer. They’ll keep fresh for months, maybe even years (again, dogs really aren’t that picky).