No-Bake Truffles

These no-bake truffles for dogs are packed with health enhancing super foods and are ridiculously easy to make.

Ingredients

1 cup nut butter with no added salt or sugar (example: peanut butter or almond butter)

1 cup oatmeal

1/2 cup carob powder

1/2 cup goat milk

Unsweetened coconut flakes or ground hemp hearts

Dried cranberries

* Alternative yogurts to try: goat milk yogurt, sheep milk yogurt, water buffalo yogurt or, for a non-dairy alternative, almond milk yogurt. 

Instructions

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Combine nut butter, oatmeal, and carob powder. Form into small balls. Dip each ball in goat milk. Roll in unsweetened coconut flakes or ground hemp hearts, press a sun dried cranberry into each truffle, and place on cookie sheet. Place cookie sheet in refrigerator until serving or freeze in a Ziploc bag.

Super-Food Ingredient Notes: Let food be thy medicine

Carob. Carob is rich in natural sugars and contains all the principal vitamins and minerals. In Ancient Egypt, carob pods were combined with honey and wax to treat diarrhea and to expel worms. Carob helps to settle the digestive tract. Dogs love its flavour.

Oatmeal. Oats are one of the world’s healthiest foods. They are nutrient dense and provide sustained energy to us and our dogs. They also soothe the GI tract and the nervous system. Oats contain twenty unique polyphenols called avenanthramides, which have potent antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and even anti-itch properties. They also contain a special fibre called beta-glucan, which supports the immune system’s response to bacterial infections, viruses, fungi, and parasites.

Almond Butter. Almonds are nutrient dense and heart healthy. They contain the entire vitamin E family, including alpha-tocopherol, one of the keys to healthy skin and coat. Almonds are also a great source of the B vitamins, bioflavonoids, copper, and magnesium, which help to support the nervous system. They also contain manganese, zinc, and Omega 3. They’re good for us and good for our dogs, too.

Hemp Hearts. Hemp is one of the best foods we can share with our dogs, helping to support heart health and healthy joints. They are packed with essential fatty acids, including Omega 3, 6, and 9. Hemp is also a source of vitamins C and E, chlorophyll, and has a great amino acid profile.

Coconut. Coconut is rich in digestible oils and also provides an excellent source of fibre which helps to remove worms’ eggs from our dogs. The use of unsweetened desiccated coconut was pioneered by Juliette de Bairacli Levy, author of The Complete Handbook for the Dog and Cat, which was first published in 1955.

Dry Cranberries. Cranberries are amazing. They contain a variety of bioactive components, including the antioxidants proanthocyanidins and anthocyanins and ellagic acid. Anthocyanins are the pigments that give cranberries their rich red colour, and also have an anti-inflammatory action that can even help to lessen allergic reactions. Proanthocyanidins belong to the bioflavonoid family, helping to strengthen blood vessels and improve the delivery of oxygen to cell membranes. Ellagic acid has been found to cause apoptosis or “cell death” in cancer cells in laboratory settings.

Goat Milk. Goat milk is a great alternative for dogs and people who have a sensitivity or allergy to cow milk products. Goat milk contains a different protein than cow milk, 13 percent less lactose, and its fat particles are small, making them very easy to digest. Goat milk also has more vitamin A and vitamin B than cow milk.

Photos from top: Penchan/bigstock.com; Garnar/bigstock.com; Tanya Sid/bigstock.com; Nata Bene/Bigstock.com; Pixelsaway/bigstock.com; Volff/bigstock.com; HLPhoto/bigstock.com; Rawpix/bigstock.com

This article originally appeared in the award-winning Modern Dog magazine. Subscribe today!