As I’m sure you know by now I absolutely love to spoil my pups, especially on their birthdays. Each year since Juno’s first birthday with me (her 2nd birthday), I’ve made her a little homemade doggie-safe cake to celebrate. The cakes have evolved throughout the years, especially since I could never find the same recipe again. I’d take a little bit of this recipe and a little bit of that one, until I landed on the perfect combo. I am not a baker by any means, so this is a very simple recipe.
I always use a peanut butter base as my dogs are huge fans. Most of the ingredients you may already have in your pantry. Technically this recipe is human safe too, although I’m not sure how good it would taste not being a dog. The big thing you need to look out for is getting either whole wheat or unbleached flour. Bleached flour isn’t good for dogs.
This recipe is for a personal pupcake. I use a ceramic bowl about 5.5” in diameter. So obviously it’s too big to eat all at once. But it makes a great size for pictures and to share with the other pups in the household.
Here’s what you need for the cake:
- ¾ up Whole Wheat or Unbleached Flour
- 1 tps Baking Soda
- ¼ cup Creamy Peanut Butter
- ¼ cup Honey
- ¼ cup Apple Sauce (You can also use vegetable oil. But applesauce is a great substitute for vegetable oil, plus I’ve found that it makes cakes very moist)
- 1 tps Vanilla
- 1 Egg
Frosting:
- Creamy Peanut Butter
- Plain Yogurt (optional)
- Sprinkles or your dog’s favorite treat (optional)
Cake Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. And gather the ingredients.
Combine dry ingredients: flour and baking soda.
Mix in the remaining ingredients: peanut butter, honey, applesauce, vanilla and egg until you have a thick batter.
I have found over the years that the batter is a little too thick. So just add some water until the batter is more of a usual cake batter consistency. It’s okay if that batter is still a little thick, as most of the ingredients are thicker.
Make sure to grease the pan your planning to use.
Pour the batter in the pan and fill it up about half way up the pan. Also note that the cake will rise… A LOT!
If I have left over batter, I like to make mini pupcakes. Sometimes I even give these out to friends for their pups.
Place both the cake and mini pupcakes in the oven.
The mini pupcakes will only need to go for about 10-15 min.
The cake will need to go for about 30 -35 min depending on how deep your pan is.
You can check with a toothpick to make sure it’s done.
Let it cool. I like to cut the top off the cake to make it look flatter.
Make sure it’s completely cool before frosting.
Frosting:
Mix together peanut butter and plain yogurt in a bowl. There is not really an exact measurement for this one. I just mix until I get a good color and consistency.
I just recently started adding yogurt to the frosting. I generally only use peanut butter to “frost” the cake. But I wanted to get a lighter color for the frosting, so I added yogurt. Just make sure you get the most plain, non-fat yogurt you can find.
Decorate with a few sprinkles, your dog’s favorite treats and maybe a candle.
To store leftovers, place in airtight container and store in fridge for a few days.
TaDa! My pups absolutely love this cake. And I look forward to making it for them on their birthdays each year.
