Peanut Butter and Carrot Pupcakes are a delicious treat made with carrots, peanut butter, and Greek yogurt topped with a peanut butter yogurt frosting. These beloved pupcakes feature dog-friendly ingredients and are a delicious dessert for dog birthdays and celebrations.
While we love to cook food for people, we adore making treats for our dogs Peeps and Paisley. Whether it's an easy broth or a tasty treat, we truly enjoy how happy they get when we change up their everyday kibble diet.
One of our favorite treats to make is Peanut Butter and Carrot Cupcakes for Dogs, aka pupcakes. These pupcakes are a dog-friendly spin on carrot cake and are great for celebrating any special dog day. From their birthday to just being them, there are endless reasons to celebrate.
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Why Your Dog Will Love These Cupcakes
There are several reasons we love to make these pupcakes. First, they contain healthy dog friendly ingredients. They are also a great serving size, easy to transport, and are topped with a healthy Greek yogurt and peanut butter frosting. These peanut butter and carrot pupcakes are an excellent treat and will absolutely make your dog's day!
This recipe was inspired by our Carrot Cake with Chai Spiced Frosting, but is safe for dogs!
Key Ingredients
- Peanut butter - A healthy source of protein and vitamins B and E. Use a natural peanut butter to avoid any unnecessary additives or fillers. Most natural peanut butter brands do not contain Xylitol, an artificial sweetener that is unhealthy for dogs.
- Carrots - A great source of vitamin A, potassium, and fiber. They will also help clean your dog’s teeth.
- Oat flour - Organic oat flour is made of ground oats and is another healthy alternative flour.
- Baking powder and baking soda - Contains both the base and acid needed for the pupcakes to rise.
- Honey - Known to soothe dog allergies and boost energy.
- Eggs - Packed with protein and essential amino and fatty acids, vitamin A and B12, as well as folate, selenium, and riboflavin. Eggs contribute to improved skin and coat health and stronger teeth and bones.
- Greek yogurt - The best base for the icing because it is low in lactose (which dogs have trouble digesting) and contains probiotics which are good for your dog’s gut health. Some recipes call for cream cheese, but we do not recommend this ingredient because it is high in lactose and can upset your dog's stomach.
Variations
- Mini cupcakes - If you have a small dog, you can make mini cupcakes, just reduce the bake time to 12 to 15 minutes, or until the cake tester comes out clean.
- Plain pupcakes - Omit the greek yogurt frosting and make these pupcakes muffins for dogs.
- Dog bone biscuits - Add dog bone biscuits for decoration and an extra special treat.
Substitutions
- Banana - Replace yogurt with equal parts mashed banana for the cupcake batter.
- Pumpkin Puree - Replace greek yogurt with 1 cup pumpkin puree.
- Apple sauce - Substitute greek yogurt with unsweetened apple sauce or use half apple sauce, half yogurt.
- Coconut flour - Coconut flour is a nutritious alternative to whole wheat flour and is gluten free (gluten can be problematic for some dogs).
- Almond flour - Almond flour is also safe and healthy for dogs in moderation. It's higher in protein and lower in carbohydrates compared to whole wheat flour.
How to Make Pupcakes
- Heat the oven - Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a muffin pan or line with paper liners.
- Make cupcake batter - In a large mixing bowl, whisk 1½ cup Greek yogurt, ½ cup natural peanut butter, 2 tablespoons honey, and 1 egg until combined. Fold in shredded carrots until combined. Finally, whisk in oat flour, baking powder, and baking soda until just combined. Do not over mix.
- Bake cupcakes - Fill each muffin cup ⅔ full with batter. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the cake tester comes out clean and the internal temperature reaches 200°F.
- Cool cupcakes - Remove the cupcakes from the oven and cool for 10 minutes. Once the muffins have cooled after a few minutes, remove the cakes from the muffin pan and cool on a wire rack. The cupcakes will look a little craggily on top, but your dogs won’t mind.
- Make the frosting - In a clean mixing bowl, whip ½ cup Greek yogurt, ¼ cup peanut butter, and 1 tablespoon honey until well-mixed.
- Frost and decorate - Frost the cakes with the yogurt mixture and garnish with dog biscuits. Cut into appropriate bite-sized pieces for your pup!
FAQ
We don't recommend giving these pupcakes to your cat unless your vet approves. One of the main ingredients is peanut butter and that can cause your cat to have an upset stomach.
How to Store Cupcakes for Dogs
Refrigerate these homemade dog treats in an airtight container for up to 3 days. You can also freeze them for up to to 3 months. If you freeze them, just remember to let them thaw before serving.
Top Tip
Watch serving sizes! For small to medium size dogs, we recommend giving your dog half of a cupcake per sitting or making mini cupcakes using a mini muffin tin. For reference, our fox terrier-shitzu (23 lbs) and our yorkshire terrier (17 lbs) share one full size cupcake per sitting. Large dogs can have a whole cupcake. Cut the pupcake in half or into smaller pieces if necessary for your dogs.
Did You Like this Recipe?
If you and your dog loved this pupcake recipe, check out our beef bone broth for a delicious and nutritious dinner for your pup.
Sign up for THP's newsletter and keep in touch on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, TikTok, and YouTube. If you make this pupcakes recipe, tag #theheirloompantry so we can see your homemade creation!
📖 Recipe
Cupcakes for Dogs
Equipment
Ingredients
Pupcakes
- 1½ cup Greek yogurt
- ½ cup natural peanut butter DOG-SAFE, no additives
- 2 tablespoon honey
- 1 egg
- 1 cup oat flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup carrots shredded plus more for garnish
- 9 dog biscuits optional
Peanut Butter Yogurt Frosting
- ½ cup greek yogurt
- ¼ cup peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon honey
Instructions
- Heat the oven - Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a muffin pan or line with paper liners.
- Make cupcake batter - In a large mixing bowl, whisk 1½ cup Greek yogurt, ½ cup natural peanut butter, 2 tablespoons honey, and 1 egg until combined. Fold in shredded carrots until combined. Finally, whisk in oat flour, baking powder, and baking soda until just combined. Do not over mix.1½ cup Greek yogurt, ½ cup natural peanut butter, 2 tablespoon honey, 1 egg, 1 cup oat flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ cup carrots shredded, ½ teaspoon baking soda
- Fill the muffin cups - Â Grease and flour or line a muffin tin with foil liners. For taller muffins, add a liner to every other cavity. The extra space will allow the hot oven air to circulate, resulting in larger muffin domes. For smaller muffins, add a liner to each muffin pan cavity. Fill each muffin cup â…” full with batter.
- Bake the cupcakes - Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the cake tester comes out clean and the internal temperature reaches 200°F. Remove the cupcakes from the oven and cool for 10 minutes. Once the muffins have cooled after a few minutes, remove the cakes from the muffin pan and cool on a wire rack. The cupcakes will look a little craggily on top, but your dogs won’t mind.
- Make the frosting - In a clean mixing bowl, whip ½ cup Greek yogurt, ¼ cup peanut butter, and 1 tablespoon honey until well-mixed. Frost the cakes with the yogurt mixture and garnish with dog biscuits. Cut into appropriate bite-sized pieces for your pup!½ cup greek yogurt, ¼ cup peanut butter, 1 tablespoon honey, 9 dog biscuits
Video
Notes
Top Tips
- Cut the cupcakes into small bite-sized pieces for your dog. While they are cute to serve whole, it’s safer to serve the cupcakes in small pieces.
- Add a foil muffin liner to every other cavity. The extra space will allow the hot oven air to circulate, resulting in larger muffin domes. For smaller muffins, add a liner to each muffin pan cavity.
- Refrigerate these homemade dog treats in an airtight container for up to 3 days. You can also freeze them for up to to 3 months. If you freeze them, just let them thaw before serving.
Kelly
Thanks, my pup loved this!