Truffles for dogs? Yes indeed! This is our simple no bake peanut butter, carob, and banana truffle dog treat recipe. They’re pawfect as snowball dog treats or straight up as dog-friendly bliss ball treats. The decadent little balls of deliciousness even have a little bit of nutritional redemption. They’re easy and the ingredients are both people and pet friendly, which is great for safe handling if the kids want to help make some tasty treats for their best furry friend.
Making Homemade Truffle and Bliss Ball Dog Treats
Truffle (bliss ball) dog treats can be made using any combination of dog-friendly ingredients, as long as they set firm. This usually requires using either ingredients that set when chilled (coconut oil is one of my favourites) or absorb moisture to firm up with time (coconut flour is one of my favourites). They’re usually best when stored chilled because of their set state or to keep their other ingredients safe for eating, and can usually be frozen for longer storage. See our post on frozen and chilled homemade dog treats for more cool treat ideas and tips.
No Bake Snowball Dog Treat Recipe
Homemade Peanut Butter, Carob, and Banana Truffle Dog Treats
These treats can be made using a fine desiccated coconut for a finishing roll to mimic the look of human snowball cookies, or you can swap the coconut for another coating or skip it altogether for a simple bliss ball treat. Coconut is cute and adds a great scent/flavour, but it can be a bit messy and it often passes right through undigested so it’s primarily for looks in these treats. Totally optional!
Treat Ingredients:
- 1 ripe banana, mashed
- 2 tbsp carob powder
- 1/3 cup smooth peanut butter
- Approximately 1/3 to 1/2 cup coconut flour
- Unsweetened rice bubble/crisp cereal, lightly crushed (optional for added crunch)
- Fine desiccated for rolling (optional)
Want more “chocolate” in your truffle treats? You can increase the carob to suit your preferences, but you may need less coconut flour in your mixture for a workable consistency to form balls. I included rice bubbles for crunch in the snowball treats pictured in the original post, but have since decided that prefer making my truffles plain. It isn’t a cereal or ingredient that we usually have on hand, and the dogs enjoy their treats just fine without it. Coconut makes the snowball effect, but can be switched to a different coating or left pawfectly plain.
Making the Treats:
The amount of flour needed may vary depending on the moisture in your wet ingredients. Coated truffles are best kept a little on the wet side so that the coating sticks. Plain truffles can be made to suit your personal preferences. Wetter dough may make a softer finished truffle, but is often easier to shape when forming the balls. Mix incrementally and if in doubt, I prefer to err on the side of wet. A slightly soft set truffle is better than a crumbly truffle.
- Mash the banana in a mixing bowl.
- Add the peanut butter and carob powder. Mix to combine.
- Add the coconut flour incrementally, mixing thoroughly, until you’ve reached the desired consistency for shaping. Remember, the finished balls will firm up more with set time for moisture to absorb into the flour.
- Add the rice bubble cereal (optional) if you want a little extra crunch in your treats.
- Roll into small bite-sized balls.
- Coat in additional coconut (optional) or alternative coating, or leave plain.
- Refrigerate until firm.
As with any treat, be mindful of treat size and consumption relative to your pet’s size and any other individual factors. Just like human bliss balls, you can break truffles into smaller pieces for serving and/or safety if your pet tends to gulp treats instead of chew.
When the Dalmatian DIY blog transitioned to the new website, this recipe was checked and re-photographed as part of the formatting updates. The step-by-step photos below show the same truffle recipe being made without a coating. Even easier and still doggone delicious!
Using Coatings to Make Festive Coloured Truffle Dog Treats
Looking for a special holiday or party treat idea? You can switch the coatings on truffles to any small (or crushed/chopped) dog-friendly ingredients. Some can be tinted using colourings and natural tinting ingredients, including pale coatings like coconut, oats, nut meals, etc.
Truffle Dog Treat Making Tips and Tricks
- Truffle treats can be stored in the fridge short term or frozen for longer storage. See our comprehensive post on making and storing chilled dog treats for additional information on frozen and chilled homemade treats.
- Take care when shopping to avoid artificial sweeteners in ingredients peanut butter when used for your dogs. Xylitol (also identified as E967) is particularly dangerous for dogs. Check your labels carefully.
- Coconut flour is a good option for gluten-free / grain-free pet treats, but is also a fairly healthy flour. It is high in fibre, high in protein, and low-GI relative to alternatives. Coconut flour is very absorbent, which is key to getting a nice consistency and balance in these treats.
Hungry for more tasty treats? There are all sorts of homemade dog treat ideas in our blog archives. You can use the categories and tags to explore or use our internal search to find 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.
