Looking for an egg-stra special Easter dog treat recipe? How about moulding Easter dogolates? These homemade carob Easter egg dog treats are super simple to make, but insanely yummy (and cute too). Here’s the recipe and how to make these Easter egg dog treats.
Eggcellent Easter Treats
These DIY dog-friendly “chocolates” were made using an Easter egg shaped silicone candy mould (affiliate link). Moulds are cute and inexpensive, and very versatile for making pupsicles, gummies, and other set treats too. However, the dogs don’t care about the pretty egg-shaped Easter treats. You can use any suitably sized mould. Or you can skip the moulds completely and make a sheet of bark that can be sliced or cracked into smaller pieces after hardening. Whatever way you prep your special holiday treats, expect to have very excited dogs circling around your kitchen. Carob smells doggone delish and peanut butter makes it even better!
Unlike many of our semi-healthy treats, these Easter eggs are definitely a special naughty indulgence to enjoy in moderation. Make a small batch, store for future nibbles, or share with with you furfriends. On a doggy diet? If these are too rich for your treat preferences, check out our guilt-free healthy carob gummies for an easy healthy alternative Easter treat or sniff around some of our other recipes for tasty treat ideas. We also have lots of non-edible Easter ideas for furfamily in our Easter dog DIY archives.
Carob vs. Chocolate
Carob is often used as a dog-friendly version of chocolate. In terms of dog-friendly cooking, carob is hands-down the way to go! Chocolate contains a compound called theobromine which is toxic to dogs. Chocolates can also contain lots of other ingredients that aren’t good for your pups, like caffeine, sugars, or sweeteners. And don’t forget about swallowing wrappers, too. Holidays like Christmas, Easter, and Halloween when there are lots of human treats around the house can be very dangerous times for dogs. Always keep human treats and sweets out of reach. Let the Easter Bunny know to be careful when hiding eggs for any small (or big) humans in the furfamily, keep an eye on the little ones, and be careful about where you leave your Easter baskets.
Making Treats with Carob Melts and Drops
Carob drops can be tricky to melt compared to chocolate, as the carob is usually drier and lower fat. Combining the carob with an oily ingredient, like peanut butter, and gently microwaving them together (with frequent stirring breaks) can help. If peanut butter isn’t your thing, you can use a different dog-friendly add-in, like coconut oil. How much you can add will vary depending on your ingredients.
Texture may vary depending on your carob, but in our experiments over the years, we can go as high as a roughly 50-50 mix with smooth peanut butter and carob drops. The mix will solidify into a solid fudgey state that holds its shape well (especially if kept chilled), yet is pliant enough that the treats can still be broken or cut into smaller pieces, if needed.
Be aware that carob drops are often sweetened, whether you’re buying from the baking good section or specially marketed dog treats. Many are a combination of sugars and oils with carob powder, some are unsweetened carob and oil mixtures. Yogurt drops are much the same. Either way, there’s nothing wrong with an occasional special treat, but always read your ingredients to know what you’re buying and sharing.
Homemade Carob and Peanut Butter Easter Egg Dog Treats
Carob Easter Egg Dog Treats with Carob Chips/Melts and Peanut Butter
There are no measurements below as the treats can be entirely scaled to suit your preference on quantity and firmness of set (how much or how little peanut butter to use). If you want a precise measure of a specific mould’s capacity, you can do a test pour from a measuring cup of water to measure the volume required to fill your tray. Dry the mould thoroughly before making your treats.
Treat Ingredients:
- Carob drops or melts
- Smooth peanut butter
Peanut butter and chocolate are one of my favourite human combinations, so I’ve carried it through to these carob treats. They smell great! As noted above, coconut oil can be used instead of peanut butter if your house is peanut-free due to allergies or if you prefer not sharing peanut butter with the dogs. You may need to chill the treats to keep them firm, depending on the quantity of add-in peanut butter or oil used and your ambient temperatures.
Making the Treats:
- Measure desired quantities of carob and peanut butter into a microwave-safe bowl. No more than 50-50 as a maximum in our experience, as per the notes above, else the carob won’t set.
- Microwave on medium heat, stirring periodically to combine and melt. Take care not to shortcut with high temperatures or overheat.
- If you are using a flexible silicone mould, you may find it handy to place it on a tray or a plate prior to filling for ease of movement. I like using a cutting board. Spoon the melted carob mixture into your mould, and then gently tap the filled mould on the surface of your counter top to help level things out and clear any air bubbles.
- Rest in a cool location (or refrigerate) until completely set before removing the treats from the mould.
Easter Dog Treat Making Tips and Tricks
- When using ingredients like peanut butter for dogs, take care when shopping to avoid the artificial sweeteners, particularly xylitol, which is extremely dangerous for dogs. Xylitol may also be labelled as sweetener code 967.
- These treats can be refrigerated and/or frozen. Just like human chocolates (especially non-tempered), you may see a little clouding on the surface after chilling. It’s perfectly normal and still delicious.
- As noted above, unlike many of our semi-healthy treats, these carob Easter egg dog treats are a special little naughty indulgence to enjoy in careful moderation. Again, don’t forget that real chocolate is toxic to dogs. Keep your human treats safely out of your dog’s reach and no sharing. Happy Easter, furfriends!
Hungry for more tasty treats? There are all sorts of homemade dog treat ideas in our blog archives. You can use the category and tag labels to find recipes that might be of interest or use our internal search to sniff out something specific. Remember, treats (bought or homemade) are for spoiling your pup in moderation. We share ideas from treats that we’ve made ourselves for our pets, but different animals have different preferences (likes/dislikes), just like people. Some pets may have special dietary requirements and/or food allergies/intolerances. If you are ever in doubt or have questions about what’s suitable for your pet, have a chat with your trusted vet.
