Simple and yummy dog treat alert! This 3-ingredient dog treat recipe is the easiest one out there, featuring just three ingredients: (1) pumpkin puree, (2) oats, and (3) eggs!
These are the first homemade dog treats I ever made for my pup, Kingsley, the week we adopted him, and we’ve never turned back!
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Breaking all the baking rules
The thing we should know about making dog treats is that it will go against the baker’s intuition you’ve built up. They won’t rise or expand like normal biscuits. Since many ingredients can upset a dog’s stomach, we have to bake as simply as possible, and that often means breaking rules.
Dogs can’t have yeast or rising agents because of their complexity, so the eggs featured in this recipe are simply for nutrition and moisture. This is good to keep in mind in case you have to make replacements which I’ve included options for in the recipe notes!
Here are some dog treat baking cues to look out for:
- the are no rising agents.
- the treats won’t grow or expand.
- there are only two textures: stiff dough and crisp treats.
- nonetheless, they will smell AMAZING!
How to shape 3-ingredient dog treats
Bone-shaped dog treats: I found a single bone-shaped cookie cutter in the Celebrations aisle at Wal-Mart months ago, and it has held in the dishwasher since!
Here are other affordable dog bone cutters from Amazon. You’ll use these over and over again, so I’d say go for it!
Round dog treats: a simpler method is to use a tablespoon scoop to dollop the dough into rounds, then flatten with a fork to create hatch marks.
How to Make 3-Ingredient Pumpkin Oat Dog Treats
3-Ingredient Pumpkin Oat Dog Treats
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 25–35 treats 1x
- Category: dog treats
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: dog food
Description
Simple 3-ingredient dog treat recipe made with oats, pumpkin puree, and eggs! Pulse all ingredients in a food processor for easy cleanup. Your pup will love these!
Ingredients
- 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (old fashioned, not the quick-cooking kind)
- 1 cup pumpkin puree, unsweetened
- 2 large eggs* (see Notes for alternatives)
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- Optional: whole wheat or all-purpose flour, as needed for rolling
Instructions
- Prep. Preheat oven to 350º F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Mix dough. Add oats to a clean and dry food processor. Process oats on high speed for approximately 2 minutes, until they resemble a coarse flour. Add pumpkin puree and eggs to the processor, and pulse until the mixture forms a stiff dough.
- Shape treats. To make bone-shaped treats, flour a clean work surface, and roll out the dough until about 1/4-inch thick. Use a cookie cutter to press out the treats and place on the baking sheet. They won’t expand or rise much, so the treats can lay snug. For round treats, use a small cookie scoop to dollop dough balls onto the parchment. Press each ball down with a fork, creating cross-hatch marks.
- Bake. Bake the treats for 20-30 minutes or until the treats have stiffened up in texture. These treats won’t pick up much browning color. Cool completely before storing and giving to your pup!
- Storing. Since these treats are made with fresh ingredients, store them in the fridge for up to 5 days in an airtight container or freeze in a zip tight bag for up to a month.
Notes
- Eggs: if your dog is allergic to eggs, you can absolutely replace them in this recipe since the eggs don’t provide lift. 1 cup of mashed bananas or applesauce will work just fine.
- Bonus Ingredients (to spoil your dog!)
- 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter (non-xylitol), reduce pumpkin puree by 1/4 cup
- 3-4 bacon strips, chopped – no recipe alterations needed
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon, for smells your dog can’t resist
More treats for your dog!
Peanut Butter Apple Dog Treats
This recipe is a godsend – thank you! My German Shepherd recently tested for some food sensitivities…her store bought treats had become an issue but these 3 ingredients are all safe for her and she loves these! I just made my 4th batch and the recipe is great as-is, but I have made a few minor adjustments to the recipe, to make it work for us (and just sharing in case it helps anyone else):
I don’t have a food processor so I grind the oats in my blender then put in a bowl and fold in the pumpkin and egg by hand. (Works great!). I don’t have the cute dog bone cookie cutter so I take a heaping teaspoon of the batter and hand roll it into approximately 4” long pencil-wide sticks (Works great and is the shape of a store bought treat my dog loved but we had to stop getting, due to the ingredients). Bake at 375 degrees for 28 minutes on a parchment-lined pizza crisper pan (Works great! The sticks get slightly brown but they get more of the crunch that my dog likes).
She now knows when I am baking them and lays near the kitchen, watching the oven so she’s ready when they are! Thank you again for this wonderful recipe!
Made these using applesauce and am not quite sure this works as well as using eggs. I ended up adding another cup of oat flour to get the dough to a point where I could roll it. I also baked these for an hour and never got them crispy like a you’d expect a dog biscuit to be. Nevertheless, I’ll keep the recipe as the ingredients I used are things my dog can have.
My pups absolutely loved them and I enjoyed the fact that they only had 3 ingredients not to mention, they were extremely to make. They house smelled divine while they were baking and once i pilled them out of the oven. Definitely a keeper.
my digs loved them. next time I will add peanut butter.
Thank u for sharing your recipes, my pups loves them! I had substituted the eggs for a banana but would i still need to refrigerate the treats?
My dogs love them. First thing this morning my little shihtzu went to the counter and looked up to where the treats are in a jar. I’ll be making many more and put the batter in the little silicone molds.
I cut the recipe in half to try to see if our dog likes them. He LOVES them! We added a bit of PB like it was recommended. The dough is a very soft consistency, but rolled it out with regular flour just fine. Saving the recipe for the next batch! It was very easy to follow. Success! Thank you for the recipe!
I have been making these treats for my dog for more than a year. I always keep them around because he has come to expect them for dessert in the evening. He has a sensitive stomach and I just love that these go over so well! He never drools, except when he is anticipating these treats! Thank you!
Consistency of mixture is like that of glue.
I don’t know how you flattened onto parchment paper. I’m cooking mound of stickiness and see what happens.
hi Bert! I’m so sorry about your dough! It’s likely that it might have spent too long in the food processor. You can add another egg, apple sauce, or water to loosen the dough if it is too stiff!
One can of pumpkin puree? What size?
Just one cup!
Are they sapos to bake crispy like dog bones or soft in the middle? I have a picky dog I’m watching and she ate it if I broke into tiny pieces lol going to take the rest to my daughter’s goldan. I’m sure he’ll love them
super easy to make and my dog goes nuts for them!
Obi loves them! The picky boy who I took off his RX dry kibble I usually threw out and started cooking for him. I used rice flour for Obi and one egg and one white to cut back on the yolk with the plain pumpkin and threw in some parsley. It wasn’t quite stiff enough but I managed with Easter cookie cutters and balls to cris cross. I cooked them at 300 for an hour and they are very crunchy. Thank you for such a great recipe.