NOTICE 4/9/24: In regards to my Valentine’s Day Treats, I received an email in regards to the chemical Chlormequat. After researching, this is what I found: “* Exposure to Chlormequat Chloride can cause nausea and vomiting. Higher levels can cause slow or irregular heartbeat, tremors, seizures, and coma. This may be fatal. * Chlormequat Chloride may damage the liver.” I will no longer promote the use of oats in treats for rabbits and advise you to research yourself before giving your buns these treats. When making homemade treats with oats, select very carefully. Bob’s Red Mill is the only one I know of that does not use this chemical.
It’s not too late to get in your kitchen and whip up a batch of these special Valentine’s Day Treats for your bun! Quick, easy and all natural, when you control what you give your rabbit for the occasional treat, you can feel good knowing about what you are serving.
If you’re like me, the perfect Valentines Day is spent curled up in a cozy pair of pajama’s snuggling with my bunnies. A glass of wine for me, a Valentine’s Day treat for them and a hallmark channel movie! Sometimes it is the simplest things that show how much we care.
While I promote a healthy daily diet of unlimited hay and water as well as following the bunny food pyramid, it is on these special holidays that I love to indulge my bunnies with a homemade treat. First and foremost let me say, I am an advocate for supporting small businesses that make treats and there are quite a few! However, as someone who loves to cook, I find it is fun to create my own at times.
Over the years I have tailored this recipe to create a somewhat quick and easy treat. I don’t use measurements, as you will see, but create the dough by feel. This allows for more flexibility depending on the ingredients you choose to use. If your bun is not a fan of strawberries, feel free to swap them out with raspberries (macerated the same way), mashed banana or sugar free applesauce!
For other treat recipes, check out my bunny truffles, pumpkin treats and bunny cocktails!
Valentine’s Day Treats
Ingredients:
- replace oat flour with hay fines (or use Bob’s Red Mill)
- organic strawberries
- tapioca starch
- freeze dried strawberries (crushed)
- dehydrated rose petals
Essential Items:
- blender
- paring knife
- saucepan
- potato masher
- sieve
- mixing bowl
- large liquid measuring cup
- heart shaped cookie cutters
- rolling pin
- sheet pan
- parchment paper
Directions:
The first step in making these Valentine’s Day Treats is to make the oat flour. Process organic all natural oats in a blender then sift to to get a fine powder. Add to a large bowl.
Wash, dry and hull the strawberries. Add them to a heavy bottom saucepan with a couple of tablespoons of water and place over low heat. Mash until macerated. Transfer to a blender and blend until smooth. Press through a fine sieve into a large measuring cup.
Slowly add the strawberries to the flour and mix. You are looking for the consistency of cookie dough. Once you have it, place your dough in the fridge for about 15 minutes. This will give you time to clean up!
Remove the dough and roll it out to about 1/4 inch thickness. Using your heart shaped cutters, cut out the treats. Place them on a parchment lined sheet pan and bake at 225 degrees for 30 minutes. Turn down the oven to 150 degrees for another 2-3 hours or until hard and crunchy. (If you have a dehydrator, you can transfer the cookies and dehydrate 3-4 hours at 150 degrees or until hard and crunchy).
Let the cookies cool completely before decorating. Create a pasty glaze by mixing tapioca starch with a little bit of water or with some leftover strawberry liquid. Spread it on top of your cookies then sprinkle on the crushed freeze dried strawberries. Garnish with some rose petals.
Storage:
These treats will last for 2-3 months when stored properly. I suggest a glass container like a mason jar out of direct sunlight or heat. Do not refrigerate…this can cause mold to grow.
