A dog cake recipe to celebrate Dozer’s birthday!! A 2 layer cake frosted with fluffy “buttercream” ….. but it’s made with wholesome pooch friendly ingredients!
Aren’t you just dying to know how I made that frosting?? 😜
(Looking for Pupcakes? Here it is!)
Dog cake for Dozer’s birthday!
“That frosting tastes a bit odd,” grumbled the husband of Dozer’s boarder. Can you just imagine the pleasure she got out of telling him he’d just eaten a DOG cake??😂
“Serves him right for helping himself to anything that looks tasty” she smirked when she told me. I was laughing so hard at the vision, I actually snorted.
Who can blame him?? The whole point of creating this cake was to make it look like a real birthday cake piled high with fluffy buttercream frosting – but with dog friendly ingredients.
So it tastes nothing like what it looks like – it’s a total spin out!!
OK OK I know you’re busting to know how I made the cake look so “real” so I won’t keep you in suspense any longer! Here’s the rundown:
-
Healthy dog sponge cake – it’s like a very healthy carrot cake, very low fat, sugar free
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Fluffy whipped potato “frosting” – looks just like buttercream, but it’s pooch friendly! While we humans wouldn’t put potato frosting on a cake, our pooches won’t complain!😂 Don’t fall for pretty looking cakes piled high with cream cheese or other high fat or high dairy frosting. Bad for dogs!
🐾 Healthy dog sponge cake🐾
This is a healthy dog friendly version of carrot cake. It’s a moist sponge that’s very simple to make – dump and mix job – and all the ingredients are either good for dogs, or fine for dogs to eat in moderation. I’ve provided some nutrition commentary on each ingredient in the recipe below.
(PS I hope you didn’t miss that I said this is a moist sponge. Just because it’s a dog cake, doesn’t mean we should let our standards slip! 😂)
🐾 Dog friendly fluffy frosting 🐾
Made with fluffy whipped mashed potato! OK, so it’s not something you’d put on a cake for humans – but this is for dogs remember!
I wanted a frosting that was dog friendly that looked just like vanilla buttercream so I could use it for sandwiching layers, frosting and piping. Most dog cake frosting recipes I found use yogurt and peanut butter which is too soft and also, too much of either of those ingredients is not good for dogs.
Solution: whipped mashed potato!! 🤣 I got the idea from Meatloaf Cupcakes that I shared years ago where I piped on mashed potato swirls.
I use yogurt to give it a creamy soft “buttercream frosting” consistency because yogurt has probiotics in it which is good for dogs. But water works just as well!
Look how well it works as frosting for the cake! It’s looks almost impossibly similar to real buttercream frosting!
🎉Dozer’s birthday party!🎉
A cake this good (and big 😳) is made to be shared. And what better way to share it than at an impromptu birthday party down at the beach??
It was, as one might expect, total chaos, and my vision of an adorable photo of all the dogs wearing party hats sitting patiently behind the cake just didn’t happen. (That was total wishful thinking on my part 😂)
Hats were swiped off within seconds of putting them on – hence why you only see photos of 1 dog at a time wearing a hat 😂, the swarm of wet, sandy golden retrievers around the cake was such a hazard at one point I actually had to pick the cake up and run away!
As for the birthday boy, the cheeky bugger tried to get stuck into the cake before it was even served!!
But suffice to say, it was his idea of a perfect birthday. Beach, all his best mates, a big fat cake. What more can a dog ask for??
Actually, the only thing different between this day and every other day in Dozer’s life was the presence of cake. 😂
Happy birthday Dozer! 🎊🎉 Another year older, though not wiser. But I wouldn’t change a thing about you – I love you just the way you are! ~ Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Dog cake recipe - with dog friendly fluffy frosting!
Ingredients
Dog birthday cake:
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup peanut butter (spread or pure)
- 1/4 cup oil (canola, vegetable)
- 2/3 cup milk (or water)
- 1/3 cup honey or maple syrup (or apple sauce or skip it)
- 2 1/2 cups shredded carrot (2 large)
- 2 cups whole wheat / wholemeal flour (or white flour)
- 2 1/2 tsp baking soda
Dog Friendly Fluffy Frosting (Whipped Potato Yogurt):
- 600 - 700g / 1.2 - 1.4lb potatoes , peeled, cut into chunks
- 3/4 - 1 cup yogurt (plain unsweetened) or water
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F (160C fan).
- Grease and line the base of 2 x 20cm/8" cake pans.
- Whisk together eggs, peanut butter, oil, honey and milk (little peanut butter lumps ok).
- Stir in carrots. Then add flour and baking soda, stir until just combined (over mixing = hard cake = sad birthday pooch).
- Divide batter between the cake pans, spread and smooth surface.
- Bake 25 minutes or until skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Cool on racks. Frost per below.
Doggie Fluffy Frosting:
- Boil, steam or microwave potato until very soft.
- Whip potato and yoghurt with an electric beater until fluffy and smooth as possible (won't go 100% smooth) - about 1 1/2 minutes on medium speed (speed 5).
- Use water as needed to loosen frosting to soft spreadable consistency (like human buttercream frosting!). Use while warm (it "sets" when it cools).
Frost:
- Spread 1/4 frosting on one cake.
- Top with other cake. Frost tops and sides with remaining frosting, reserving some to pipe decorations if desired (3/4 cup frosting).
Recipe Notes:
- Eggs - good source of protein for dogs
- Peanut butter - "treat" element, dogs are mad for peanut butter! Gives the cake an irresistible peanut butter smell, 2.5 tsp per slice
- Oil - very small amount used, about 1/2 tsp per slice
- Milk - if you're concerned about your dog consuming dairy, sub with water. Works out at 1.5 tsp per serve, and also remember it's cooked!
- Honey - For a touch of sweetness, 3/4 tsp per slice. Can skip if you want.
- Carrot - carrot is good for dogs! I hide a lot of carrot in Dozer's meals. Aso makes the sponge moist. Can sub with zucchini or sweet potato.
- Wholewheat / wholemeal flour - just like with humans, carbs are fine to consume in moderation!
- Baking soda - to make the sponge rise.
- Potato - Same as flour, cooked potato is fine to consume in moderation! It's a better, healthier option than slathering the cake with a peanut butter yogurt frosting which seems to be the default for dog cake recipes. Too much yogurt or peanut butter is not good for our pooches (whether commercial sweetened spread or even pure unsweetened peanut butter, it's very high in fat. Some yogurt is good for dogs but not vast quantities)
- Yogurt - probiotics in yogurt is good for dogs digestive system, just like with humans! If your dog is sensitive to dairy, just use water.
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Just because this whole post is for Dozer, that’s no excuse to break tradition by excluding the Life of Dozer section!!!
So here he is, starring in his first recipe video. Shooting with Dozer IN the video was somewhat of a challenge…… if he had his way, he’d have eaten the batter raw!! 😂
Theresa says
Happy Birthday Dozer!! Your cake looks delicious and I’m sure you loved it. 🥳
Kelle says
He’s such a sweet dog, and the photos area great. I love that he has so many golden retriever buddies!!
Nindi says
Happy Birthday for Dozer, the cutest dog ever,🍰🎉
Malena says
I haven’t tryed this recipe, but looking at the pictures I can tall it tastes great. I love how much you lover Dozer to create a perfect dog friendly recipe for his birthday! Happy birthday, Dozer!
Kev says
Hang on nagi.ill just go find a dog
Ursula says
Fabulous dog cake – I make a similar version for my group of pooches, and make it in muffin tins. But may I add a caution; there are many peanut butters on the market that are sweetened with xylitol – don’t use these as it is very toxic to dogs. We’ve had a number of very sad cases of xylitol poisoning here in North America. Happy Birthday to Dozer, he’s gorgeous!
Jessica says
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DOZER!! Nagi you are the greatest mom, Dozer is so lucky. Looks like every pup had a great time at the party. I just can’t wait to try my hand at this dog cake. My Bella will be in the kitchen with me (as is normal when I’m cooking) but she will shocked that I will let her actually eat what I’m making instead of just getting the crumbs and spills from the kitchen floor. I wanted to tell you how much I truly enjoy your site. Reading your emails and recipes is one of my most favorite things to do every day. You always manage to bring a smile to my face whether you are sharing a Dozer story or poking fun at yourself for a “mistake” you feel you did. I love that human side….so many do not like to admit that they make mistakes. But for home chefs like myself it’s comforting to know that even the pros make every day mistakes. Thank you for the stories and the joy!!
Barb L says
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DOZER!!! Hope you had a wonderful day enjoying the beach, your friends and that genius cake your mom made for you!! You are one lucky pup!!
Vivian says
Aw, the best start to my day…The Dozer BD party! I loved the one shot with a goldie in the mid-ground whose hat had slipped sideways, pointing out to sea!! What a wonderful time and a great idea.
Pamela Ferrante says
Well HAPPY BIRTHDAY DOZER!!! 🐕🍰🎂🎉🎈🎁. Maybe I should say belated, because you are 1 day ahead of me!!! Looks like Dozer 🐶 & friends had a wonderful time!!! I wish I was at the beach right now! Nagi thanks for the recipe looks good, and I am sure the cake part would be okay for us, but not so much after the icing. hahahaha! You are a great mom to your Dozer, and once again thank you for all your hard work!!! 👍👌😍
Elizabeth L. says
Happy Birthday Dozer!!
Annabelle says
Happy birthday dozer !!!!
hug hug.
Jenny S. says
Lucky Dozer won the jackpot when he was adopted by you. Energetic, fun-loving and generous soul that you are – really shines through in this post. 🙂
Angella Lamarche says
Happy Birthday Dozer! We just got our new baby golden retriever yesterday so will be trying this recipe out next year. <3
Christine says
Happy Birthday Dozer!! Glad you had such a fabulous day, and finally, after all the hard work you put into sooooo many food photo shoots, something yummy for the real star of recipetineats 😉
Musette says
Happy Birthday, Dozer! Your mom is waaay cooler than MY mom! 😉
xoxo Banana Jane
Sarah says
Happy birthday Dozer!
Mace’s 5th birthday is in a couple of weeks and I will make this cake for him. Thanks for the glowing recommendation!
Zuzi says
Dear Dozer, I wish you a happy B-day and many, many more to come! Not just birthdays, but yummy doggy cakes, fun beach days, exciting bird chases and great videos such as this one. You are my favorite star and more adorable than any dish :))! Much love.
Annatjie Feyt says
Happy birthday, Dozer! Will definitely try this cake.
Becky says
Forgot to wish the fabulous Dozer a very Happy Birthday!!
Coralie says
Lol. My 2 and 4 year old are begging me to make it for their birthdays!!! Happy Birthday Dozer, you lucky pup!
Becky Everson says
Love this! I am making this for our Tanner dog. I will cut the recipe in half as he is a Chih-lab ( half Chihuahua and half golden Lab). Looks like a mini lab with a Chihuahua head and tail!! He is one special rescue sweety!