Celebrate your best friend with this single serving dog cupcake made with four canine-friendly ingredients. These ‘pupcakes’ are easy to make, grain-free and will make your pooch’s day!
Cakes for Dogs or Dogs for Cake?
You see that lovely, silly greyhound licking his lips and leering at his cupcake in the background?
He’s stolen two whole cakes before. Not cupcakes. CAKES.
After the second incident I made my way to the store to buy a cake stand with a lid to prevent any future thievery from him. He’s just so tall – he’s got pretty easy access to most food on tables and counters.
To be fair to Paddy he’s typically well behaved and his begging is quite polite. As soon as he hears a ‘no’ he backs off. A true gentleman. Unfortunately no one was here to tell him ‘no’ so fair play, I suppose.
Nowadays, the only cakes our silly, long boy gets to eat are his own.
Homemade Dog Cupcakes
This recipe makes either one jumbo size cupcake, or two regular sized ones. It’s aimed for dog tastes, but it’s certainly edible if you want to share one with your hound.
Altogether this recipe is made up of only four, dog-friendly ingredients:
- peanut butter
- diced apple
- egg
- baking powder
To make, simply mix everything together in a small bowl, then fill a couple of muffin cups, bake and that’s it! Easy, straightforward and basically fool-proof.
FAQ’s & Recipe Tips
What kind of peanut butter?
- Ideally look for a natural or sugar-free peanut butter. Just make sure that your sugar-free peanut butter doesn’t include artificial sweeteners like xylitol. Artificial sweeteners are often potentially deadly to dogs.
- Crunchy peanut butter will work just the same.
banana or pumpkin instead of apple?
- Yes! Instead of apple you can use 1 small banana (or half a medium/large banana). Just mash it up and mix it in.
- Use 1/4 cup mashed/pureed pumpkin in place of apple.
freeze these for later?
- Yes! Just make sure you cool them completely first. Wrap the cupcakes individually in plastic wrap then foil, then store in a zip-lock bag for up to three months.
- To thaw: you can let them thaw in the fridge overnight or in the microwave for about 30-40 seconds.
Do I need to peel the apple?
- Don’t worry about peeling.
- You can grate the apple instead of chopping if you prefer.
- Make sure to remove all the apple seeds. They contain a small amount of cyanide. It’s not likely to cause your dog much harm, but it’s still better to avoid any potential risk.
Whether or not you choose to make these for your pup make sure to give them some extra pets for me! They deserve it.
If you have any more questions please let me know in the comments below!
Single Serving Dog Friendly Cupcake
A dog friendly, single serving cupcake to celebrate the special hounds in your life! Grain free and no added sugar.
Ingredients
- 1/2 small or medium apple, diced into small pieces
- 3 tablespoons peanut butter + more if desired for frosting
- 1 whole egg
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder (optional)
- bacon bits for topping (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F.
- In a small bowl mix together all of your ingredients until combined.
- Line or lightly grease two holes in a cupcake tin or a small ramekin. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pans.
- Bake for about 20 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Allow the cupcake to cool completely. You can leave it as is, or frost with peanut butter and sprinkle with bacon bits.
Notes
Notes of Safety of Ingredients for Dogs
- Make sure to use xylitol free peanut butter/ peanut butter without artificial sweeteners as they can be poisonous for dogs!
- Make sure to remove all the apple seeds. They contain a small amount of cyanide. It's not likely to cause your dog much harm, but it's still better to avoid any potential risk.
- Baking powder and baking soda can be toxic to dog but typically only in large amounts. According to the American College of Veterinary Pharmacists: " Toxicosis may be seen with ingestion of 10-20 g/kg of body weight. This equates to approximately 2-4 teaspoons per kg of body weight." That's roughly 1 teaspoon per pound of body weight. This recipe calls for 1/2 teaspoon altogether which should be safe. If you don't want to take the risk, feel free to leave out the baking powder.
Lani says
I’m so excited to try these, but will probably make 4 or 6 to keep on hand. How long would you say they last at room temperature?
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Lani! At room temperature these will easily last about 2-3 days. You can keep in them in the fridge about 4-5 days. You can also freeze them up to three months if you’d like them to last longer. Hope that helps!
Chloe says
Hi, I was wondering if I could substitute the apple applesauce that I have? I didn’t know if it would mess anything up. Thank you!
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Chloe! You can use 1/4 cup applesauce in place of the diced apple!
Rachel says
Hey there! Im new to making pupcakes and i doubled the recipe. Is the consistency of pupcakes still quite squishy? Not sure if they need longer (although golden brown on top) or if thats how they’re meant to be, especially with no flour?
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Rachel! The easiest way to tell if they’re done in the middle is to stick a knife or toothpick in to the centre of the cake. If it comes out clean or mostly clean with a few crumbs then you know the inside is cooked. If you take out the knife and some wet looking batter or crumbs come out then you’ll likely need a bit more time.
Carmen says
Just made these and they came out looking JUST like the pictures which i love. Really appreciate the simple recipe, i ended up with 2 medium cupcakes and a small one (the left overs) so its perfect for my pup to have one in the morning and one for dessert, if he had any close doggo friends i dont see why the recipe couldnt be doubled easy enough 🙂
Also the cook time was spot on for me, which i appreciate so much, nothing worse than when the cook time ends up being way too long or you end up having to add extra 5 mins over and over.
Thank you for the recipe i will be saving it for other special doggy moments 😀
Sarah Nevins says
Yay! Thanks so much Carmen – I’m so thrilled it all worked out perfectly for you!
Jeanette says
Hi can I substitute carrot for apple?
Wanting to bake this for my little girls 4th birthday
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Jeanette – That should still work! Happy birthday to your girl – give her some pets for me!
Lakshmi Kaushik says
These cupcakes was a hit with my fur baby,he loved them and they were gone in a minute:)
Sarah Nevins says
Love it! SO glad to hear they enjoyed it!
KRISTIN LYNN says
I love that this was for two cupcakes and not a whole dozen. My pup loved them. I frosted with all-natural PB and a little bit of light cream cheese and it came out picture-perfect.
Sarah Nevins says
Yay! So glad to hear your pup enjoyed these – give them some pets from! Thanks so much Kristin!
Aiyana says
Our family loves these! First, I love that it’s a recipe for a small portion, rather than the usual dozen or more. I made these for my puppy’s second birthday in August and am going to make them with pumpkin for his Thanksgiving dessert! For a healthier topping and cute decoration, I put a little peanut butter top with fresh berries (PB helps them stick!). They’re actually quite yummy and the humans like them too! Parent and puppy approved! Thank you for sharing! Happy holidays!
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Aiyana! I’m so happy to hear that! I love that you’re making making your pup a Thanksgiving treat too – so sweet! Hope you and your loved ones have a lovely Thanksgiving!
Ginger says
Can I make this in a mini bundt cake maker? Thanks.
Sarah Nevins says
That should work! You might need to keep an eye on the cook time which will depend on the size of the bundt cake though
Sop says
Thanks for the recipe! Looking forward to making my Ralph some for his upcoming birthday this month. Can applesauce be used instead of diced apples? If so, what would the measurement be?
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Sop! I think 2-3 tablespoons of applesauce should work out well in place of the diced apples. I hope your Ralph loves it as much as my Paddy! Give him some love for me 🙂
Angie says
How should these be stored? Being a small breed, we only gave her half of one. I put the other 1 1/2 in the fridge.
I made it for our fur baby’s belated 10th birthday and she loves it.
Sarah Nevins says
Hi Angie! Since it’s got apple in it I recommend storing it in the fridge so that it will keep a little better. Leftovers will keep at least 5 days. So glad your fur baby enjoyed it! Give her some pets for me 🙂