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Once upon a time, two little old dogs lived in a little old townhouse near the city. The little old dogs were hungry. So, the little old dog mom decided to bake some gingerbread cookies for dogs.
She made a big batch of gingerbread dough just for the little old dogs…
Ha! Ha! There really are so many different story versions of The Gingerbread Man. I was a Kindergarten teacher and I read them all during December.
Furthermore, the gingerbread man delights people of all ages as a cookie during the holidays. So, how about delighting your dog? He or she can join the fun with gingerbread cookies for dogs.
Plus, these gingerbread cookies for dogs are healthy and safe without the granulated sugar. Regular gingerbread is often on the list of foods not to feed dogs. For instance, this is because many gingerbread recipes contain nutmeg, which can be toxic to dogs.
Therefore, this recipe contains no nutmeg and only six dog-safe ingredients. However, if you have questions or concerns about what you’re feeding your dog, always consult your vet.
This was my first time working with ginger and molasses in my homemade dog treat recipes. Therefore, let’s briefly talk about these two ingredients before getting into how to make gingerbread cookies for dogs.
Ginger in Gingerbread Cookies for Dogs
Have you ever drank ginger ale for an upset tummy? A lot of people do and it’s because of the ginger in it. Furthermore, ginger’s function as a digestive aid for stomach upset and nausea is probably its best known benefit. That goes for humans and dogs alike.
Therefore, ginger may help at early stages of bloat by stimulating movement in your dog’s stomach. For instance, the contents in the stomach move out quicker, preventing build ups.
Furthermore, ginger is a carminative herb. In other words, it can help prevent and expel gas from your dog’s digestive tract.
“The most common use is as an anti-nausea and anti-vomiting supplement, but it has also been used as an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, circulatory stimulant, and for cognitive support.“
VCA Hospitals
So other than its common use, ginger has also been used as an anti-inflammatory antioxidant and a circulatory stimulant. And, it has been known for supporting the cognitive well being of dogs.
Therefore, it has been used for motion sickness, and side effects of cancer treatment, as in chemotherapy. In addition, it can help with memory problems and osteoarthritis.
Molasses in Gingerbread Cookies for Dogs
Although sweeteners should normally be skipped, a modest helping of this natural sweetener can be an exception. In fact, molasses complements these gingerbread cookies for dogs because it can be consumed in moderation.
Therefore, if consumed in moderation, your dog can derive multiple benefits from molasses. For instance, molasses is rich in essential minerals and vitamins. Therefore, your dog’s immunity and well being can get a boost.
In addition, your dog can get the following benefits from a modest portion of molasses:
- Potassium can help maintain heart health while promoting healthy blood pressure.
- Iron, copper, and selenium are vital for maintaining strong bones and joints.
- Antioxidants are essential in protecting body cells from oxidative stress linked to cancer and other diseases.
- Vitamin B6 can help to digest fats and metabolize amino acids.
- Chromium can improve a dog’s glucose tolerance levels, which can help control diabetes.
- Iron helps keep anemia away.
- Anti-inflammatory properties help ease the discomfort and pain from arthritis and other joint problems.
In addition to making sure your dog consumes molasses in moderation, be sure that it doesn’t contain xylitol. Plus, the molasses must be chemical free to be a healthy supplement.
The healthiest molasses for your dog is blackstrap. For instance it has a lower sugar content than other types of molasses. Plus, it is rich in minerals and vitamins.
When shopping for ingredients for these gingerbread cookies for dogs, I couldn’t find blackstrap molasses. In fact, there was only one brand and type of molasses on the shelf. So, Grandma’s Unsulphured Original Molasses is what I used.
Since I was using the molasses for treats, I knew it would be consumed moderately. Unsulphured is actually the finest quality, so it does have more sugar content than blackstrap.
Now This Is Something To Bark About!!
How to Make Gingerbread Cookies for Dogs
These gingerbread cookies for dogs go by the recipe name, Gingerbread Man Doggy Cookies. These cookie treats were so much fun to make for my fur babies. First of all they made my house smell so Christmassy while they were baking. Second of all, they turned out so cute, even if my decorating skills aren’t professional. They were sure tiny for trying to put little details on. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. HaHa! Seriously though, let’s look at putting this recipe together. You will need the following ingredients.
Cookie Ingredients for Gingerbread Man Doggy Cookies
- oat flour
- ground cinnamon
- ground ginger
- unsweetened applesauce
- molasses
- olive oil
Icing Ingredients for Gingerbread Man Doggy Cookie
- low or fat free cream cheese
- honey
- low or fat free plain yogurt
- flour, if needed, for thickening
- optional natural food coloring
Steps to Make Gingerbread Man Doggy Cookie
First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper.
Second, whisk all of the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl. Then, in a small bowl, add the wet ingredients and beat until combined. You can use an electric mixer or stir vigorously with a spoon.
Third, slowly mix the wet ingredient mixture into the dry ingredient mixture. Stir the two mixtures until they are thoroughly combined and uniform in color.
Furthermore, use your hands to finish combining, making sure the dough is a play-doh consistency. For instance, you want it soft and not sticky, but slightly tacky and easy to work with. However, if it is dry and crumbly, add a little water. If the dough is too wet or soft, add extra flour.
Next, form the dough into a dough ball. If you want to make rolling easier, then form two dough balls. Then, place on a non-stick baking mat, parchment paper, or a clean work surface sprinkled with flour. I personally like using parchment paper, but I still sprinkle flour on top.
After that, place parchment paper over the dough ball and begin flattening with a rolling pin. You want to roll the dough until it’s approximately ¼ to ½ inch thickness.
Then cut the dough into shapes using a gingerbread man cookie cutter. However, you can use any cookie cutters of choice. Plus, be sure to reroll the scraps of dough, so none goes to waste.
Next, place the shapes on the prepared baking sheet and bake the cookies for 9 minutes. After 9 minutes, rotate the pan, flip the cookies over, and bake for another 6 minutes. Then, remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack before icing.
Steps to Make Gingerbread Man Doggy Cookie Icing
First, blend the cream cheese, honey, and yogurt with an electric mixer until smooth. This is a great consistency for piping onto the cookies.
However, this consistency might not work for you. So, add one tablespoon of flour at a time until you reach a desired consistency.
Then, decorate the cookies the way you see fit. If you want a little color, then add two to three drops of food coloring to the icing. I used white for the eyes, mouth, hair, arms and legs, then alternated red and green for buttons.
If you don’t want to do this extra step of icing, then you can skip it. I promise your dog will love these cookies even without the icing. I shared a plain cookie with each of my dogs and they stood there begging for more.
In Conclusion
As always, my favorite part of baking homemade dog treats is sharing them with Bella and Edward. For instance, it is a fun bonding experience with them. Somehow they always know when I’m in the kitchen creating something just for them.
So, when you’re baking delicious goodies for Christmas, don’t forget your dog. Give them a surprise by making these gingerbread cookies for dogs. And while you’re at it, whip up a batch of gingerbread man cookies for the humans.
Then, have a little fun with your family and friends and refuse to tell them which is which. Other than size, these dog treats are indistinguishable to the eye from human treats.
How have you used ginger or molasses in your homemade dog treats? Let us know in the comments below. We would love to read about it.
You might want to try these recipes from the Dog Chef section here on the blog:
You can save this recipe to your Pinterest account by using one of the following images.
Gingerbread Man Doggy Cookies
Ingredients
Cookie Ingredients
- 3 cups oat flour (see note #1)
- 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1½ tsp ground ginger (see note #2)
- ¾ cup unsweetened applesauce (see note #3)
- 3 tbsp molasses (see note #4)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Icing Ingredients
- 4 oz cream cheese low or fat-free
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 to 2 tbsp plain yogurt low or fat-free
- 1 to 3 tbsp oat flour to thicken if needed
- 2 to 3 drops natural food coloring optional
Instructions
Cookie Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the dry ingredients (flour, cinnamon, ginger) together.
- In a small bowl, add the wet ingredients (applesauce, molasses, and oil) and beat until combined.
- Slowly mix the wet ingredient mixture into the dry ingredient mixture, stirring until thoroughly combined and uniform in color.
- Use your hands to finish combining, making sure the dough is a play-doh consistency (see note #5), and form into a dough ball.
- Place the dough ball on a non-stick baking mat, parchment paper, or a clean work surface sprinkled with flour. (Separate the dough into separate dough balls for easier rolling.)
- Place a piece of parchment paper over the dough ball and use a rolling pin to flatten the dough until it is approximately ¼ to ½ inch thickness.
- Use a gingerbread man cookie cutter or cookie cutters of choice to cut shapes. (Be sure to reroll the scraps of dough, so none goes to waste.)
- Place the shapes on the prepared baking sheet between ½ inch to 1 inch apart.
- Bake the cookies for 9 minutes. Rotate the pan, flip the cookies over, and bake on the other side for another 6 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack before icing.
Icing Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, blend the cream cheese, honey, and yogurt until smooth.
- Mix in one tablespoon of flour at a time until you reach a desired consistency for spreading or piping onto cookies.
- For an optional effect, add two to three drops of food coloring to the icing and mix.
- Decorate the cookies as you see fit.
Are these soft dog treat?
Hi Cyndee,
I baked them so they would be soft for my old dogs, but you can totally bake them longer for more of a hard treat.
Tell your dog that I said, “Hi!”
Jeana