Monday, January 23, 2012

New tricks mean lots of treats!

Max is working on new tricks and this week we're working on "Gimmie 5". This is a biggie for him since he doesn't like his front paws touched. He'll put his paw in your hand about 80% of the time...provided there are treats, of course.

Max loves these peanut butter meringue treats and I love them too since they're shelf stable and grain free (and I sneak a few, I'll admit.) These do take a bit of oven time but are so worth it. They're cheap, I control the ingredients and can always have treats without rushing to the pet store. I love this recipe because I make a  full or half batch and experiment with treat sizes and flavors!

On to the treats!


You will need
2 egg whites (keep the yolks for a fresh food mix in if you want)
2 Tbs. white sugar
1.5 Tbs. powdered peanut butter* (we use PB2, found in the health market of our local grocery store)


* You can use any real flavor that's in powdered form and contains little oil. I've successfully used crushed banana chips, carob powder and tomato powder. We tried dried cheddar cheese but the oil deflated the egg whites.


The prep
Separate the egg whites and let them come to room temp in your stand mixer bowl
Mix the peanut butter and corn starch in a small bowl and set aside
Line two (or more) cookie sheets with baking mats or parchment paper. My pans are 1/2 sheet and I use two pans for four eggs. Adjust your number of baking pans and oven space accordingly.
Line a tall glass or narrow canister with a quart sized baggie

Now make them
Preheat oven to 250 degrees and place racks in the middle of the of the oven
Using the whisk attachment on your stand mixer, start to whisk egg whites until very foamy
Slowly add sugar in a continuous stream while still whisking. If using a hand mixer you may need help adding the sugar while still mixing but it's definitely do-able.
Whisk until stiff peaks form and whites are shiny

Add the peanut butter and gently fold into the egg whites until just combined.
Pour the mixture into your baggie and seal.
Cut the tip off one corner of the baggie and pipe "kiss" shapes onto your sheet. You could use a decorator bag if you have one. I usually don't so baggies it is!

These can be placed close together since they don't expand much at all.
Bake for 1 hour at 250 degrees and let cool in a closed oven for another hour.

Store airtight away from humidity but not in the refrigerator

Don't forget to try a few of these before your dog gets them all!

Just a note, These treats are not necessarily for dogs on a glycemic diet or fighting chronic yeast over growths since they use white sugar. I've never tried this with sugar substitutes but if you do let me know how it goes! This recipe also uses cornstarch as an anti-clumping agent for the flavoring but it can easily be omitted if your pet has corn sensitivities.

Pin It

3 comments:

  1. I cannot find the amount of cornstarch to be used in this recipe. It is not listed in the ingredients or recipe directions.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Diane, I've actually omitted the cornstarch in recent recipes. I was using it as an anti-clumping agent for the powdered peanut butter but Max has issues with corn. If you want to use it, a generous pinch, mixed with the PB2, before folding into the egg whites, should be fine.

      Delete
    2. Hi Diane, I've actually omitted the cornstarch in recent recipes. I was using it as an anti-clumping agent for the powdered peanut butter but Max has issues with corn. If you want to use it, a generous pinch, mixed with the PB2, before folding into the egg whites, should be fine.

      Delete