Peanut Butter Sweet Potato Dog Biscuits

I'm not having children.

This isn't a new decision. I've never had baby fever. I've never seen a photo for "Baby's First Christmas!" and thought, "I want that." If I'm at your baby shower, I'm uncomfortable. Honestly, even a child's birthday party sounds like a tough time. I'm not one to watch my language or feign enthusiasm. It's not that I don't like kids - it's that I have no interest in being part of the 'parenting' world. I'll be an aunt all day long - but that's it. I'm going home to my partner and my cat and I'm not going to worry about "losing my figure" and raising a happy, fully functional human being.

Cats and dogs, however, are another story. 

I've recently come into cat sitting and literally love every cat I meet. I swoon over dogs in the park across the street or being walked around my neighborhood. I try to sponsor a pet at the local humane society every year since that's where we found our red tabby, Fry. I worry about how cats and dogs are treated and their quality of life. This isn't to say I don't worry about how children are treated - of course I do - I just feel a more intimate, almost sacred connection to so many animals. Animals improve my mental health and well being and so it is only reasonable that I feel so strongly about returning the favor.

I also kind of believe in reincarnation and am a little convinced that my dead loved ones come to me in the form of animal companions. But I digress.

For special occasions (and also a few times when I worked as a manager in a bakery), I like to make fresh-baked dog treats. This is something to spoil a dog with a handful of times a year - though all of the biscuit ingredients harbor nutritional benefits, so the 'spoiling' only really comes through spending your time and energy in the kitchen. The sheer smell of these treats will make a dog's eyes widen and their tail wag. 

Note :: When it comes to dogs, not all 'human' foods are created equal! I made sure all of my ingredients were dog-friendly and included some links with information about the benefits of each ingredient.

Peanut Butter Sweet Potato Dog Biscuits 

Yield :: ~1 dozen treats, depending on size

Ingredients

• 1 cup mashed sweet potato (I peeled, chopped, and steamed 1 medium-sized sweet potato) or pumpkin/butternut  purée
• ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
• ¼ cup natural (unsweetened) peanut butter or almond butter
• 1½ cups whole wheat flour or spelt flour
• ¼ cup rolled oats
• ¼ tsp cinnamon

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. In a large bowl, combine sweet potato, applesauce, and nut butter. Fold in 1 cup of the flour until thoroughly mixed. Add the last ½ cup of flour, the oats, and the cinnamon and combine well. You should have a soft, pliable dough.
3. With a rolling pin (or something that can be used as one), roll your dough out onto a well-floured surface and cut out desired shapes. Knead and roll out your 'excess' dough as many times as you need to in order to use it all up. 
4. Evenly space your treats on the baking sheet - but don't worry about the treats bleeding into one another because they hardly spread, only puff up a tiny bit. Bake for 20-30 minutes, based on the size of your treats and desired firmness (I baked mine for 20 minutes and they seem pretty chewy). 
5. Allow the treats to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a plate or wire rack; let them cool completely before offering one to your furry friend! These should last for about a week in a tightly sealed container.